Philemon and baucis haydn biography

Philemon und Baucis (Haydn)

First puppet-opera written by Joseph Haydn

Philemon und Baucis, oder Jupiters Reise auf die Erde (Philemon and Baucis, or Jupiter's Journey to Earth), Hob. XXIXb:2, is an opera in one act by Austrian composer Joseph Haydn to a German libretto, possibly by Prince Esterházy's librarian, Phillip Georg Bader.[3][4] The text is based upon a play by G. K. Pfeffel,[5][6][7] itself a retelling of the Baucis and Philemonmyth from Ovid'sMetamorphoses.[8] The work is in the form of a Singspiel.[9]

Composition history

Hob. No. Subtitles Dates Key Notes
XXIXa:1 Philemon und Baucis1773 puppet-opera
XXIXa:1a Prelude to XXIXa:1 D majorDer Götterat; music lost
XXIXb:2 Philemon und Baucis1776 D minorSingspiel after puppet-opera XXIXa:1

Premiering in 1773 for a visit from Empress Maria Theresa,[2][10]Philemon und Baucis is Haydn's first puppet-opera,[4][11] and the first known to be written for the EszterházaMarionettentheater (puppet theater).[1][12] Its premiere was complemented by a Vorspiel, Der Götterrat (The Council of the Gods), and possibly Haydn's Symphony No. 50, Hob. I:50.[13]Philemon und Baucis was revised to be a traditional opera in 1776.[14][15]

In 1950, an original manuscript was uncovered at the Paris Conservatoire by musicologist and Haydn scholar Jens Peter Larsen.[16][17] Until this discovery, all that remained of the work was its overture and a single aria.[8] Apart from the score for the main story, the manuscript included the entrance of Diana[13] and additional music by Haydn (including an aria from Il mondo della luna), Carlo d'Ordoñez, and Gluck.[8][18][19] The rest of the puppet-opera, including the arrival of Jupiter, the pageant, and the epilogue, which glorified the Empress and the Habsburgs,[12][20] remain lost, likely destroyed in the Eszterháza fire of 1779.[8]

Roles

Role Voice typePremiere cast, 2 September 1773
Conductor: Joseph Haydn[4]
Humans
Philemon, old mantenorJohann Haydn
Baucis, his wifesopranoElisabeth Griessler
Aret, their sontenor Michael Ernst
Narcissa, his wifesoprano Eleonora Jager
Chorus: peasants
Gods
Mercuryspoken
Jupiterspoken

The opera is scored for 2 oboes, bassoon, 2 horns, 2 clarini (natural trumpets), timpani, 2 violins, viola, and continuo.

Synopsis

Part I

Setting: A village in ancientPhrygia

Philemon and Baucis, husband and wife, assist their son Aret and his fiancé Narcissa in preparing for their wedding. As narrator, Mercury furtively watches the family and the other peasants of the village as their behavior grows more and more raucous and depraved. The other gods entreat Jupiter to stop the madness. At the top of Mount Olympus, the gods agree to send a storm upon Phrygia as punishment. The oncoming storm surprises the peasants, and Aret and Narcissa are killed by a bolt of lightning. At first, Philemon and Baucis beg the gods for mercy, but eventually resolve to accept the divine judgment. The storm dissipates.

Part II

After being rejected from all other homes in the village, Jupiter and Mercury arrive at the doorstep of Philemon and Baucis, dressed incognito as vagabonds. The old couple invites the gods inside their hut, still lamenting the passing of Aret and Narcissa, whose ashes are preserved in urns. Touched by the couple's hospitality and grief, Jupiter and Mercury reveal their true identities and reanimate the bodies of Aret and Narcissa from the ashes. Filled with gratitude, Philemon and Baucis plead with Jupiter to turn their hut into a temple so that they may serve his honor as priest and priestess. Jupiter agrees, and everyone sings his praises. The gods rebuke the earlier unwelcoming peasants before ascending to heaven.

