George Frideric Handel's operas comprise 42 musical dramas that were written between 1705 and 1741 in various genres. Though his large scale English language works written for the theatre are technically oratorios and not operas, several of them, such as Semele (1744), have become an important part of the opera repertoire. Other English language oratorios which are sometimes fully staged as operas include Saul, Samson, Hercules, Belshazzar, Theodora and Jephtha.
Parnasso in festa, a festa teatrale composed by Handel to an Italian text and performed in London to celebrate the royal wedding of Anne, Princess Royal and Prince William of Orange in 1734, has many characteristics of an opera.
List of works
edit| HWV | Title | Libretto | Première date | Première place, theatre | Modern revival | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Almira (Der in Krohnen erlangte Glücks-Wechsel, oder: Almira, Königin von Castilien) | Friedrich Christian Feustking, after Giulio Pancieri | 8 January 1705 | Hamburg, Oper am Gänsemarkt | 4 June 1994, Handel Festival, Bad Lauchstädt | Some music lost; announced as a Singspiel but has no spoken dialogue |
| 2 | Nero (Die durch Blut und Mord erlangete Liebe) | Friedrich Christian Feustking | 25 February 1705 | Hamburg, Oper am Gänsemarkt | Music lost | |
| 3 | Florindo (Der beglückte Florindo) | Hinrich Hinsch | January 1708 | Hamburg, Oper am Gänsemarkt | Almost all of the music is lost | |
| 4 | Daphne (Die verwandelte Daphne) | Hinrich Hinsch | January 1708 | Hamburg, Oper am Gänsemarkt | A sequel to Florindo, intended to be performed on the day after it. Almost all of the music is lost | |
| 5 | Rodrigo (Vincer se stesso è la maggior vittoria) | After Francesco Silvani's II duello d'Amore e di Vendetta Italian libretto |
30 October 1707 | Florence, Teatro di via del Cocomero | 1984, Innsbruck | Some music is lost |
| 6 | Agrippina | Vincenzo Grimani | 26 December 1709, early 1710 | Venice, Teatro San Giovanni Grisostomo | 1943, Halle | |
| 7a/b | Rinaldo | Giacomo Rossi/Aaron Hill, after Tasso, La Gerusalemme liberata Italian libretto |
24 February 1711 | London, Queen's Theatre | June 1954, Handel Festival, Halle | HWV 7b is the 1731 revision; the libretto of a revision of 1717 also exists |
| 8a/b/c | Il pastor fido | Giacomo Rossi, after Giovanni Battista Guarini 8b Italian libretto, 8c Italian libretto |
22 November 1712 | London, Queen's Theatre | 20 June 1948, Handel Festival Göttingen (third, November 1734 version); 14 September 1971, Abingdon, (first, 1712 version) | HWV 8c designates the version of May 1734 and its November revival. The prologue Terpsicore added to the November 1734 revival is 8b. |
| 9 | Teseo | Nicola Francesco Haym, after Philippe Quinault's libretto for Thésée Italian libretto |
10 January 1713 | London, Queen's Theatre | 29 June 1947, Handel Festival Göttingen | 5 acts |
| 10 | Silla | Giacomo Rossi, after Plutarch's Life of Sulla Italian libretto |
2 June 1713? | London, Queen's Theatre? (or Burlington House?) | Much of the music was re-used in Amadigi | |
| 11 | Amadigi di Gaula | Rossi or Haym (?), after Antoine Houdar de la Motte's Amadis de Grèce, 1699 Italian libretto |
25 May 1715 | London, King's Theatre | Osnabrück, 1929 | Various additions during the initial run and the revivals of 1716 and 1717 |
| 12a/b | Radamisto | Haym (?), after Domenico Lalli's L'amor tirannico, o Zenobia Italian libretto |
27 April 1720 | London, King's Theatre | 27 June 1927, Handel Festival Göttingen | Librettos of the revised versions of December 1720 and 1728 exist |
| 13 | Muzio Scevola | Paolo Antonio Rolli, after a reworking of a Nicolò Minato libretto by Silvio Stampiglia Italian libretto |
15 April 1721 | London, King's Theatre | 1928, Essen (Act 3 only) | only Act 3 is by Handel |
| 14 | Floridante | Rolli, after Francesco Silvani's La costanza in trionfo Italian libretto |
9 December 1721 | London, King's Theatre | 10 May 1962, Unicorn Theatre, Abingdon | Revised versions premiered in 1722, 1727 and 1733 |
| 15 | Ottone | Haym, after Stefano Benedetto Pallavicino's libretto for Antonio Lotti's opera Teofane Italian libretto |
12 January 1723 | London, King's Theatre | 5 July 1921, Handel Festival Göttingen | Revised versions premiered in 1726 and 1733 |
| 16 | Flavio | Haym, after M. Noris's Il Flavio Cuniberto Italian libretto |
14 May 1723 | London, King's Theatre | 2 July 1967, Handel Festival Göttingen | The libretto of the revised version of 1732 exists |
| 17 | Giulio Cesare | Haym Italian libretto |
20 February 1724 | London, King's Theatre | 1922, Handel Festival Göttingen | |
| 18 | Tamerlano | Haym, after Agostin Piovene and Nicholas Pradon Italian libretto |
31 October 1724 | London, King's Theatre | 7 September 1924, Karlsruhe | |
| 19 | Rodelinda | Haym, after Antonio Salvi, after Pierre Corneille's play Pertharite, roi des Lombards Italian libretto |
13 February 1725 | London, King's Theatre | 26 June 1920, Handel Festival Göttingen | |
