is an operatic

tragédie lyrique This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most c ...

Antonio Sacchini Antonio Maria Gasparo Gioacchino Sacchini (14 June 1730 – 6 October 1786) was an Italian composer, best known for his operas. Sacchini was born in Florence, but raised in Naples, where he received his musical education. He made a name for him ...

first performed at

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

on 4 January 1786 in the presence of

King Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was e ...

and

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child a ...

. 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 ...

, by

Nicolas-François Guillard Nicolas-François Guillard (16 January 1752 – 26 December 1814) was a French librettist. He was born in Chartres and died in Paris, the recipient of a government pension in recognition of his work writing librettos. He was also on ''Comité de ...

, is based on the play ''

Oedipus at Colonus ''Oedipus at Colonus'' (also ''Oedipus Coloneus''; grc, Οἰδίπους ἐπὶ Κολωνῷ, ''Oidipous epi Kolōnōi'') is the last of the three Theban plays of the Athenian tragedian Sophocles. It was written shortly before Sophocles's d ...

'' by

Sophocles Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or co ...

. The premiere, intended to inaugurate the new theatre at Versailles, was not a success, possibly due to the quality of the performances, the staging or the acoustics. Marie Antoinette promised Sacchini a better production at

Fontainebleau Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...

in the autumn, but the

Affair of the Diamond Necklace The Affair of the Diamond Necklace (, "Affair of the Queen's Necklace") was an incident from 1784 to 1785 at the court of King Louis XVI of France that involved his wife, Queen Marie Antoinette. The Queen's reputation, already tarnished by gossi ...

meant she was unable to have her wish. The news that the production was cancelled is said to have hastened the death of the already seriously ill composer on October 9, 1786. ''Œdipe'' was given a posthumous performance by the

Paris Opera 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 ...

at the

Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin The Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin is a venerable theatre and opera house at 18, Boulevard Saint-Martin in the 10th arrondissement of Paris. History It was first built very rapidly in 1781 under the direction of (1726–1810) to house t ...

on February 1, 1787. This time the audience was warmly appreciative and the opera became one of the most popular pieces in the repertoire for several decades, reaching a total of almost 600 performances by 1844.

Roles

Synopsis

Background

The plot is based on the myth of

Oedipus Oedipus (, ; grc-gre, Οἰδίπους "swollen foot") was a mythical Greek king of Thebes. A tragic hero in Greek mythology, Oedipus accidentally fulfilled a prophecy that he would end up killing his father and marrying his mother, thereby ...

, King of Thebes. Oedipus has been expelled from the city after it was revealed he had killed his father and married his mother. Now blind and aged he wanders through Greece accompanied only by his daughter Antigone. Meanwhile, the throne of Thebes has been divided between Oedipus' two sons, Eteocles and Polynices. But the two have quarrelled and Eteocles has driven out Polynices, who seeks refuge with

Theseus Theseus (, ; grc-gre, Θησεύς ) was the mythical king and founder-hero of Athens. The myths surrounding Theseus his journeys, exploits, and friends have provided material for fiction throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes describe ...

, King of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Act 1

The opera begins with Polynices and Theseus striking a pact: Polynices will marry Theseus' daughter, Eriphyle, and Theseus will help him retake the throne of Thebes, thus forging an alliance between that city and Athens. The Athenians celebrate and Theseus and Polynices go to the temple to offer a sacrifice. Polynices feels guilty he banished his father Oedipus from Thebes. As he sacrifices, the temple fire goes out, a symbol of the anger of the

Furies The Erinyes ( ; sing. Erinys ; grc, Ἐρινύες, pl. of ), also known as the Furies, and the Eumenides, were female chthonic deities of vengeance in ancient Greek religion and mythology. A formulaic oath in the ''Iliad The ''Il ...

Act 2

Polynices wanders outside the temple where he sees an old man being led by a girl. It is Oedipus and Antigone. Oedipus senses the presence of the Furies and is sent temporarily insane. Antigone pleads with the gods to have mercy on her father. A crowd appears and when they learn the identity of Oedipus they want to drive him away, but Theseus stops them and offers the old man his hospitality.