Recordings

  • 1953: Meinhard von Zallinger (cond.); Vienna Symphony Orchestra; Erich Majkut (Philemon), Susana Naidic (Baucis), Waldemar Kmentt (Aret), Elisabeth Roon (Narcissa); choir of the Vienna State Opera. LP, Vox PL 7660
  • 2009 (rec. 2002): Wolfgang Brunner [de] (cond.); Salzburger Hofmusik [de]; Manuel Warwitz (Philemon), Nathalie Vinzent (Baucis), Bernhard Berchtold (Aret), Ulrike Hofbauer [de] (Narcissa); Kammerchor Salzburg. CD, Profil PH 09038
  • 2009 (rec. 2008): Manfred Huss [de] (cond.); Haydn Sinfonietta Wien [de]; Christoph Genz (Philemon), Maren Engelhardt (Baucis), Jan Petryka [de] (Aret), Alexandra Reinprecht [de] (Narcissa); Vocalforum Graz. BIS-SACD-1813

References

  1. ^ abBeller, Manfred (1967). Philemon und Baucis in Der Europäischen Literatur: Stoffgeschichte und Analyse [Philemon and Baucis in European Literature: History and Analysis] (in German). Heidelberg: de:Universitätsverlag Winter. p. 108. ISBN . Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  2. ^ abLandon, H. C. Robbins (1981). Haydn, a Documentary Study. London: Thames & Hudson. p. 214. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  3. ^Landon, H. C. Robbins (1954). Westrup, Sir Jack (ed.). New Oxford History of Music: The Age of Enlightenment, 1745-1790. Vol. 7. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 177. ISBN . Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  4. ^ abcGriffel, Margaret Ross (2018). "Philemon und Baucis". Operas in German: A Dictionary. Vol. 1. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield. p. 373. ISBN . Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  5. ^Irmen, Hans-Josef[in German] (2007). Joseph Haydn: Leben und Werk [Joseph Haydn: Life and Work] (in German). Vienna; Cologne; Weimar: Böhlau Verlag. p. 141. ISBN . Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  6. ^Geiringer, Karl; Geiringer, Irene (1968). Haydn: A Creative Life in Music. Berkeley; Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 286. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  7. ^Buch, David J. (2009). Magic Flutes and Enchanted Forests: The Supernatural in Eighteenth-Century Musical Theater. Chicago; London: University of Chicago Press. p. 269. ISBN . Retrieved July 29, 2022.
  8. ^ abcdWigmore, Richard (2011). The Faber Pocket Guide to Haydn. London: Faber and Faber. pp. 312–313. ISBN . Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  9. ^Holden, Amanda, ed. (2002). "Philemon und Baucis, oder Jupiters Reise auf die Erde". The New Penguin Opera Guide. United Kingdom: Penguin. p. 393. ISBN .
  10. ^Clark, Caryl, ed. (2005). The Cambridge Companion to Haydn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 182. doi:10.1017/CCOL9780521833479. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  11. ^Stapert, Calvin (2014). Playing Before the Lord: The Life and Work of Joseph Haydn. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans. p. 115. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  12. ^ abLandon, H. C. Robbins; Jones, David Wyn (1988). Haydn: His Life and Music. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. p. 113. ISBN . Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  13. ^ abBrown, A. Peter, ed. (2002). The First Golden Age of the Viennese Symphony: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Schubert. Vol. II. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. p. 147. ISBN . Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  14. ^Schenbeck, Lawrence (1996). Joseph Haydn and the Classical Choral Tradition. Hinshaw Music. p. 449. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  15. ^Blyth, Alan, ed. (1984). Opera on Record 3. Boston: Longwood Press. p. 15. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  16. ^Shepard Jr., Brooks (1962). "A Haydn Opera at Yale". Yale University Library Gazette. 36 (4). New Haven: Yale University: 184–187. JSTOR 40857941.
  17. ^Geiringer, Karl; Geiringer, Irene (1982). Haydn: A Creative Life in Music (3rd ed.). Berkeley; Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 272. ISBN . Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  18. ^Dahlhaus, Carl; Döhring, Sieghart, eds. (1986). Pipers Enzyklopädie des Musiktheaters: Werke, Donizetti-Henze [Piper's Encyclopedia of Musical Theater: Works, Donizetti-Henze] (in German). Vol. 2. Piper Verlag. p. 746. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  19. ^Porter, Andrew (1974). A Musical Season: A Critic from Abroad in America. New York City: Viking Press. p. 184. ISBN . Retrieved August 1, 2022.
  20. ^Landon, H. C. Robbins (1994). Haydn: Chronicle and Works. Vol. 2. London: Thames & Hudson. p. 257. ISBN . Retrieved July 30, 2022.

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