Zelmira

"Zelmira" is an opera in two acts by Gioacchino Rossini to a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola. Based on the French play, "Zelmire" by de Belloy, it was the last of the composer's Neapolitan operas. Stendhal called its music Teutonic, comparing it with "La clemenza di Tito" but remarking: "...while Mozart would probably, had he lived, have grown completely Italian, Rossini may well, by the end of his career, have become more German than Beethoven himself!" [Stendhal, 1970 edition, p.394]

Performance history

The first performance of "Zelmira" was in Naples at the Teatro di San Carlo on February 16, 1822. This was followed by a premiere in Vienna on April 13, 1822, for which Rossini wrote some additional music, and Paris in 1826.

Roles

ynopsis

The opera's complicated plot revolves around Zelmira, her father Polidoro, the wise and beloved king of the Isle of Lesbos, and her husband, Prince Ilo. Before the action begins, Ilo had departed the island to defend his homeland. While he was gone, Azor, the lord of Mytilene and a disappointed suitor of Zelmira, had invaded Lesbos with the intention of assassinating King Polidoro and taking over his throne. Zelmira, however, had managed to conceal her father in the royal mausoleum and then told Azor that he was hiding in the temple to Ceres. Azor burnt down the temple, thinking he had killed the King, but he was in turn killed on orders from Antenore, who also aspired to the throne.

As Act I opens, the Mytilene warriors are mourning the death of Azor. Antenore, with the help of Leucippo, plots to take over the throne of Lesbos by trying to incriminate Zelmira in the deaths of Azor and her father. At first, even Emma, Zelmira's confidante, believes the accusations. Fearing for the safety of her young son, Zelmira reveals to Emma that her father is still alive and asks her to take the child into hiding. Prince Ilo returns to the island. Zelmira is afraid to tell him of the accusations against her or to defend herself. Instead, Prince Ilo hears only Antenore's version of the story. Antenore is crowned King of Lesbos. Leucippo attempts to murder Ilo, but is stopped by Zelmira. Found with the dagger in her hand, Zelmira is now also accused of attempting to murder her husband and is imprisoned.

In Act II, Leucippo intercepts a letter from Zelmira to Ilo in which she tells him that her father is still alive and that the accusations against her are false. He and Antenore temporarily free her from prison and trick her into revealing her father's hiding place. Both father and daughter are recaptured and await their deaths at the hands of the plotters. Meanwhile, Prince Ilo is distraught at what he believes to be the death of Polidoro and the unhappy end to his marriage. Emma appears and tells Prince Ilo the truth about Zelmira. He and his men rescue Zelmira and Polidoro. Zelmira is happily reunited with her husband and child, while both Antenore and Leucippo are led off in chains. [ Based on the [http://www.delteatro.it/dizionario_dell_opera/z/zelmira.php synopsis in Italian] in Gelli, Piero (ed.), "Dizionario dell'Opera", 2006, Milan: Baldini Castoldi Dalai, ISBN 8884907802 ]

elected recordings

*Rossini: "Zelmira" (Virginia Zeani, Nicola Tagger, Gastone Limarilli, Paolo Washington, Anna Rota, Guido Mazzini, Giuseppe Moretti, Enrico Campi; Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro San Carlo) Conductor: Carlo Franci. Recorded live 1965. Opera D'Oro ODO 1455
*Rossini: "Zelmira" (Cecilia Gasdia, William Matteuzzi, Chris Merritt, Bernarda Fink, Boaz Senator, Jose Garcia; I Solisti Veneti) Conductor: Claudio Scimone. Recorded 1989. Erato 45419
*Rossini: "Zelmira" (Elizabeth Futral, Bruce Ford, Marco Palazzi, Antonio Siragusa, Manuela Custer, Marco Vinco; Scottish Chamber Orchestra) Conductor: Maurizio Benini. Recorded 2003. Opera Rara ORC 27

References

*Stendhal, "Life of Rossini" translated and annotated by R. N. Coe (University of Washington Press, 1970)
*Kalmus/Belwin Mills has reprinted a piano-vocal score of apparently French origin with a table of contents giving prices for all the individual numbers included. No recitatives are given and whole scenes are omitted.
*Osborne, Richard (1992), 'Zelmira' in "The New Grove Dictionary of Opera", ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7
*The critical edition by Helen Greenwald and Kathleen Kuzmick Hansell forms vol. 33 of the Fondazione Rossini Pesaro's "Opere" (Ricordi 2005). The music for the large stage band (20+) fills a separate volume.

External links

* [http://www.karadar.com/Librettos/rossini_zelmira.html Libretto] (in Italian) at Karadar.com
* [http://www.delteatro.it/dizionario_dell_opera/z/zelmira.php Synopsis and analysis] (in Italian) in Gelli, Piero (ed.), "Dizionario dell'Opera", 2006, Milan: Baldini Castoldi Dalai, ISBN 8884907802
* [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k74052m Text of "Zelmire"] by Pierre-Laurent de Belloy
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DEFDC163BF937A35756C0A96F948260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=print "The New York Times"] on the 1989 revival of "Zelmira" at the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro.
* [http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/s2.cfm?id=966072003 "The Scotsman"] on the 2003 concert performance in Edinburgh.
*Chris Mullins, [http://www.operatoday.com/content/2004/12/rossini_zelmira.php 'Recording review: "Zelmira", Opera Rara'] , "Opera Today", 22 December 2004.
*The [http://humanities.uchicago.edu/orgs/ciao/Rossini%20operas/1zel.html University of Chicago Center for Italian Opera Studies] has a definitive role list from the critical edition by Greenwald and Hansell and some musical analysis.