Antoni de Literes (18 June 1673

Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

– 18 January 1747

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

), also known as Antonio de Literes or Antoni Literes Carrión) was a Spanish composer of ''

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''. As with other national forms of

baroque 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 ...

, Literes's stage works employ a wide variety of musical forms –

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 ...

s, ariettas and recitative (accompanied and unaccompanied) as well as dance movements and choruses, though here mingled with spoken verse

dialogue Dialogue (sometimes spelled dialog in American English) is a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people, and a literary and theatrical form that depicts such an exchange. As a philosophical or didactic device, it is c ...

. His use of the orchestra follows French and Italian practice in including guitars,

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lute" can ref ...

s, and

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

s amongst the continuo instruments. From 1693, after the exile of his predecessor

Sebastián Durón Sebastián Durón (19 April (baptized) 1660 – 3 August 1716) was a Spanish composer. Life and career Sebastián Durón Picazo was, with Antonio de Literes, the greatest Spanish composer of stage music of his time. He was born in Brihuega, G ...

, Literes became the Master of the Capilla Real of

, playing the bass

viol The viol (), viola da gamba (), or informally gamba, is any one of a family of bowed, fretted, and stringed instruments with hollow wooden bodies and pegboxes where the tension on the strings can be increased or decreased to adjust the pitc ...

and soon being accounted the greatest Spanish court composer of his time.

Zarzuelas

His most famous work was ''

Acis y Galatea ''Acis y Galatea'' is a zarzuela by Antonio de Literes to a libretto by José de Cañizares. It was first performed on 19 December 1708 in Madrid at the theatre in the Buen Retiro Palace for the 25th birthday of King Philip V.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 ...

by José de Canizares, which enjoyed frequent performances in Madrid's Spanish court and public theatres until at least 1774. After 200 years of neglect it was recorded on CD in 2003 by

Al Ayre Español Al Ayre Español is a vocal and instrumental ensemble specialized on early music founded in 1988 by harpsichordist Eduardo López Banzo.Interview with Eduardo López Banzo owww.odb-opera.com/ref> The name of the ensemble was inspired by the titl ...

, with an enthusiastic critical response. Another of his best ''zarzuelas'' is ''Júpiter y Sémele'' (1718), to a text by the same author. This survived in manuscript form in

Évora Évora ( , ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. It has 53,591 inhabitants (2021), in an area of 1307.08 km2. It is the historic capital of the Alentejo and serves as the seat of the Évora District. Due to its well-preserved old to ...

and has also been successfully recorded by Al Ayre Español. The earlier through-sung, allegorical opera in Italian style ''Los elementos'' and the partially extant ''Júpiter y Danae'' have also been successfully revived.

Zarzuelas

:* ''Júpiter y Yo, los cielos premian desdenes'' (1699) attributed :* '' :es:Júpiter y Danae'' (1700). :* ''

. Deutsche Harmonia Mundi 05472 77385 2 *2001 – ''

Acis y Galatea ''Acis y Galatea'' is a zarzuela by Antonio de Literes to a libretto by José de Cañizares. It was first performed on 19 December 1708 in Madrid at the theatre in the Buen Retiro Palace for the 25th birthday of King Philip V.Al Ayre Español Al Ayre Español is a vocal and instrumental ensemble specialized on early music founded in 1988 by harpsichordist Eduardo López Banzo.Interview with Eduardo López Banzo owww.odb-opera.com/ref> The name of the ensemble was inspired by the titl ...

. Deutsche Harmonia Mundi 05472 77522 2 *2003 – '' Júpiter y Semele o El estrago en la fineza''.

. Harmonia Mundi Ibérica 987036.37 (2 CDs) *2004 – ''Júpiter y Danae''. Capella de Ministrers/ Blau CD 190 (2-CDs)

Bibliography

* Antoni Pizà. ''Antoni Literes: Introducció à la seva obra'' (Palma de Mallorca: Edicions Documenta Balear, 2002)

References

External links

* Spanish Baroque composers Spanish opera composers Male opera composers 1673 births 1747 deaths Spanish male classical composers People from Mallorca Musicians from the Balearic Islands 18th-century classical composers 18th-century male musicians {{spain-composer-stub