Didone (opera)

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Operas by Francesco Cavalli

Le nozze di Teti e di Peleo (1639)
Gli amori d'Apollo e di Dafne (1640)
La Didone (1641)
La virtù dei strali d'Amore (1642)
Egisto (1643)
L'Ormindo (1644)
Doriclea (1645)
Il Giasone (1649)
Orimonte (1650)
Oristeo (1651)
La Calisto (1652)
Eritrea (1652)
Veremonda (1652)
Rosinda (1653)
Orione (1653)
Ciro (1654)
Xerse (1655)
Statira principessa di Persia (1655)
Erismena (1655)
Artemisia (1657)
Hipermestra (1658)
Elena (1659)
Ercole amante (1662)
Scipione affricano (1664)
Mutio Scevola (1665)
Pompeo Magno (1666)
Eliogabalo (1667)

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Didone is an opera by Francesco Cavalli, set to a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Busenello (later librettist for Claudio Monteverdi). The opera was first performed at Venice's Teatro San Cassiano during 1641.

The plot is based on Virgil's Aeneid (Book 4 in particular), though Busenello, in his second libretto for Cavalli, replaces Dido's tragic suicide of Virgil with a happy ending in which Dido marries Iarbas, King of the Getuli, who saves Dido from herself after Aeneas abandons her. The action is divided into a prologue and 3 acts.

[edit] Roles

Role Voice type Premiere Cast, 1641
(Conductor: - )
Aeneas tenor
Dido soprano
Iarbas alto
Cassandra soprano
Hecuba mezzo-soprano
Anna soprano
Mercury alto
3 court ladies soprano

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[edit] References