| 20 | Scipione | Rolli Italian libretto |
12 March 1726 | London, King's Theatre | 1937, Handel Festival Göttingen | |
| 21 | Alessandro | O. Mauro Italian libretto |
5 May 1726 | London, King's Theatre | 1959, Stuttgart (in German) | |
| 22 | Admeto | Haym Italian libretto[permanent dead link] |
31 January 1727 | London, King's Theatre | 1964, Abingdon | |
| 23 | Riccardo Primo | Rolli, after Francesco Briani Italian libretto |
11 November 1727 | London, King's Theatre | 8 July 1964, Sadler's Wells Theatre (Handel Opera Society), London | |
| 24 | Siroe | Haym, after Metastasio Italian libretto |
17 February 1728 | London, King's Theatre | December 1925, Gera | |
| 25 | Tolomeo | Haym, adapted from Carlo Sigismondo Capece Italian libretto |
30 April 1728 | London, King's Theatre | 19 June 1938, Handel Festival Göttingen | |
| 26 | Lotario | After Antonio Salvi Italian libretto |
2 December 1729 | London, King's Theatre | 3 September 1975, Kenton Theatre, Henley-on-Thames | |
| 27 | Partenope | After Silvio Stampiglia Italian libretto |
24 February 1730 | London, King's Theatre | 23 June 1935, Handel Festival Göttingen | |
| 28 | Poro | After Metastasio Italian libretto |
2 February 1731 | London, King's Theatre | 1928, Braunschweig | |
| 29 | Ezio | Metastasio Italian libretto |
15 January 1732 | London, King's Theatre | 30 June 1926, Handel Festival Göttingen | |
| 30 | Sosarme | After Salvi Italian libretto |
15 February 1732 | London, King's Theatre | 1970, Abingdon | First draft, Fernando, Re Di Castiglia, revived in 2007 by Il Complesso Barocco |
| 31 | Orlando | After Capece, after Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando furioso Italian libretto |
27 January 1733 | London, King's Theatre | 6 May 1959, Abingdon | |
| 32 | Arianna in Creta | After Pietro Pariati's Arianna e Teseo | 26 January 1734 | London, King's Theatre | ||
| A 11 | Oreste | After Giangualberto Barlocci | 18 December 1734 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | 1990, Karlsruhe | Pasticcio |
| 33 | Ariodante | After Salvi, after Ariosto's Orlando Furioso Italian libretto |
8 January 1735 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | ||
| 34 | Alcina | After Ariosto's Orlando Furioso Italian libretto |
16 April 1735 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | 1928, Leipzig | |
| 35 | Atalanta | After Belisario Valeriani Italian libretto |
12 May 1736 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | 1970, Hintlesham Festival, Hintlesham | |
| 36 | Arminio | After Salvi Italian libretto |
12 January 1737 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | 23 February 1935, Leipzig (in German) | |
| 37 | Giustino | Adapted from Pariati's Giustino, after Nicolo Beregan's Il Giustino Italian libretto |
16 February 1737 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | 21 April 1963, Abingdon | |
| 38 | Berenice | After Salvi | 18 May 1737 | London, Covent Garden Theatre | ||
| 39 | Faramondo | Adapted from Apostolo Zeno's Faramondo Italian libretto |
3 January 1738 | London, King's Theatre | 5 March 1976, Handel Festival, Halle | |
| A 13 | Alessandro Severo | After Apostolo Zeno | 25 February 1738 | London, King's Theatre | 18 March 1997, Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music, London | Pasticcio |
| 40 | Serse | After Stampiglia Italian libretto |
15 April 1738 | London, King's Theatre | 5 July 1924, Handel Festival Göttingen | Also known as Xerxes |
| A 14 | Giove in Argo | Antonio Maria Lucchini | 1 May 1739 | London, King's Theatre | 15 September 2006, Markgräfliches Opernhaus, Bayreuth | Pasticcio |
| 41 | Imeneo | After Stampiglia's Imeneo | 22 November 1740 | London, theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields | 13 March 1960, Handel Festival, Halle | |
| 42 | Deidamia | Rolli Italian libretto |
10 January 1741 | London, theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields | ||
| 49 | Acis and Galatea | John Gay, drawing on John Dryden's translation of "The Story of Acis, Polyphemus and Galatea" from Ovid's Metamorphoses | 1718 | Cannons, Little Stanmore | Variously described as a serenata, a masque, a pastoral opera, a "little opera" (by the composer), an entertainment, and an oratorio |
See also
edit- Handel House Museum at 25 Brook Street and BBC Radio 3 worked in partnership to celebrate Handel's life and music in 2009, with BBC Radio 3 broadcasting the complete 42 operas, 8 January – 25 July 2009
- Handel's lost Hamburg operas
- List of compositions by George Frideric Handel
- Handel Reference Database
References
edit- Hicks, Anthony (1992), 'Handel, George Frideric' in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7
- Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), The Oxford Dictionary of Opera, 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5
- Some of the information in this article is taken from the related Dutch Wikipedia article.