Christoph Willibald Gluck - L'innocenza Giustificata

"In addition to 'opera seria', there was another genre of serious opera that was important in the Baroque period, but has almost completely vanished from the awareness of today's opera-lover. We are familiar with such pieces under labels like 'serenata' or 'festa teatrale', referring to a special tradition of court opera. Here, too, serious subject are dealt with - and they tend to be edifying in character; but the extistential, tragic conflict of opera seria is missing as a rule. Such 'serenate' or 'feste' generally consisted of only two acts, and they were also substantially shorter than the 'opere serie', performances of which could easily stretch over 4-5 hours, including intervals. The serenate filled the need for entertainment and representation at court by avoiding extreme emotions - especially dark, negative ones like fear, sadness and despair -, while giving the singers ample opportunity to demonstrate their skill. Typical occasions for performing such works were provided by court festivities, e.g. the Prince's birthday celebrations, by weddings, anniversaries, state visits and similar events calling for royal representation. Nearly every 18th-century composer wrote pieces of this kind, and the appeal of such commissions lay in the chance to make one's personal mark in a work even more ritualised and more purpose-bound than was an opera seria. These subtleties are naturally not so evident to the present-day listener, especially as such compositions do not generally possess a solid plot, offering instead plenty of opportunity for moral reflection. Thus is it is not really surprising that 'serenate' and 'feste teatrale' have become conspicuous by their absence from the opera stage. But this also means that today's audiences miss out on one or two musical gems - from the allegroical 'serenate' of the late 17th and early 18th century to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's late contributions to the genre, 'Il Sogno di Scipione' and 'Il Ré Pastore' -, not to mention the breathtaking displays of vocal virtuosity that are part of this tradition.

"Three distinct forms are found in Christoph Willibald Gluck's early opera work: there is the 'dramma per musica', which is basically a classic three-act 'opera seria', generally setting a text by the leading librettist of the time, Pietro Metastasio; then there are one-act comic operas, some written in Italian, some set as French 'opéra-comiques'; and finally there are the three two-act 'feste teatrale' written in 1747, 1749 and 1755. 'L'innocenza giustificata' is the last of these three works; it was followed in 1760 by a serenata entitled 'Tetide', as something of an afterthought, for only two years later Gluck triggered the 'operatic reform' to which his lasting fame is largely due with 'Orfeo ed Euridice' - a work that avoids traditional nomenclature and bears the neutral description 'Azione teatrale'. From this point on, we find a diversity of style and form in Gluck's work - and indeed in that of many of his contemporaries - that gradually broke up the traditional forms of Baroque opera.

