''Le carnaval de Venise'' (English: ''The Carnival of Venice'') is a '' comédie-lyrique'' in a prologue and three acts by the French composer

André Campra André Campra (; baptized 4 December 1660 – 29 June 1744) was a French composer and conductor of the Baroque era. The leading French opera composer in the period between Jean-Baptiste Lully and Jean-Philippe Rameau, Campra wrote several '' tra ...

. The

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") 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 the t ...

is by

Jean-François Regnard Jean-François Regnard (7 February 1655 – 4 September 1709), "the most distinguished, after Molière, of the comic poets of the seventeenth century", was a dramatist, born in Paris, who is equally famous now for the travel diary he kept of a vo ...

. It was first performed on 20 January 1699 by the

Académie royale de musique The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be ...

in the

Salle du Palais-Royal Salle is the French word for 'hall', 'room' or 'auditorium', as in: *Salle des Concerts Herz, a former Paris concert hall *Salle Favart, theatre of the Paris Opéra-Comique *Salle Le Peletier, former home of the Paris Opéra *Salle Pleyel, a Paris ...

in Paris. Campra dedicated the work to

Louis, Grand Dauphin Louis, Dauphin of France (1 November 1661 – 14 April 1711), commonly known as Grand Dauphin, was the eldest son and heir apparent of King Louis XIV and his spouse, Maria Theresa of Spain. He became known as the Grand Dauphin after the birth of h ...

, heir apparent to the French throne, who enjoyed it and had it staged again in February 1711, shortly before his death. In one critic's assessment: "In a magisterial act of conflation, this composer blends the styles of Lully, Lalande, Monteverdi and Cavalli and manages also to foreshadow Handel and Rameau. He dreamt up a multi-hued score, capable of recapturing in Paris both the carnival spirit in general and that of the legendary Venice in particular." It was presented in July 1975 at the

Aix-en-Provence Festival The Festival d'Aix-en-Provence is an annual international music festival which takes place each summer in Aix-en-Provence, principally in July. Devoted mainly to opera, it also includes concerts of orchestral, chamber, vocal and solo instrumenta ...

, conducted by

Michel Plasson Michel Plasson (born 2 October 1933, Paris, France) is a French conductor. Plasson was a student of Lazare Lévy at the Conservatoire de Paris. In 1962, he was a prize-winner at the International Besançon Competition for Young Conductors. ...

Jorge Lavelli Jorge Lavelli (born 1932, Buenos Aires) is a French theater and opera director of Italian ethnicity and Argentine origin. The son of Italian immigrants in Argentina, Lavelli has lived in France since the early 1960s. He became a French citizen in ...

directed and the cast included

Christiane Eda-Pierre Christiane Eda-Pierre (24 March 1932 – 6 September 2020) was a French coloratura soprano of Martinican origin, Alain Pâris. ''Dictionnaire des interprètes et de l’interprétation musicale au XX siècle.'' Éditions Robert Laffont, Paris, 19 ...

, Martine Dupuy,

Bruce Brewer The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been a ...

, and

Roger Soyer Roger Soyer (born 1 September 1939) is a French operatic bass-baritone, particularly associated with the French repertory and with Mozart. Soyer was born in Thiais, and first studied privately with G. Daum, before entering the Conservatoire de Pa ...

. The Boston Early Music Festival mounted a production in June 2017. A recording with

Hervé Niquet Hervé Niquet (born 28 October 1957) is a French conductor, harpsichordist, tenor, and the director of Le Concert Spirituel, specializing in French Baroque music. Biography Born on 28 October 1957, Hervé Niquet was raised at Abbeville in the ...

conducting

Le Concert Spirituel Le Concert Spirituel is a French ensemble specialising in works of baroque music, played on period instruments. Founded by Hervé Niquet in 1987, it is named after the 18th-century concert series Concert Spirituel. The group performs internationa ...

was released in 2011. Vocalists included

Salomé Haller Salomé Haller (born 11 April 1975) is a French operatic and concert soprano. Life Born in Strasbourg, Haller began her vocal training in her hometown and completed it at the Conservatoire de Paris. Since the beginning of the 2000s, she has made ...

, Marina De Liso,

Andrew Foster-Williams Andrew Foster-Williams (born in Wigan, Greater Manchester) is an English operatic bass-baritone, concert singer and recitalist. Andrew Foster-Williams read music at the Royal Academy of Music in London, graduating with a first-class honours degree ...

, Alain Buet, Mathias Vidal, Sarah Tynan, Blandine Staskiewicz, and Luigi De Donato. ''

Gramophone A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

'' called it "a performance to brighten up the dullest mood".

