Berenice (opera)

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Operas by George Frideric Handel

Almira (1705)
Florindo (1708)
Rodrigo (1707)
Agrippina (1709)
Rinaldo (1711)
Il pastor fido (1712)
Teseo (1713)
Amadigi di Gaula (1715)
Acis and Galatea (1718)
Radamisto (1720)
Muzio Scevola (1721)
Floridante (1721)
Ottone (1723)
Flavio (1723)
Giulio Cesare (1724)
Tamerlano (1724)
Rodelinda (1725)
Scipione (1726)
Alessandro (1726)
Admeto (1727)
Riccardo Primo (1727)
Siroe (1728)
Tolomeo (1728)
Lotario (1729)
Partenope (1730)
Poro (1731)
Ezio (1732)
Sosarme (1732)
Orlando (1733)
Arianna in Creta (1734)
Oreste (1734)
Ariodante (1735)
Alcina (1735)
Atalanta (1736)
Arminio (1737)
Giustino (1737)
Berenice (1737)
Alessandro Severo (1738)
Faramondo (1738)
Serse (1738)
Giove in Argo (1739)
Imeneo (1740)
Deidamia (1741)
Semele (1744)

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Berenice, regina d'Egitto (Berenice, Queen of Egypt) (HWV 38) is an opera in three acts by George Frideric Handel to an Italian text by Antonio Salvi originally written in Italy in 1709.

It was first performed at the Covent Garden Theatre in London on 18 May 1737. It was not successful. It was only given four times.

It is based upon the life of Cleopatra Berenice, daughter of Ptolemy IX (the main character in Handel's opera Tolomeo) and is set in around 81 BC.

Contents

[edit] Roles

Role Voice type Premiere Cast, May 18, 1737
(Conductor: - )
Berenice, Queen of Egypt soprano Anna Maria Strada
Selene, her sister alto Francesca Bertolli
Alessandro, a Roman nobleman soprano castrato Gioacchino Conti
Demetrio, a prince alto castrato Domenico Annibali
Arsace, another prince alto Maria Caterina Negri
Fabio, Roman messenger tenor John Beard
Aristobolo, captain bass Henry Reinhold

[edit] Selected recordings

  • A studio recording with Julianne Baird (soprano), Jan Opalach (bass), D'Anna Fortunato (mezzo-soprano) and Drew Minter (countertenor), with the Brewer Baroque Chamber Orchestra conducted by Rudolph Palmer, was released on compact disc in 1995 (Newport Classics 1161828).

[edit] E-book

Score of Berenice (ed. Friedrich Chrysander, Leipzig 1883)

[edit] References

  • Dean, Winton (2006), Handel's Operas, 1726-1741, Boydell Press, ISBN 1843832682  The second of the two volume definitive reference on the operas of Handel


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