' ( English: ''The Uninhabited Island''), Hob. 28/9, is an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

(') by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

, his tenth

, written for the Eszterházy court and premiered on 6 December 1779. The

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

is the only one by

Metastasio Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti. Early life Met ...

set by Haydn. The libretto had been originally set by

Giuseppe Bonno Giuseppe Bonno (29 January 1711 – 15 April 1788) Michael Lorenz gives his first name as "Joseph" because Emperor Joseph I was his godfather; Lorenz also asserts that Bonno was born on 30 JanuaryHaydn Singing at Vivaldi's Exequies: An Ineradic ...

(1754, Vienna) and subsequently used by Manuel García. Nino Rota has set excerpts to music as well. The libretto was adapted into French and set by F. I. Beck in Bordeaux in the same year as Haydn as '' L'isle déserte''. A later German version was as a Singspiel ''Die wüste Insel'' (Hob. XXVIII:9). Haydn's work has long been remembered for its dramatic

overture Overture (from French ''ouverture'', "opening") is a music instrumental introduction to a ballet, opera, or oratorio in the 17th century. During the early Romantic era, composers such as Beethoven and Mendelssohn composed overtures which ...

, but the rest of the opera did not see print until H. C. Robbins Landon's 1976 edition (only available for rental). A new edition by Thomas J Busse was prepared in 2007 and is now online. The piece is striking for its use of orchestral throughout. Unrelated to Metastasio there is also a libretto of the same title by

Carlo Goldoni Carlo Osvaldo Goldoni (, also , ; 25 February 1707 – 6 February 1793) was an Italian playwright and librettist from the Republic of Venice. His works include some of Italy's most famous and best-loved plays. Audiences have admired the plays ...

(using the pen name Polisseno Fegeio), set by

Giuseppe Scarlatti Giuseppe Scarlatti (1718 or 18 June 1723, Naples – 17 August 1777, Vienna) was a composer of '' opere serie'' and '' opere buffe''. He worked in Rome from 1739 to 1741, and from 1752 to 1754 in Florence, Pisa, Lucca and Turin. From 1752 t ...

in 1757; it concerns a Chinese woman and Dutch sailors and was revived in 1760 (and again in Vienna in 1773) under the title ''La cinese smarrita''.Groveonline

Roles

Synopsis

Act 1

Using the crudest of tools, Costanza is on the verge of completing an inscription on a rock next to her cave: "Abandoned by the traitor Gernando, Constanza finished her days on these strange shores. Friendly traveler, unless you be a tiger, either avenge or pity…" Her young sister Silvia enters, rejoicing that a lost pet deer has returned, and asks why Costanza is unhappy, being on such a pleasant island far from the world wicked men she has often described, but cannot cheer her. Silvia, alone, watches a ship arrive and runs to ask her sister what monster swims and flies at the same time. Her way is blocked by Gernando and his friend Enrico, and she hides, not being able to overhear their conversation. Both had been captives of pirates, Gernando seized on this very beach while his wife was recovering from seasickness. They split up to search the island, Enrico first singing of his unending gratitude to his friend for helping his escape. Silvia has managed to get a good look at him, too kind-looking to be a man, but not wearing a skirt either. She marvels as well at a new kind of fear that causes gladness: yet more questions for Constanza.

Act 2

Gernando discovers the inscription and believes Constanza dead. He declares his intention to end his days on the island to Enrico; the latter decides he must be carried off by force for his own good, and instructs two sailors to lay an ambush by a stream. He comes upon Silvia who, learning he is a man after all, pleads for her life, but he wins her trust and they part to fetch the other couple. Silvia remains long enough to sing an aria putting a name to her new emotion. When she leaves, Constanza arrives, singing of the slowness of time. When Gernando appears she faints and he hurries to fetch water from the stream. Enrico enters and explains all to her; Silvia arrives with Gernando, having explained everything to the sailors after they had seized him. Enrico proposes to Silvia and the work closes with a quartet-rondo with concertante writing for solo violin and cello.

Recordings

* 1978 – Norma Lerer (Costanza), Linda Zoghby (Silvia),

Luigi Alva Luis Ernesto Alva y Talledo (10 April 1927 – 15 May 2025), known professionally as Luigi Alva, was a Peruvian operatic tenor who worked internationally at the major opera houses and festivals. A Mozart and Rossini specialist, Alva achieved f ...

(Gernando),

Renato Bruson Renato Bruson (born 13 January 1936) is an Italian operatic baritone. Bruson is widely considered one of the most important Verdi baritones of the late 20th and early 21st century. Life and career Bruson was born in Granze near Padua on 13 Jan ...

(Enrico) – Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne,

Antal Doráti Antal Doráti (, , ; 9 April 1906 – 13 November 1988) was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalized American citizen in 1943. Biography Antal Doráti was born in Budapest to a Jewish family. His father Alexander Do ...

– 2 CDs (

Philips Records Philips Records is a record label founded by Netherlands, Dutch electronics company Philips and in 1999 was absorbed into Netherlands, Dutch-United States, American music corporation Universal Music Group. It was founded as Philips Phonograph ...

). Recorded as part of the Haydn Eszterháza Opera Cycle on Philips. * 1998 – Susanne Mentzer (Costanza), Ying Huang (Silvia), John Aler (Gernando), Christopher Schaldenbrand (Enrico), Padova Chamber Orchestra, David Golub – 2 CDs ( Arabesque Records) * 2009 – Ulrike Hofbauer (Costanza), Barbara Kraus (Silvia), Christian Zenker (Gernando), Reinhard Mayr (Enrico) – L'Orfeo Barockorchester, Michi Gaigg – 2 CDs ( Deutsche Harmonia Mundi) * 2012 – Katharina Kammerloher (Costanza), Anke Herrmann (Silvia), Robert Lee (Gernando), Furio Zanasi (Enrico) – Academia Montis Regalis, Alessandro De Marchi – 2 CDs (Naïve Classique) * 2020 – Anett Fritsch (Costanza), Sunhae Im (Silvia), Krystian Adam (Gernando), André Morsch (Enrico) – Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, Bernhard Forck – 2 CDs ( Pentatone)

References

External links

*
Libretto in Italian

Set of manuscript string parts
to the overture at the

Royal Danish Library Royal Danish Library () is a merger of the two previous national libraries in Denmark: the State and University Library in Aarhus and the Royal Library in Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, wit ...

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Isola Disabitata, L' Operas Chamber operas Azioni teatrali Italian-language operas 1779 operas Operas by Joseph Haydn