Baroque/Middle#
Antonio Cesti: Il pomo d´oro#
As the court vice-chapelmaster, Antonio Cesti (1623 Arezzo - 1669
Florence) wrote the opera Il pomo d'oro (Picture: The underworld)
for the wedding of his employer, Leopold I, to Margarita of Spain
(1665). The libretto was written by the court poet, Francesco Sbarra,
the ballets by Johann Heinrich Schmelzer.
The musical example is the aria of Proserpina
from the beginning of the opera: It is a powerful lament about her
unhappiness at having to live in the darkness of the underworld. The
accompaniment of 2 cornetts, 3 trombones, bassoon and regal emphasizes
the dark mood of the piece. The opera Pomo d'oro can be seen as a
combination of the older Florentine choir opera (i.e. a form in which
the choir plays an important dramatic role) and the newer venetian solo
opera, which reduces the role of the choir. (E. Stadler)
© Österreichischer Rundfunk, Wien