"An important role in this process was played by Giacomo Count Durazzo, manager of the Vienna Court Theatre. He had come to the Imperial court as a Genoese diplomat, and was commissioned to reorganise the Hoftheater in 1754. Recognising Gluck's exceptional talent, Durazzo did all he could to support the composer, who by this time already enjoyed substantial success all over Europe. Durazzo was a sworn enemy of the Metastasian 'opera seria', and at the same time a lover of French drama and all new developments in the world of theatre. As far as he was concerned, performances of 'opere series', 'feste teatrale' and 'serenate', and the accompanying mythological, heroic or even allegorical subjects, were best confined to specific courtly festivities. It is to one such occasion, namely the birthday celebrations of the Emperor Franz I. Stephan, that we owe the composition of 'L'innocenza giustificata'. It is indicative of the aspirations towards more modern musical drama that the two men shared that Durazzo and Gluck exploited the opportunity if not to abolish, then at least to subtly undermine the traditional formal canon. It is likely that none other than Durazzo himself was actually the anonymous author of the libretto. The aria texts are taken from various Metastasian libretti, and a short preface justifies this procedure with respect for the 'illustrious author' and Imperial court poet of many years' standing. This is actually something of a backhanded compliment, for it implies that Metastasio's texts are interchangeable and can be used at random. However, all the recitative texts, choral numbers and the entire closing scene, including the arietta no. 13, stem from Durazzo's pen. This closing scene with its large-scale choral tableau and the bizarre picture of the virgin Claudia dragging the ship single-handedly to the river bank, is most unusual from a scenographic point of view as well. Just as the truth is revealed at this stage in the plot, so Durazzo and Gluck reveal their concept of dramatic truth: at this point, scenery design, text and music leave the conventions of the serenata, hitherto carefully observed (but with clandestine parodistic intent) behind them. The arietta in the closing scene, where the miracle happens, contrasts in no uncertain fashion - in its formal freedom, with the 'realistic' interjections of the other chracters and the chorus, and above all in the strangely somnambulant expression of the melodic line, supported solely by the pizzicato strings - with the work's other arias, which adhere elegantly and effectively to the traditional rules of the genre. Only one of the preceding pieces prepares us for this unusual closing scene: Claudia's cavata, 'Fiamma ignota' (no. 7). Apart from the arietta in the finale, this is the only aria in the opera not set in the traditional three-part da capo form, thought it does at least have a self-contained two-part layout. Where Claudia endeavours to prove her innocence and to bring the truth to light, the music departs from the conventions of the form. The other numbers adhere to the conventions of the genre, but the 'search for truth' call for more individual treatment. Thus this apparently harmless 'festa teatrale' contains a clear aesthetic contrast of almost polemic intensity: it is this that makes 'L'innocenza giustificata' so special." (Ingo Dorfmüller, tr. Clive Williams. From the liner notes.)

Performers: Cappella Coloniensis, Christopher Moulds, María Bayo, Andreas Karasiak, Marina de Liso, Verònica Cangemi

1.1. Sinfonia: Allegro

1.2. Sinfonia: Andante

1.3. Sinfonia: Presto

1.4. Parte I, Scena I: 'Signor, De'cenni Tuoi'

1.5. Parte I, Scena I: 'D'atre Nubi'

1.6. Parte I, Scena II: 'Qual Presagi Funesti Minaccian Questo Dì!'

1.7. Parte I, Scena II: 'Sempre È Maggior Del Vero'

1.8. Parte I, Scena III: 'Eterni Dei, Da Questo Cor'

1.9. Parte I, Scena III: 'Guarda Pria Se In Questa Fronte'

1.10. Parte I, Scena IV: 'Ed Io Qui Resto Ancor?'

1.11. Parte I, Scena IV: 'A'giorni Suoi La Sorte'

2.1. Parte II, Scena I: 'No, Soffrirlo Non Deggio!'

2.2. Parte II, Scena I: 'Va, Ti Consola, Addio!'

2.3. Parte II, Scena II: 'Claudia, Pur Ti Riveggo'

2.4. Parte II, Scena III: 'Giovane Sventurata'

2.5. Parte II, Scena III: 'Fiamma Ignota Nell'alma Mi Scende'

2.6. Parte II, Scena IV: 'Ah, Valerio, Ah Signor!'

2.7. Parte II, Scena IV: 'Quercia Annosa Sull'erte Pendici'

2.8. Parte II, Scena V: 'Flavio, Flaminia, E Come, Ancor Temete?'

2.9. Parte II, Scena VI: 'La Meritata Palma'

2.10. Parte II, Scena VI: 'Assistetela, O Numi'

2.11. Parte II, Scena VI: 'Non È La Mia Speranza'

2.12. Parte II, Scena VI: Ritornello

2.13. Parte II, Scena VII: 'Deh Seconda, Ospite Nume'

2.14. Parte II, Scena VII: 'Contro Il Voler'

2.15. Parte II, Scena VII: 'Noto È Il Reo'

2.16. Parte II, Scena VIII: 'Si, Si, Claudia Morrà'

2.17. Parte II, Scena VIII: 'Ah Rivolgi, O Casta Diva'

2.18. Parte II, Scena VIII: 'Oh Roma...'

2.19. Parte II, Scena VIII: 'Grazie Al Ciel Che Amico Intese'

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