- Salammbô (Mussorgsky)
"Salammbô" [alternative title "The Libyan"] (Russian: Саламбо [Ливиец] ) is an unfinished opera-project in 4 acts by the Russian composer
Modest Mussorgsky , to his ownlibretto based on the novel of the same title byGustave Flaubert (1862 ), as well as poems byAlexander Polezhayev ,Apollon Maikov andVasily Zhukovsky .The
vocal score of the fragments of the four intended acts and seven scenes of the opera have survived and have been published in "Mussorgsky's Complete works, vol. V",Moscow - Leningrad, 1939.Composition History
The Russian translation of Flaubert's novel was published in "Otechesvennye zapiski" in 1862 and made a great impression on Mussorgsky. He worked on the opera project from
1863 until1866 . In1866 Mussorgsky lost interest in the project. However, several musical themes from this project were recycled and played important roles in the composer's subsequent opera "Boris Godunov".ynopsis
Flaubert's novel "Salammbô" (published in 1862) interweaves historical and fictional characters. The action takes place before and during the Mercenary Revolt, an uprising of mercenaries in the employ of
Carthage in the 3rd century BC.Salammbô, a priestess and the daughter of
Hamilcar Barca , an aristocratic Carthaginian general, is the object of the obsessive lust of Matho, leader of the mercenaries. With the help of the scheming freed slave, Spendius, Matho steals the sacred veil of Carthage, the Zaïmph, prompting Salammbo to enter the mercenaries' camp in an attempt to steal it back.Music
Listen to a fragment of the opera, the "Chorus of Priestesses", at the following links (conductor
Claudio Abbado ):
* [http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/wma-pop-up/B000003FBY001003 Windows media]
* [http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/clipserve/B000003FBY001003/1 Real Player]elected recordings
*1980, Zoltan Pesko (conductor), Orchestra Sinfonica E Coro Di Milano Della Radiotelevisione Italiana, Ludmilla Shemchuk (Salammbô), Georgiy Seleznev (Mathô), William Stone (Balearic Islander), Giorgio Surjan (Priest), Giorgio Tieppo (Pentarch 1), Eftimios Michalopoulos (Pentarch 2) [CBS Masterworks CB272]
External links
* [http://lamp.semiotics.ru/musorg_flober.htm Mussorgsky and Flaubert (Russian)]
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