Home > Orpheus and Eurydice Gluck, C. W. (1714-1787) Orfeo ed Euridice Orpheus and Eurydice Composed Vienna 1762; Paris 1774. First performed October 5, 1762; August 2, 1774. Libretto by Ranieri Calzabigi (in Itarian); Pierre Louis Moline (in French). A Summary of “Orpheus and Eurydice” Act 1 In the mythological age, the harpist, Orfeo grieves before the grave of his dear wife, Euridice, in the forest. Orfeo appeals to the Gods for her to come alive again. He decides to go to Hades. Then, the god of love, Amor, appears and tells him that the god of almighty, Jupiter, sympathizes with him and admits him to go to Hades. In addition, she also says to Orfeo, “If you can calm the anger of the spirits of many dead people, you can take Euridice back. But, you must not look at her before you arrive in this world.” Act 2 In front of the gate of Hades, Orfeo is surrounded by the spirits of many dead people. When Orfeo plays the harp and expresses his sorrow, the spirits of many dead people make way for him. In Hades, Orfeo waits for his wife in the beautiful sky and the brilliant sunshine. Euridice appears there. Orfeo leads her by the hand back to earth. Act 3 On the way back to earth, Euridice worries about losing Orfeo’s affection, because he doesn’t look at her. Euridice sits down on a rock, and she appeals to him to remember his love for her. Orfeo can’t deny her request. When he looks back at her, she dies once more. Orfeo regrets it, and he tries to die. Then, Amor appears again and tells him that he has endured a lot. Amor gives Euridice her life as an exception. Orfeo and Euridice are pleased, and they give thanks to the Gods. A Comment on “Orpheus and Eurydice” “Orfeo ed Euridice” was composed by Christoph Willibald Gluck. Gluck is an important composer in the history of opera. Before the age of Mozart or Rossini, there was the brilliant musical era, Baroque music. In this era, many people were interested in gorgeous vocal techniques. They focused on singing, and made light of music and drama, even though they are important components in opera. So, Gluck and his group attempted to reform opera. They connected music and drama. In their opera reform, the most familiar and popular opera is this opera, “Orfeo ed Euridice.” Gluck demands “simplicity” in opera. There are only three characters, Orfeo, Euridice, and Amor in this opera. But, the story is quite clear, and the music is quite dramatic. You should especially pay attention to the role of chorus, too. Gluck enriches the effect of chorus, that is to say, the chorus is just as an important role as the characters themselves. When this opera was first performed in Wien, the Castrato, which voice is produced by castration of the singer before puberty, sang Orfeo. The Castrato is a man, but he has a female voice. When this opera was performed in France, Gluck revised the vocal range of Orfeo from Castrato to Tenor, because Castrato performances were banned on stage there. Today, Mezzo Soprano or Baritone sometimes sings Orfeo. In addition, a lot of Countertenor, who is a man but he has the technique of singing falsetto like female voice, sings Orfeo, too. What kinds of vocal range singers are you interested in? Gluck, C. W. (1714-1787) 　- Orpheus and Eurydice Mozart, W. A. (1756-1791) 　- The Marriage of Figaro 　- Don Giovanni 　- Cosi fan tutte 　- The Magic Flute Beethoven, L. v. (1770-1827) 　- Fidelio Weber, C. M. v. (1786-1826) 　- The Magic Bullets Rossini, G. (1792-1868) 　- The Barber of Seville Donizetti, G. (1797-1848) 　- The Elixir of Love Verdi, G. (1813-1901) 　- Macbeth 　- Rigoletto 　- Il trovatore 　- La Traviata 　- Un ballo in maschera 　- Don Carlo 　- Aida 　- Otello 　- Falstaff Wagner, R. (1813-1883) 　- The Flying Dutchman 　- Tannhauser 　- Lohengrin 　- Tristan und Isolde 　- Die Meistersinger von Nuernberg 　- The Rhinegold 　- Die Walkure 　- Siegfried 　- Twilight of the Gods 　- Parsifal Offenbach, J. (1819-1880) 　- The Tales of Hoffmann Strauss, J. (1825-1899) 　- Die Fledermaus (The Bat) Bizet, G. (1838-1875) 　- Carmen Tchaikovsky, P. J. (1840-1893) 　- Eugene Onegin Massenet, J. (1842-1912) 　- Werther Humperdinck, E. (1854-1921) 　- Hansel and Gretel Puccini, G. (1858-1924) 　- La Boheme 　- Tosca 　- Madama Butterfly 　- Turandot Leoncavallo, R. (1858-1919) 　- Pagliacci Mascagni, P. (1863-1945) 　- Cavalleria Rusticana Debussy, C. (1862-1918) 　- Pelleas et Melisande Strauss, R. (1864-1949) 　- Salome 　- The Cavalier of the Rose Copyright (C) 2005-2013 Yusuke Kamiki. All Rights Reserved.