The Extraordinary Adventures of Orpheus in the Tragicomedy of the Same Name by Aurelio Aureli and Antonio Sartorio (1672)
ISSN 2308-1333
Abstract
The article is devoted to the Venetian tragicomedy “Orfeo” by Aurelio Aureli and Antonio Sartorio, performed at the San Salvatore Theatre in 1672. The author of the article offers the reader to get acquainted with one of the most extraordinary readings of the canonical myth in opera literature, and also explains the reason for its grandiose success among contemporaries, which lies in the parity between the absurdity of the libretto and the seriousness of the music. An analysis of the musical dramaturgy has shown that one of the main conventions of Venetian tragicomedy – the large number of arias of various characters – helped the composer to rehabilitate the librettist’s spoilt reputation as a musician-half-god.
Keywords
Venetian tragicomedy, “Orfeo”, Aurelio Aureli, Antonio Sartorio, libretto, musical dramaturgy, baroque opera