''Le val d'Andorre'' (The Valley of

Andorra Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...

) is an

opéra comique ''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular ''opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Théâtre de la foire, Fair Theatres of St Germain and S ...

by Fromental Halévy with a libretto by Saint-Georges. Although today almost completely forgotten, it was one of Halévy's greatest successes, running for 165 performances and restoring the then-precarious financial situation of the

Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...

in Paris, where it was given its premiere on 11 November 1848.

Production history

After the premiere, the reviewer of the Parisian '' Revue et gazette musicale'' wrote "This is the most brilliant total success ever recorded at the Opéra-Comique." The opera was translated into German and produced in 1849 in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, where it was praised by Ignaz Moscheles – "Music of a genuine dramatic character, which has more flow of melody than his other operas. The subject is cleverly worked out and very impressive." In 1850 it opened in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, to mediocre reviews, but was graced by a visit from

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

(for which the French cast had to be hurriedly coached to sing ''

God Save the Queen "God Save the King" ("God Save the Queen" when the monarch is female) is '' de facto'' the national anthem of the United Kingdom. It is one of two national anthems of New Zealand and the royal anthem of the Isle of Man, Australia, Canada and ...

'').Jordan 1994, p. 137.

Roles

Synopsis

, Stéphan (

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

) seeks to escape

conscription Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...

by the French army. He is loved by the young Rose-de-Mai (

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 ...

), Rose's mistress, the widow Thérèse (

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 the wealthy Georgette (

). When he is condemned to death for desertion, Rose ransoms him by stealing money from Thérèse, and claiming that the money is from Georgette. In a typically improbable twist (stolen from ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...

''), Rose turns out to be Thérèse's long-lost daughter, Georgette withdraws, and Rose de Mai and Stéphan are free to marry. File:Halévy - Le val d'Andorre - M.elle Lavoye, rôle de Georgette, 2.e acte - Alexandre Lacauchie, 1848.png, Georgette File:Halévy - Le val d'Andorre - M.elle Darcier, rôle de Rose-de-Mai, 1.er acte - Alexandre Lacauchie, 1848.png, Rose-de-Mai File:Halévy - Le val d'Andorre - M.elle Revilly, rôle de Thérésa - Alexandre Lacauchie, 1848.png, Thérèse File:Halévy - Le val d'Andorre - Audran, rôle de Stéphan, 1.er acte - Alexandre Lacauchie, 1848.png, Stéphan

References

Notes Sources * Jordan, Ruth (1994). ''Fromental Halévy, his Life and Music''. London: Kahn & Averill. . * Moscheles, Charlotte (1873). ''Life of Moscheles: '' (2 volumes, translated from German by A. D. Coleridge). London: Hurst and Blackett. . * Sadie, Stanley, editor (1992). ''

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 ...

'' (4 volumes). London: Macmillan. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Val d'Andorre, Le Operas by Fromental Halévy 1848 operas Opéras comiques Operas French-language operas Operas set in Andorra