FULL Marc’Antonio e Cleopatra (Hasse) Moscow 2018 Natalie Perez, Sharon Carty, Morgan Pearse
Information on the Performance
- Work Title: Marc’Antonio e Cleopatra
- Composer: Hasse Johann Adolf
- Libretto: Francesco Ricciardi
- Venue & Opera Company: Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, Moscow, Russia
- Recorded: April 13, 2018
- Type: Concert Live
- Singers: Natalie Perez, Sharon Carty, Morgan Pearse
- Conductor: Alexander Rudin
- Orchestra: Musica Viva Chamber Orchestra
- Stage Director:
- Costume Designer:
Information about the Recording
- Published by: meloman.ru
- Date Published: 2018
- Format: Streaming
- Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
- Subtitles: nosubs
- Video Recording from: meloman.ru FULL VIDEO
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE
Marc’Antonio e Cleopatra is a serenade for two voices in two parts by the composer Johann Adolf Hasse with a libretto by Francesco Ricciardi. It was an occasional work, commissioned by the rich Neapolitan Carlo Carmignano, and performed in the latter’s country residence in 1725.
The author of the music, Johann Adolf Hasse (1699–1783) arrived in Naples in 1722 where he first studied with Nicola Porpora, one of the representatives of the new style that can be defined as “sentimental”[1], and with the now elderly Alessandro Scarlatti, of whom Hasse was the last student[2]. Hasse, who until then had not composed anything important for the theatre[2], was commissioned by the royal councilor Carlo Carmignano to set a two-voice serenade to music to be performed in his country residence. The libretto was by Francesco Ricciardi who would also be the author of the libretto for “La Semele i.e. The fatal request” which would be performed the following year[3].
The two performers were the contralto Vittoria Tesi in the role of Marc’Antonio and the castrato Farinelli, just nineteen, in the role of Cleopatra. Hasse, Tesi and Farinelli were in the service of the Prince of Liechtenstein; Naples was in fact an Austrian viceroyalty at the time. Johann Joachim Quantz also attended the first performance