''Orfeo dolente'' (Orpheus inconsolable) 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 ...

by Domenico Belli to 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 ...

Gabriello Chiabrera Gabriello Chiabrera (; 18 June 155214 October 1638) was an Italian poet, sometimes called the Italian Pindar. Endnote: The best editions of Chiabrera are those of Rome (1718, 3 vols. 8vo); of Venice (1731, 4 vols. 8vo); of Leghorn (1781, 5 vols., ...

, an example of "representative style" of the early

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

era. The work is divided into five interludes which were performed for the first time as

intermedi The intermedio (also intromessa, introdutto, tramessa, tramezzo, intermezzo, intermedii), in the Italian Renaissance, was a theatrical performance or spectacle with music and often dance, which was performed between the acts of a play to cele ...

in a performance of Torquato Tasso's play ''

Aminta ''Aminta'' is a play written by Torquato Tasso in 1573, represented during a garden party at the court of Ferrara. Both the actors and the public were noble persons living at the Court, who could understand subtle allusions the poet made to tha ...

'' at the in Florence in 1616.Lattarico. Jean-François (2007)
"Florence 1616: A musical laboratory"
in ''Firenze 1616'' (liner notes), pp. 52–57.

Alpha Records Outhere Music is a Belgian classical music and jazz publisher, directed by Charles Adriaenssen, which owns several formerly independent labels, many of them boutique early music specialists: * Fuga Libera, a Belgian label founded in 2004 under ...

. Retrieved 5 June 2018. Operas based on the

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jaso ...

myths, and especially the story of his journey to the underworld to rescue his wife, Eurydice, were amongst the earliest examples of the art form, Monteverdi's ''

L'Orfeo ''L'Orfeo'' ( SV 318) (), sometimes called ''La favola d'Orfeo'' , is a late Renaissance/early Baroque ''favola in musica'', or opera, by Claudio Monteverdi, with a libretto by Alessandro Striggio. It is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, and ...

'' is a notable example. Belli's work is regarded as one of the best examples of ''recitar cantando'' (acting while singing), a concept that had developed in the late 16th century.Hill, John Walter (January–June 1979)
"Oratory Music in Florence, I: "Recitar Cantando", 1583-1655"
''Acta Musicologica'', Vol. 51, No. 1, pp. 108-136. Retrieved 5 June 2018 . Most of Belli's music has been lost. However, by virtue of his music in ''Orfeo dolente'', he came to be seen as a "researcher of passions through music". In this work he tried different musical methods to express passions in adherence to the new requirements for court performances. He enriched the

monodic In music, monody refers to a solo vocal style distinguished by having a single melodic line and instrumental accompaniment. Although such music is found in various cultures throughout history, the term is specifically applied to Italian song of ...

formula by using violent dissonances, as be seen in his

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, including "Di vostri occhi" and "Ardo ma non ardisco". He has been described as sublime in the tragic. He emphasized this aspect by resisting the vocal

embellishments In music, ornaments or embellishments are musical flourishes—typically, added notes—that are not essential to carry the overall line of the melody (or harmony), but serve instead to decorate or "ornament" that line (or harmony), provide add ...

used by his contemporaries. Florentine by birth and with a similar approach to other "fathers" of opera such as

Jacopo Peri Jacopo Peri (20 August 156112 August 1633), known under the pseudonym Il Zazzerino, was an Italian composer and singer of the transitional period between the Renaissance and Baroque styles, and is often called the inventor of opera. He wrote the ...

Giulio Caccini Giulio Romolo Caccini (also Giulio Romano) (8 October 1551 – buried 10 December 1618) was an Italian composer, teacher, singer, instrumentalist and writer of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras. He was one of the founders of the genre ...

Emilio de' Cavalieri Emilio de' Cavalieri (c. 155011 March 1602), or Emilio dei Cavalieri, the spellings "del" and "Cavaliere" are contemporary typographical errors, was an Italian composer, producer, organist, diplomat, choreographer and dancer at the end of th ...

and

Marco da Gagliano Marco da Gagliano (1 May 1582 – 25 February 1643) was an Italian composer of the early Baroque era. He was important in the early history of opera and the development of the solo and concerted madrigal. Life He was born in Florence and li ...

, Belli worked on other aspects of court spectacles, such as dances, intermedi, and even a maritime fable on the history of Andromeda (music lost) which was highly praised by

. He published two collections of music the same year as ''Orfeo dolente'', ''Officium defunctorum'' and ''First Book of Arias''. They are his only surviving works. ''Orfeo dolente'' was transcribed by

Francesco Malipiero Francesco Malipiero (9 January 1824 - 12 May 1887) was an Italian composer. He was the father of conductor and pianist Luigi Malipiero and the grandfather of composer and musicologist Gian Francesco Malipiero. Trained in Venice, he composed a large ...

in 1951, and by

Bruno Maderna Bruno Maderna (21 April 1920 – 13 November 1973) was an Italian conductor and composer. Life Maderna was born Bruno Grossato in Venice but later decided to take the name of his mother, Caterina Carolina Maderna.Interview with Maderna‘s thr ...

in 1968.Opéra Baroque
"Orfeo dolente (Orphée inconsolable)"
Retrieved 5 June 2018 A free edition was released by Musica Antica Rotherhithe in 2021 following its first complete performance in modern times in London, United Kingdom.

References

External links

*
L'Orfeo Dolente, opera in 5 intermedi
description on

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

Libretto in Italian
{{Orpheus and Eurydice Italian-language operas Operas about Orpheus Baroque compositions Operas 1616 operas

See also

References

External links