''Atlántida'' (''Atlantis'') is an
opera
Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
(titled a 'cantata escénica') in a prologue and three parts, by
Manuel de Falla
Manuel de Falla y Matheu (, 23 November 187614 November 1946) was a Spanish composer and pianist. Along with Isaac Albéniz, Francisco Tárrega, and Enrique Granados, he was one of Spain's most important musicians of the first half of the 20t ...
, based on the Catalan poem ''
L'Atlàntida
''L'Atlàntida'' () is an 1877 poem in Catalan by Jacint Verdaguer. It consists of an introduction, ten books, and a conclusion, dealing with the wanderings of Heracles in the Iberian Peninsula, the sinking of the continent of Atlantis, the cre ...
'' by
Jacint Verdaguer
Jacint Verdaguer i Santaló (; 17 May 1845 – 10 June 1902) was a Catalan writer, regarded as one of the greatest poets of Catalan literature and a prominent literary figure of the Renaixença, a cultural revival movement of the late Rom ...
. Falla worked on the score for twenty years but had not completed it at his death in Argentina in 1946; his disciple
Ernesto Halffter prepared the score for performance.
Original legend on which the opera is based
Verdaguer brought together pre-history and history: a child (
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...
) is the sole survivor of a shipwreck of a Genoese boat off the Spanish coast. After reaching shore, he is adopted by a hermit who recounts the history of the earth and seas. He begins the legend with Alcide (
Heracles
Heracles ( ; ), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a Divinity, divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of ZeusApollodorus1.9.16/ref> and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive descent through ...
) arriving from Greece to attack the Atlanteans reaching the Spanish side of the Pyrenees. He finds a huge fire started by
Geryon, a three-headed African monster. King Tubal of the Pyrenees is killed and his daughter
Pyrene gives her father to Alcide imploring him to set forth to kill the monster, before dying. Alcide decides to make a port where a white barque (barca) had landed. After arriving in Cádiz from Barcelona, Alcide goes to the
Hesperides
In Greek mythology, the Hesperides (; , ) are the nymphs of evening and golden light of sunsets, who were the "Daughters of the Evening" or "Nymphs of the West". They were also called the Atlantides () from their reputed father, Atlas (mytholog ...
, finds the orange tree, Atlas's widow and three daughters, and kills the dragon wrapped in the tree defending the entry to the continent. The Hesperides die (ascending to the heavens as the
Pleiades
The Pleiades (), also known as Seven Sisters and Messier 45 (M45), is an Asterism (astronomy), asterism of an open cluster, open star cluster containing young Stellar classification#Class B, B-type stars in the northwest of the constellation Tau ...
) and Alcide returns to Cádiz; he kills Geryon and sees the waters break over Mount Calpe and rush over Atlantis. Still accompanied by the hermit, the adult Columbus dreams of unlocking the mystery of Atlantis and appeals to
Queen Isabella of Spain who gives him jewels to pay for his venture. The old man bids Columbus to fly.
Composition and performance history
''Atlántida'' started in 1926 as a
cantata
A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian language, Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal music, vocal Musical composition, composition with an musical instrument, instrumental accompaniment, ty ...
, but grew over 20 years to become a full opera. The poem suited him as he responded fully to its blend of mythology and primitive
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...
, and the setting of Cádiz, his home city. He visited many of the sites referred to in the epic:
Jerez de la Frontera
Jerez de la Frontera () or simply Jerez, also cited in old English-language sources as , is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the province of Cádiz in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Sp ...
,
Sanlúcar de Barrameda, the temple of Hercules,
Medina-Sidonia,
Tarifa and its
castle
A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
. Falla died in Argentina before he finished the work, leaving a loose collection of sketches. Ernesto Halffter undertook the long work of editing and completion.
The music shows the influence of classical models from Spanish
polyphony
Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice ( monophony) or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chord ...
, 17th-century
monody
In music, monody refers to a solo vocal style distinguished by having a single melody, melodic line and instrumental accompaniment. Although such music is found in various cultures throughout history, the term is specifically applied to Italy, ...
, and of 16th-century or earlier choral writing.
