This is a list of operas by Argentine composers.

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

's first native born

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 ...

composer was

Francisco Hargreaves Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

(1849–1900) who composed ''La gatta bianca'' (1875) and ''Los estudiantes de Bologna'' (1897), followed by

Zenón Rolón Zenón Rolón (25 June 1856 – 13 May 1902) was an Afro Argentine musician and composer. Born in Buenos Aires, he composed approximately 80 works including operas, operettas, zarzuelas and sacred music. Rolón also founded a music publishing compa ...

(1856–1902) who composed several operas as well as

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

s and

zarzuela () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name of ...

s. The works of many of the composers from this generation were first performed outside Argentina. Native Argentine opera was to develop much more with the massive European (mainly Italian) immigration in the late 19th century and even more with the opening of the

Teatro Colón The Teatro Colón (Spanish: ''Columbus Theatre'') is the main opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acousti ...

in 1908 where most of the 20th century operas listed here had their world premieres. Some of the first operas to treat Argentine subjects or national themes were Arturo Berutti's ''Pampa'' (1897) based on the life of Juan Moreira and ''Yupanki'' (1899) based on the life of

Inca The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...

warrior Manqu Inka Yupanki. Also notable in this genre were

Felipe Boero Felipe Boero (January 1, 1884 – August 9, 1958) was an Argentine composer and music educator. He is most famous for composing the opera ''El Matrero'', after a play by Yamandú Rodríguez, considered one of the national operas of Argenti ...

's ''Tucumán'' (1918) set during the Battle of Tucumán and ''

El matrero ''The Outlaw'' ( es, El matrero) is a 1939 Argentine drama film directed by Orestes Caviglia and starring Agustín Irusta. Cast * Agustín Irusta * Amelia Bence * Carlos Perelli * Roberto Escalada * Ada Cornaro * José Otal * Sebastián Chiola ...

'' (1929). Considered by many to be the quintessential Argentine opera, ''El matrero'' had a

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 ...

based on gaucho folk tradition and incorporated Argentine folk melodies and a traditional gaucho dance. The Spanish playwright Federico García Lorca was also the inspiration for several Argentine operas. His plays, '' La zapatera prodigiosa'' and '' Bodas de sangre'', were the basis of operas by Juan José Castro, while Osvaldo Golijov's 2003 opera '' Ainadamar'' is based on events in the playwright's life.

List

19th century

*''Il fidanzato del mare'' by

Héctor Panizza Ettore Panizza (born Héctor Panizza; 12 August 187527 November 1967) was an Argentine conductor and composer, one of the leading conductors of the early 20th century. Panizza possessed technical mastery and was popular and influential during ...

; opera in one act to a libretto by Romeo Carugati; premiered 15 August 1897, Teatro de la Ópera,

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

20th century

*''Medioevo latino'' by Héctor Panizza; opera (triptych) in three acts to a libretto by

Luigi Illica Luigi Illica (9 May 1857 – 16 December 1919) was an Italian librettist who wrote for Giacomo Puccini (usually with Giuseppe Giacosa), Pietro Mascagni, Alfredo Catalani, Umberto Giordano, Baron Alberto Franchetti and other important Italian co ...

; premiered 17 November 1900, Teatro Politeama Genovese,

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

*'' Aurora'' by Héctor Panizza; opera in three acts to a libretto by Luigi Illica after Hector Quesada; premiered 5 September 1908,

, Buenos Aires (revised version in Spanish premiered 1945) *''Tucumán'' by

; opera in one act to a libretto by Leopoldo Díaz; premiered 29 June 1918, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''Ariana y Dionysos'' by Felipe Boero; opera in one act to a libretto by Leopoldo Díaz; premiered 7 August 1920, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''Raquela'' by Felipe Boero; opera in one act to a libretto by Víctor Mercadante; premiered 26 June 1923, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''Las Bacantes'' by Felipe Boero; opera in three acts to a libretto after

Euripides Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...

, translated by Leopoldo Longhi; premiered 19 September 1925, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''

'' by Felipe Boero; opera in three acts to a libretto by Yamandú Rodríguez; premiered 12 July 1929, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''Siripo'' by Felipe Boero; opera in three acts to a libretto by Luis Bayón-Herrera, after Manuel de Lavardén; premiered 8 June 1937, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires * ''Chasca'' by Enrique Mario Casella, opera in one act, libretto by the composer; premiered 28 August 1939, Teatro Alberdi, Tucumán *''Bizancio'' by Héctor Panizza; opera (''poema dramático'') in three acts to a libretto by Gustavo Macchi after

Auguste Bailly Auguste Bailly (1878–1967) was a French novelist and historian. Several of his works have been adapted into films, particularly his 1924 novel ''Naples au baiser de feu'' which has had four screen adaptations including the 1954 Hollywood film '' ...