Act 3

Polynices tells Antigone he is so remorseful he would give up everything, including Eriphyle, to be forgiven by his father. Antigone tries to reconcile Oedipus and his son, but Oedipus reacts by accusing her of disloyalty and cursing both Polynices and Eteocles. Only when Polynices begs his father to kill him with his own hands does Oedipus take pity on his son. This act of forgiveness earns the mercy of the gods. The wrath of the Furies is appeased.

Instrumentation

''Œdipe à Colone'' is scored for 2

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

s, 2

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

s, 2

horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...

, and

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

. Like most classical period works, the presence of continuo instruments like

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

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 ...

is assumed as well. Some modern performances have used a

thunder sheet A thunder sheet is a thin sheet of metal used to produce sound effects for musical or dramatic events. The device may be shaken, causing it to vibrate, or struck with a mallet. It is also known as a thunder machine, though this can also refer to ...

to represent the stormy anger of the gods portrayed at the end of Act I.

Recordings

Order of characters: Œdipe, Antigone, Polynice, Thésée, Eriphile, the High Priest, an Athenian woman, a coryphaeus, a herald * MRF (Morgan Recording Federation) 153 (1977) –

Renato Bruson Renato Bruson (born 13 January 1936) is an Italian operatic baritone. Bruson is widely considered one of the most important Verdi baritones of the late 20th and early 21st century. He was born in Granze near Padua, Italy. Biography and career ...

Radmila Bakočević Radmila Bakočević ( sr-Cyrl, Радмила Бакочевић, ; born January 5, 1933), is a Serbian operatic soprano who had a major international opera career that began in 1955 and ended upon her retirement from the stage in 2004. During he ...

, Herbert Handt,

Juan Oncina Juan Oncina (April 15, 1921 in Barcelona – December 29, 2009 in Barcelona) was a Spanish tenor, particularly associated with Rossini and light Donizetti roles, one of the leading tenore di grazia of the 1950s. Life and career Juan Oncina ...

, Maria Candida, Robert Amis El-Age,

Nicoletta Panni Nicoletta Panni (August 27, 1933 – September 12, 2017) was an Italian lyric soprano. Born in Rome, Panni was the granddaughter of Giuseppe De Luca, and was trained as a singer at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia under Giannina Arangi Lombardi. H ...

, Walter Brighi (tenore), Giuseppe Scaleo – ''Coro e Orchestra da camera "Alessandro Scarlatti" Napoli Radiotelevisione italiana'', conducted by

Franco Caracciolo Franco Caracciolo (29 March 1920 – 28 September 1999) was an Italian conductor. Life He was born in Bari in 1920. He studied piano and composing at the Conservatoire of S. Pietro a Majella in Naples, and conducting at the Accademia di San ...

(radio live recording 1971, sung in Italian) * Dynamic 494/1-2 CD – Sviatoslav Smirnov (baritone), Manon Feubel (soprano), Fabrice Mantegna (tenor), Daniel Galvez-Vallejo (tenor), Raphaëlle Farman (soprano), Jacques Gay (bass-baritone), Géraldine Casey (soprano), ''not indicated'', ''Chœur de Chambre et Orchestre de la Camerata de Bourgogne'', conducted by

Jean-Paul Penin Jean-Paul Penin is a French conductor. Biography Jean-Paul Penin is a graduate of the Strasbourg Conservatory of Music (double bass, chamber music, 1978) and the University of Strasbourg where he obtained a PhD. in biophysics in 1974 and a Maste ...

(first world recording June 2004, published 2005) * Naxos, 2006 CD – François Loup (bass-baritone), Nathalie Paulin (soprano), Robert Getchell (tenor), Tony Boutté (tenor), Kirsten Blaise (soprano), Jonathan Kimple (bass-baritone), Kara Morgan, Philip Cave (tenor), Jason Kaminski (baritone),

Opera Lafayette Opera Lafayette is an opera company based in Washington, D.C., that produces French operas from the 17th and 18th centuries. It was founded in 1995 by Ryan Brown and splits its season between Washington and New York City. History Specializing ...

Orchestra and Chorus, conducted by Ryan Brown

Notes

Sources

* * *

External links

Charles T. Downey blog review of Opera Lafayette production (15 May 2005), accessed 5 August 2008

Libretto with English translation

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oedipe A Colone Operas French-language operas Tragédies en musique Operas by Antonio Sacchini 1786 operas Operas based on classical mythology Operas based on works by Sophocles Libretti by Nicolas-François Guillard