''La Calliroe'' is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

in three acts by

Josef Mysliveček Josef Mysliveček (9 March 1737 – 4 February 1781) was a Czech composer who contributed to the formation of late eighteenth-century classicism in music. Mysliveček provided his younger friend Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with significant comp ...

set to a libretto by Matteo Verazi that is based on Greek legends about the

Oceanid In Greek mythology, the Oceanids or Oceanides (; grc, Ὠκεανίδες, Ōkeanídes, pl. of grc, Ὠκεανίς, Ōkeanís, label=none) are the nymphs who were the three thousand (a number interpreted as meaning "innumerable") daughters o ...

Callirrhoe. This opera (and all the rest of Mysliveček's operas) belong to the serious type in Italian language referred to as ''

opera seria ''Opera seria'' (; plural: ''opere serie''; usually called ''dramma per musica'' or ''melodramma serio'') is an Italian musical term which refers to the noble and "serious" style of Italian opera that predominated in Europe from the 1710s to abo ...

''. Vocal pieces from the opera composed for the singer

Luigi Marchesi Luigi Marchesi (; 8 August 1754 – 14 December 1829) was an Italian castrato singer, one of the most prominent and charismatic to appear in Europe during the second half of the eighteenth century. His singing was praised by the likes of Mozart ...

in the role of Tarsile were widely copied in eighteenth-century collections of operatic

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

Performance history

The opera was first performed at the Teatro San Carlo in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

on 30 May 1779 to commemorate the

nameday In Christianity, a name day is a tradition in many countries of Europe and the Americas, among other parts of Christendom. It consists of celebrating a day of the year that is associated with one's baptismal name, which is normatively that of a ...

of Ferdinand, the king of Naples. ''La Calliroe'' was the first opera Mysliveček composed after returning to Italy from

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, where he was detained for months in order to recover from an operation intended to alleviate the effects of

syphilis Syphilis () is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents (primary, secondary, latent, an ...

. Taking advantage of his position as the composer most frequently engaged to compose operas for the Teatro San Carlo during the 1770s, he made certain that the finest singers who had appeared in his opera ''Ezio'' in Munich in 1777 were engaged for ''La Calliroe''. In a letter to his father of 11 October 1777,

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

reported how Mysliveček bragged to him about his ability to influence the choice of singers at the San Carlo. One of the cast members was the great

castrato A castrato (Italian, plural: ''castrati'') is a type of classical male singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto. The voice is produced by castration of the singer before puberty, or it occurs in one who, due to ...

, a close professional associate of the composer, whose career was critically aided by Mysliveček's intervention. Following his appearances in Mysliveček's operas ''La Calliroe'' and '' L'Olimpiade'' the following autumn, Marchesi was able to establish himself permanently as one of the leading singers in Italy. ''La Calliroe'' was very well received by the Neapolitan musical public, one of the most successful of the nine operas Mysliveček composed for the Teatro San Carlo. It was revived in

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

and Pontremoli in the spring of 1779 and in

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

the following summer.

Roles

Vocal set pieces

Act I, scene 1 - Aria of Tarsile, "Se fedel mi serba il fato"
Act I, scene 2 - Aria of Agricane, "Son guerriero e sono amante"
Act I, scene 4 - Aria of Sidonio, "Del tuo diletto del caro oggetto"
Act I, scene 5 - Aria of Calliroe, "Se dal cielo amiche stelle
Act I, scene 6 - Aria of Briceste, "Perder l'oggetto di un grato amore"
Act I, scene 8 - Cavatina for Agricane, "Care pupille belle"
Act I, scene 9 - Aria of Arsace, "Dalla fatal procella"
Act I, scene 10 - Accompanied recitative for Calliroe and Tarsile, "Ah no, Tarsile"
Act I, scene 10 - Duet for Calliroe and Tarsile, "Serena quei rai" Act II, scene 1 - Aria of Sidonio, "So che fù troppo audace"
Act II, scene 8 - Accompanied recitative for Tarsile, "In tanto almeno"
Act II, scene 8 - Aria of Tarsile, "Parto, ma in questo addio"
Act II, scene 10 - Aria of Briceste, "Son tra notturni orrori"
Act II, scene 11 - Accompanied recitative for Calliroe, "In van ragioni"
Act II, scene 11 - Aria of Calliroe, "Tergi, o caro, il pianto amaro"
Act II, scene 13 - Aria of Arsace, "Vada, si, in campo armato"
Act II, scene 14 - Aria of Agricane, "Odo le mestre voci"
Act II, scene 15 - Accompanied recitative of Tarsile, "Che risolvi Tarsile?"
Act II, scene 15 - Aria of Tarsile, "Mille cose in un momento" Act III, scene 1 - Aria of Calliroe - "Ritorna nell'alma il dolce sereno"
Act III, scene 4 - Aria of Agricane, "Da cento affanni e cento"
Act III, scene 7 - Aria (Rondò) of Tarsile, "Volgi ridente, o cara"

Score

The complete score of ''La Calliroe'' is available for study online on the Italian website Internet Culturale in the form of a reproduction of a manuscript once in the possession of the Teatro San Carlo of Naples.

References

* Freeman, Daniel E. ''Josef Mysliveček, "Il Boemo."'' Sterling Heights, Mich.: Harmonie Park Press, 2009.

External links

Complete score in manuscript available for viewing and downloading at http://www.internetculturale.it (Subcategory: Digital Contents) {{DEFAULTSORT:Calliroe Italian-language operas Operas by Josef Mysliveček 1778 operas Opera seria Operas Operas based on classical mythology Opera world premieres at the Teatro San Carlo