, premiered 25 July 1939, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires Buenos Aires *''La zapatera prodigosa'' by Juan José Castro; opera in three acts after Federico García Lorca; premiered 1943,

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

*''Proserpina y el extranjero'' by Juan José Castro; opera in three acts after

Omar del Carlo ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb ( ar, عمر بن الخطاب, also spelled Omar, ) was the second Rashidun caliph, ruling from August 634 until his assassination in 644. He succeeded Abu Bakr () as the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate o ...

; premiered 17 March 1952,

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

*''Zincalí'' by Felipe Boero; opera in three acts to a libretto by Arturo Capdevila; premiered 12 November 1954, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''Bodas di sangre'' by Juan José Castro; opera in three acts after Federico García Lorca; premiered 9 August 1956, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *''

Don Rodrigo ''Don Rodrigo'' is an opera in three acts by Alberto Ginastera, the composer's first opera, to an original Spanish libretto by Alejandro Casona. Ginastera composed the opera on commission from the Municipality of the City of Buenos Aires, Argentin ...

'' by

Alberto Ginastera Alberto Evaristo Ginastera (; April 11, 1916June 25, 1983) was an Argentinian composer of classical music. He is considered to be one of the most important 20th-century classical composers of the Americas. Biography Ginastera was born in Buen ...

; opera in three acts to a libretto by

Alejandro Casona Alejandro Rodríguez Álvarez, known as Alejandro Casona (3 March 1903 – 17 September 1965) was a Spanish poet and playwright born in Besullo, Spain, a member of the Generation of '27. Casona received his bachelor's degree in Gijon and la ...

; premiered 24 July 1964, Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires *'' Bomarzo'' by Alberto Ginastera; opera in two acts to a libretto by

Manuel Mujica Láinez Manuel Mujica LainezIn fact, the writer himself spelled his surnames without accents, as all his books published during his lifetime show. (11 September 1910 – 21 April 1984) was an Argentine novelist, essayist and art critic. He is mainly ...

; premiered 19 May 1967,

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

*''

María de Buenos Aires ''María de Buenos Aires'' is a tango opera (''tango operita'') with music by Ástor PiazzollaSCP 2005. and libretto by Horacio Ferrer that premiered at the Sala Planeta in Buenos Aires on 8 May 1968. The first part of the surreal plot centers o ...

'' by

Ástor Piazzolla Astor Pantaleón Piazzolla (, ; March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer, bandoneon player, and arranger. His works revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed ''nuevo tango'', incorporating elements from ...

; opera ('' tango operita'') to a libretto by

Horacio Ferrer Horacio Ferrer (June 2, 1933 – December 21, 2014) was a Uruguayan-Argentine poet, broadcaster, reciter and tango lyricist. He is particularly well known for having composed the lyrics for tangos by Astor Piazzolla, such as ''Balada para un loc ...

; premiered May 1968, Sala Planeta, Buenos Aires *''

Beatrix Cenci ''Beatrix Cenci'' is an opera in two acts by Alberto Ginastera to a Spanish libretto by the composer and William Shand, based on the historical family of Beatrice Cenci, the ''Chroniques italiennes'' by Stendhal, and ''The Cenci'' by Percy Shelley. ...

'' by Alberto Ginastera; opera in two acts to libretto by the composer, William Shand, and A. Girri; premiered 10 September 1971,

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

, Washington, D.C. *''Barabbas'' by Alberto Ginastera; opera after Michel de Ghelderode (begun 1977, unfinished)

21st century

*'' Ainadamar'' by Osvaldo Golijov; opera in three images to a libretto by

David Henry Hwang David Henry Hwang (born August 11, 1957) is an American playwright, librettist, screenwriter, and theater professor at Columbia University in New York City. He has won three Obie Awards for his plays '' FOB'', '' Golden Child'', and '' Yellow ...

; premiered 10 August 2003, Tanglewood Music FestivalTommasini, Anthony
"New Operas Remember The Agony Of Lovers Left Behind"
''New York Times'', 13 August 2003 (revised version premiered 30 July 2005, Santa Fe Opera) *"Eterna flotación: Los Monstruito'" by Oscar Edelstein, commissioned by the Centre for Experimentation (CETC) of

, premiered in Teatro Margarita Xirgu (Buenos Aires), on 17, 20, 21, 22 and 23 September 2006. The opera is divided into two acts each with eleven moments, for chamber orchestra, electro-acoustics, 3 leads & chorus, with the libretto adapted by the composer based on poems by

Rodolfo Enrique Fogwill Rodolfo Enrique Fogwill (July 15, 1941 – August 21, 2010), who normally went only by his surname, Fogwill, was an Argentine short story writer, novelist, and businessman. He was a distant relative of the novelist Charles Langbridge Morgan. ...

Notes and references

{{Opera topics

Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...

Argentine music The music of Argentina includes a variety of traditional, classical and popular genres. One of the country's most significant cultural contributions is the tango, which originated in Buenos Aires and its surroundings during the end of the 19th ce ...

List

19th century

20th century

21st century

See also

Notes and references