La zingara (The Gypsy Girl) is an opera semiseria in two acts (1822) by Gaetano Donizetti, set to a libretto by Andrea Leone Tottola, after La petite bohémienne (The Little Gypsy) by Louis-Charles Caigniez, which was itself derived from a work of August von Kotzebue.
It was Donizetti's first opera written for Naples.
The first performance took place at the Teatro Nuovo, Naples, on May 12, 1822. The soprano aria Fra l'erbe cosparse ("Sprinkled over the grass") was especially popular.
Contents |
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 12 May 1822 (Conductor: - ) |
|---|---|---|
| Argilla | mezzo-soprano | Giacinta Canonici |
| Ines | soprano | Caterina Monticelli |
| Fernando | tenor | Marco Venier |
| Don Ranuccio Zappador | bass | Carlo Moncada |
| Don Sebastiano Alvarez | bass | Giuseppe Fioravanti |
| Duca d'Alziras | tenor | Alessandro Busti |
| Papaccione | buffo | Carlo Casaccia |
| Amelia | soprano | Francesca Ceccherini |
| Ghita | soprano | Clementina Grassi |
| Manuelita | soprano | Marianna Grassi |
| Antonio Alvarez | tenor | Raffaele Sarti |
| Sguiglio | tenor | Raffaele Casaccia |
| Domestici di Zappador e di zingari, chorus | ||
Synopsis
Don Ranuccio is the villain of the opera: he has imprisoned Don Sebastiano in his castle and he also wants to kill the Duke of Alziras, his political rival. Ranuccio's daughter Ines is in love with Fernando, but her father wants her to marry Antonio who is Don Sebastiano's nephew.
Argilla, the gypsy girl of the title, brings together the lovers Ferrando and Ines, saves the life of the Duke, whom she brings together again with his brother and frees Don Sebastiano, who turns out to be her father. Comedy is provided by the servant Pappacione, fooled into searching for gold in an old cistern. All ends happily.
Critical reaction
"Despite its moronic libretto, the opera was an enormous success at its premiere in Naples in 1822, and even Bellini wrote nice things about the second-act septet. Donizetti mixes buffo and serious characters, as well as Neapolitan dialect (there are no recitatives; numbers are separated by spoken dialogue) with "pure" Italian, and the absurd plot is (sort of) held together by the clever Argilla, who under the guise of telling fortunes gains entry to people's feelings as well as to every area of the castle. Is it a masterpiece? Even close? No, but there are niceties galore—rhythmic arias and ensembles, good (if typical) characterizations, and good tunes." [1]
Recordings
- Donizetti: La Zingara / Bosman, Custer, Colaianni, et al. CD
- Label Dynamic CDS396/1-2(CD) [2 discs]
- Recorded 2002, Stereo
- Performers:
- Domenico Colaianni (baritone)
- Ines: Rosita Ramini (soprano)
- Sara Allegretta (soprano)
- Antonio: Giacomo Rocchetti (Baritone)
- Massimiliano Chiarolla
- Gypsy girl Argilla: Manuela Custer (mezzo-soprano)
- Fernando: Massimiliano Barbolini (tenor)
- Don Sebastiano: Piero Terranova (baritone)
- Alziras: Cataldo Gallone (tenor)
- Roberta Zaccaria
- Giulia Petruzzi
- Don Ranuccio: Filippo Morace (bass-baritone)
- Bratislava Chamber Chorus
- Conductor: Arnold Bosman
References
- ^ Robert Levine, recording review on Classicstoday.com
External links
- Robert Levine, review of 2002 recording on classicstoday.com
- Information and synopsis (Italian)
- Libretto
- Naxos
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