Synopsis

Alan Rich Alan Rich (June 17, 1924 – April 23, 2010) was an American music critic who served on the staff of many newspapers and magazines on both coasts. Originally from Brookline, Massachusetts, he first studied medicine at Harvard University before tur ...

summarized the plot in these words: The action takes place in Venice during Carnival season. ;Prologue Stagehands are urged on by a foreman to complete readying a room for the presentation of a play. Everything is in disarray, with pieces of lumber and unfinished set decorations lying about. Minerva descends to take part in the celebration and is shocked by the state of things. She decides to take charge herself and calls on the gods of the arts for their help. Music, dance, painting and architecture appear with their escorts and construct a magnificent theater. Minerva invites a choir to celebrate a glorious monarch and unveils a stage presentation of the carnival in Venice. ;Act I Venice, the

Piazza San Marco Piazza San Marco (; vec, Piasa San Marco), often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice, Italy, where it is generally known just as ''la Piazza'' ("the Square"). All other urban spaces in the city (exc ...

. Léonore chides herself for telling Léandre she loved him since she has found him less eager ever since. She also fears her rival Isabelle. Both women confess to one another that they are loved by a young stranger and soon discover they both mean Léandre. Each thinks the other is mistaken. They confront Léandre, who at first cannot choose between them. In the end he opts for Isabelle, and Léonore swears she will avenge that insult. A troop of Bohemians, Armenians, and Slavs appear with guitars. They sing in Italian and dance. Léandre tells Isabelle how attractive he finds her. Isabelle expresses her fears about Léonore, but Léandre reassures her that he will be faithful to her. ;Act II The Salle des Réduits (''discounts''), where gambling will take place during the Carnival. Rodolphe, a noble Venetian in love with Isabelle, is torn between love and jealousy. Léonore arrives to confirm her suspicions, and she tells him how she has been misled by Léandre. Together they plan revenge. The goddess Fortune appears, followed by a stream of gamblers representing all the nations of the world. The scene changes to night, with a view of pleasureful palaces with balconies. Rodolphe has positioned himself to spy on his rival. Léandre arrives with a band of musicians to serenade Isabelle. Léandre and they sing an Italian trio. Isabelle answers them, singing from her balcony. Witnessing this scene Rodolphe grows increasingly angry and spiteful. Isabelle, thinking she is talking to Léandre, expresses her hatred for her jealous former lover. Rodolphe reveals himself, and Isabelle rejects his advances. Left alone, Rodolphe plans vengeance. ;Act III A square in Venice, encircled by magnificent palaces, on which canals full of gondolas converge. Léonore is divided between her love and her desire for vengeance. Rodolphe arrives to tell her that he has killed his rival. Léonore regrets that she ever succumbed to her jealous feelings. She rejects Rodolphe in horror. Rodolphe determines to tell Isabelle of Léandre's death himself. Divertissement of Castelans and Nicolotes, two of the city's rival factions, with fifes and tambourines. The former defeat the latter and demonstrate their joy in dancing. Isabelle learns of and laments Léandre's death. Elle decides to take her own life by stabbing herself, but Léandre appears and intervenes to stop her. Léandre explains that the hired assassin who tried to kill him missed his target. They confess their love for each other. Léandre suggests that they flee by boat during the theater's presentation of the fable of Orpheus and the grand ball that follows.

Orpheus in the underworld ''Orpheus in the Underworld'' and ''Orpheus in Hell'' are English names for (), a comic opera with music by Jacques Offenbach and words by Hector Crémieux and Ludovic Halévy. It was first performed as a two-act " opéra bouffon" at the Thé� ...

(in Italian). A theater appears and is unveiled to reveal the palace of Pluto. Pluto, warned that a mortal is arriving, alerts the gods of the underworld. He is enraptured by the song of Orpheus, who asks him to hand over Euridice. Pluto agrees to do so provided that Orpheus does not gaze at her until he emerges from the underworld. Euridice appears and in response to her repeated appeals to look at her Orpheus does so. The demons of the underworld separate them forever. A magnificent hall. The figure of Carnival appears leading a parade of masked participants from all nations. The maskers begin dancing with great seriousness. Carnival announces he wants to see something more frivolous. A magnificent chariot appears drawn by comic maskers who join in the dance.

Roles

Music

In the final act, Campra uses several provençal folk melodies.

Darius Milhaud Darius Milhaud (; 4 September 1892 – 22 June 1974) was a French composer, conductor, and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as ''The Group of Six''—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions ...

used one of them in his ''

Suite provençale ''Suite provençale'', Op. 152, is a symphonic work written by Darius Milhaud in 1936. A version for orchestra alone, Op. 152c, was premiered by Milhaud himself in Venice on 12 September 1937; the ballet version, Op. 152d, premiered at the Opér ...

'' (1936).

Notes

References

* *''The Viking Opera Guide'' ed. Holden (Viking, 1993)
Le magazine de l'opéra baroque
* James R. Anthony, ''Le Carnaval de Venise'', volume 17 in the series French Opera in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (NY: Pendragon Press, 1989) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carnaval De Venise, Le Opéras-ballets Operas by André Campra French-language operas Operas Opera world premieres at the Paris Opera 1699 operas