Handel composed the first version of Acis and Galatea while he was living at Cannons during 1717-18. It was Handel’s first dramatic work in the English language and was clearly influenced by the English pastoral operas of Johann Ernst Galliard and Johann Christoph Pepusch, who worked with Handel at Cannons. work is set to a libretto by John Gay which is based on Ovid's Metamorphoses.
The work was first performed in the summer of 1718 at Cannons outside on the terraces overlooking the garden. The Cannons version included only five singers – a soprano, three tenors and a bass – who not only sang the principal roles but also served as the "chorus".
Here is a video close to the original 1718 performance:
The work was first performed in the summer of 1718 at Cannons outside on the terraces overlooking the garden. The Cannons version included only five singers – a soprano, three tenors and a bass – who not only sang the principal roles but also served as the "chorus".
Here is a video close to the original 1718 performance:
Handel later adapted the piece into a three-act serenata for the Italian opera troupe in London in 1732, which incorporated a number of songs (still in Italian) from Aci, Galatea e Polifemo, his 1708 setting of the same story to different music. In 1739 he adapted the original English work into a two-act work.
The work became Handel's most widely performed dramatic work during his lifetime, and has had a number of revivals in various forms, enjoying frequent performances throughout the 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries. Notably in 1788, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart rescored the work for his then-patron Baron Gottfried van Swieten.
Together with Opera Idaho we will perform Handel's 2 act version from 1739 in a semi-staged production.
The Story line:
Act 1
Shepherds and nymphs enjoy "the pleasure of the plains". Galatea, a semi-divine nymph, is in love with the shepherd Acis, and tries to hush the birds that ignite her passion for him (Recit."Ye verdant plains" & Aria "Hush, ye pretty warbling quire!") Acis's close friend, the shepherd Damon, provides counsel to the lovers as they pursue each other. He sings a beautiful siciliana-style serenade, "Love in her eyes sits playing", upon their first meeting. The act closes with a duet by the young lovers, "Happy we", which is echoed by a chorus.
Act 1
Shepherds and nymphs enjoy "the pleasure of the plains". Galatea, a semi-divine nymph, is in love with the shepherd Acis, and tries to hush the birds that ignite her passion for him (Recit."Ye verdant plains" & Aria "Hush, ye pretty warbling quire!") Acis's close friend, the shepherd Damon, provides counsel to the lovers as they pursue each other. He sings a beautiful siciliana-style serenade, "Love in her eyes sits playing", upon their first meeting. The act closes with a duet by the young lovers, "Happy we", which is echoed by a chorus.
Act 2:
The opera shifts from its pastoral and sensual mood into an elegiac quality as the chorus warns Acis and Galatea about the arrival of a monstrous giant, Polyphemus, singing "no joy shall last". The fugal minor-key of the chorus's music along with the percussive lines in the lower instruments, indicating the heavy footsteps of the giant, provides an effective dramatic transition into the more serious nature of the second act.
Polyphemus enters singing of his jealous love for Galatea, "I rage, I melt, I burn", which is in a part-comic furioso accompanied recitative. Polyphemus threatens force but is somewhat soothed by the impartial shepherd, Coridon ("Would you gain the tender creature"). Meanwhile, Acis ignores Damon’s warning of the fleeting existence of love's delight ("Consider, fond shepherd") and responds hostilely with the determination to resist ("Love sounds th’ alarm"). Acis and Galatea promise eternal fidelity to each other in what begins as a duet ("The flocks shall leave the mountains") but ultimately turns into a trio when Polyphemus intrudes and brutally murders Acis in a rage. Galatea, along with the chorus, mourns the loss of her love ("Must I my Acis still bemoan").
The chorus reminds her of her deity and that with her divine powers she can transform Acis's corpse into a beautiful fountain. The opera closes with Galatea's larghetto air, "Heart, the seat of soft delight", where she exerts her powers to enact the transformation, ending with the chorus celebrating Acis's immortalisation
adapted from Wikipedia
Meet some of the players
Kevin Payne - theorbo
sponsored by Stephanie Kennedy
Praised for his “graceful” playing by the Washington Examiner, lutenist Kevin Payne is active as a recitalist, accompanist, and continuo player in the Seattle area. Recent ensemble work includes performances with Tempesta di Mare, il Giardino d’Amore, New York City Opera, Sinfonieorchester Liechtenstein, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Spoleto Festival, and the Boston Early Music Festival, and he has worked with noted conductors including William Christie, Andrea Marcon, Richard Egarr, Monica Huggett, Jordi Savall, and Masaaki Suzuki. Performance venues include Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Benaroya Hall in Seattle, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., the National Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan, and the Festspielhaus in Baden-Baden, Germany. His playing has been broadcast on a number of national radio programs, including Sunday Baroque and Performance Today.
The great Elizabeth Kenny demonstrating the theorbo and its (many!) idiosyncrasies.
Karim Sulayman - tenor
Grammy Award winning tenor Karim Sulayman is making his Opera Idaho debut in the role he recorded with Mercury Baroque. His debut solo album Songs of Orpheus, was released in 2018 and won him a Grammy for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album earlier this year. The Album also debuted at #5 on the Billboard Traditional Classical Chart and #3 on the iTunes Classical Chart. A Chicago native, Karim has performed with The Boise Philharmonic, Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Houston Grand Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and New York City Opera, to name a few.
Karim and Opera Idaho Young Artist Cara Gabrielson expertly portray the love struck Acis and Galatea. They are joined by Jonathan Woody, making his Opera Idaho debut as Polyphemus, and Emily Hansen who made her Opera Idaho debut as Adina in L'elisir d'amore (2017). Making her Opera Idaho debut, Canadian stage director Erin Amrstrong will lead the cast in this semi-staged production.
Karim and Opera Idaho Young Artist Cara Gabrielson expertly portray the love struck Acis and Galatea. They are joined by Jonathan Woody, making his Opera Idaho debut as Polyphemus, and Emily Hansen who made her Opera Idaho debut as Adina in L'elisir d'amore (2017). Making her Opera Idaho debut, Canadian stage director Erin Amrstrong will lead the cast in this semi-staged production.