It is not a true opera, more a stage cantata, where the chorus takes a principal role, interrupted by
Coryphaeus
In Classical Athens, Attic Theatre of ancient Greece , drama, the coryphaeus, corypheus, or koryphaios (Greek language, Greek κορυφαῖος ''koryphaîos'', from κορυφή ''koryphḗ́'', the top of the head) was the leader of the Greek ...
as the narrator. Sometimes this narration of the action is depicted on the stage by the appropriate characters (some singers, some – Hercules and Columbus – actors).
When finally completed, large extracts were performed in a concert version at the
Liceu, Barcelona, in November 1961, conducted by
Eduard Toldrà, with
Victoria de los Ángeles as Isabella, and in Cádiz. The following June it was presented in a staged production conducted by
Thomas Schippers at
La Scala
La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...
, Milan, in Italian, with ,
Giulietta Simionato and
Teresa Stratas
Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) is a Canadian operatic soprano and actress of Greeks, Greek descent. She is especially well known for her award-winning recording of Alban Berg's ''Lulu (opera), Lulu''. She is formally retired.
Early life an ...
and produced by
Margherita Wallmann, (according to the ''Opera'' magazine reviewer this performance took three hours.
[Sartori, Claudio. "World Reports – ''Atlantida'' Reaches the Stage", '']Opera
Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
'', September 1962 pp. 599–601.) then in Berlin and Buenos Aires, and America conducted by
Ernest Ansermet.
The score was withdrawn by Halffter after this while he made further revisions; a shorter version was heard in concert form in Lucerne in 1976 and a longer definitive version heard at the Granada Festival the following year prior to a studio recording at the
Teatro Real
The Teatro Real () is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace, and known colloquially as "''El Real''" (The Royal One). it is considered the top institution of the performing and musical arts ...
.
[ Crichton, Ronald. Manuel de Falla. In: '']The New Grove Dictionary of Opera
''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volumes.
The dictionary was first published in 1992 by Macmillan Reference, L ...
''. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.
The opera has three major singing roles: the narrator Corifeo (
baritone
A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...
), an old man who tells Columbus of the sinking of
Atlantis
Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...
, Queen Pyrene (
mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano (, ), or mezzo ( ), is a type of classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A bel ...
), and Queen Isabella (
soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...
), then minor roles such as the three-headed Geryones (three tenors).
Roles
Synopsis
In the first part, Christopher Columbus, as a boy, is shipwrecked on an island. To console him an Old Man tells him the legend of Atlantis, the fabled land wiped out by Hercules and submerged at the bottom of the sea off the coast of Spain. To the spot – the
Pillars of Hercules
The Pillars of Hercules are the promontory, promontories that flank the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar. The northern Pillar, Calpe Mons, is the Rock of Gibraltar. A corresponding North African peak not being predominant, the identity of ...
– Columbus, now a grown man, comes and dreams of crossing the ocean. Isabella of Spain provides him with the means and he discovers the New World and claims it for Christendom. The work is both an epic of Catholic Spain and its mission in the world, but treated with poetic dignity and classical restraint.
Recordings
A live recording of the 1962 stage premiere at La Scala in Milan was issued by Memories HR on two CDs in 1993.
* Complete: Enriqueta Tarrés, Anna Ricci i Giraudo, Vicenç Sardinero; Escolanía de Nuestra Señora del Recuerdo, Chorus and
National Orchestra of Spain conducted by
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (born Rafael Frühbeck; 15 September 1933 – 11 June 2014) was a Spanish conductor and composer. Frühbeck was born in Burgos, Spain to a family of German ancestry. He first took up conducting while on military serv ...
. EMI, 1978, two LPs
* Complete:
Simon Estes,
María Bayo,
Teresa Berganza; Coral Universitat de less Illes Balears. Coro Polifonico Universitario de la Laguna. Orfeon Navarra Reverter. Orfeon Universitario Simon Bolivar. Pequenos Cantores de Valencia. Joven Orquesta Nacional de España,
Edmon Colomer. Valois, 1992, two CDs
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Atlantida
Operas by Manuel de Falla
Operas
Catalan-language operas
1962 operas
Operas based on literature
Opera world premieres at La Scala
Operas completed by others
Cultural depictions of Christopher Columbus