Download Two Operas, operettas and Neapolitan music at the Aurora

ASSOCIAZIONE CULTURALE GOLFO MISTICO
&
RAIN PRODUCTION ENTERTAINMENT
proudly present
GRAN GALÀ
DELL’OPERETTA
CANZONI CLASSICHE NAPOLETANE E BRANI D’OPERA
Friday 23rd April 2010 at 19:30
and
Pietro Mascagni’s
Ruggiero Leoncavallo’s
CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA
PAGLIACCI
Saturday 24th April 2010 at 19:30
at the
Teatru tal-Opra Aurora
Victoria – Gozo
The Managements of Associazione Culturale Golfo Mistico (Acireale, Sicily) and Rain Production
Entertainment (Malta) will join forces for the first time to present two interesting evenings which will
surely be enjoyed by all music lovers. The first night will be the vocal / instrumental concert Gran
Galà dell’Operetta, Canzoni Classiche Napoletane e brani d’Opera. It will take place at the
Teatru tal-Opra Aurora, Victoria, Gozo on Friday 23rd April 2010 at 19:30.
The second night will feature two of the most popular operas in the operatic repertoire, namely: Pietro
Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana and Ruggiero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci. These two operas will be
presented at the Teatru tal-Opra Aurora, Victoria, Gozo, on Saturday 24th April at 19:30.
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1.
GRAN GALÀ DELL’OPERETTA,
Canzoni Classiche Napoletane e brani d’Opera
This vocal / instrumental concert will consist of three main sections namely: La Belle Epoque
including some of the popular music from the operettas; Le Romantiche including romantic songs by
De Curtis, and Gastaldon; and Le Melodie Napoletane including some of the immortal neapolitan
songs of all times.
This concert will feature the QMI Quintetto Melodico Italiano made up of soprano Maria Giovanna
Lo Cicero, mezzo-soprano Antonella Fioretti, tenor Antonio Alecci, and bass Daniele Bartolini.
They will be accompanied by the Solisti Gioiosi made up of Adriano Murania (1st Violin), Rosa
Alba Nicolosi (2nd Violin), Aldo Randazzo (Viola), Alessandro Longo (Violoncello), and Elda
Laro (Piano) – all of them musicians with the Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania or deans of the
Conservatory of Catania. An event full of passion and emotions where the audience will be the
protagonists.
2.
THE OPERAS - CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA & PAGLIACCI
Cavalleria Rusticana is a one-act melodrama by Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945) to a libretto by
Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci. It was premiered at Teatro Costanzi, Rome on May
17, 1890.
Few operas have enjoyed such instantaneous success, or exerted such an impact on the operatic world,
as Cavalleria Rusticana. One of three winners in a contest for one-act operas sponsored by the Italian
music publisher Sonzogno, it was Mascagni’s first produced opera. The ecstatic response of the firstnight audience quickly inspired productions in other major opera houses all around the world. A year
after its Rome premiere, Cavalleria Rusticana was an international success, and its young composer
the toast of the musical world.
Cavalleria Rusticana is a temptuous drama of adultery and revenge set in a remote Sicilian village on
Easter day. Its earthy passions, bold confrontational scenes and richly melodic score set a fashion for
the so-called verismo opera that would endure for more than a decade. Ultimately Mascagni’s most
successful opera, it is still a great repertoire favourite, almost always double-billed with
Leoncavallos’s Pagliacci (as in this evening).
Pagliacci is an music drama in two acts by Ruggiero Leoncavallo (1858-1919) to a libretto by the
composer himself. It was premiered at Teatro dal Verme, Milan on May 21, 1892.
In Pagliacci, intense passions build in the lives of a troupe of commedia dell’arte players until they
explode in mid-performance into a horrifying double murder. This kind of shocking scene was a
hallmark of the so-called verismo, the Italian school of operatic realism that first soared to popularity
in the 1890’s.
Leoncavallo based his opera Pagliacci on real-life events he recalled from childhood. From these he
fashioned a vivid musical play within a play that begins innocently enough as a simple farce involving
the traditional characters of Harlequin, Columbine, and Clown, but suddenly becomes an ominous
series of threatening encounters that end in a tragedy.
From the very first performance, audiences have loved Pagliacci. It remains one of the most
enduringly popular of all operas.
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3.
CHOIR:
The chorus in the production of the two opera will be the 40-strong Gran Coro Lirico Siciliano
whereas the chorus Mistress is Claudia Patanè.
4.
ORCHESTRA:
The orchestra for the two operas will be the 51-strong Orchestra Lirico Sinfonica Belliniana.
5.
ARTISTS:
To enhance the artistic level of these productions, the Management of the both producers have engaged
a number of internationally renowned singers.
Cavalleria Rusticana will feature soprano Piera Bivona as Santuzza, mezzo-soprano Cettina
Cannavo as Lola, contralto Franca Aparo as Lucia, tenor Alfio Marletta (Valori) as Turiddu, and
baritone Paolo la Delfa as Alfio.
Pagliacci will feature soprano Emanuela de Santis Salucci as Nedda, tenor Roberto Costi as Canio,
baritone Angelo Nardinocchi as Tonio, tenor Giuseppe De Prosperi as Beppe, and baritone
Maurizio Zanchetti as Silvio.
6.
STAGE DIRECTOR:
Being hereslf a musican, dancer, and actress, Antonella Panini may be referrred to as an all-rounder
in the artistic field. She is the founder of the Centro Danza a Teatro Coreggio who also tutors there.
She is the tutor of many dancers who are know well established all over Europe. She is also the
founder of the Rabdomante Teatro (2000), nowadys MacbeTHeatre, with whom Panini produces
various productions.
Antonella Panini’s connections with opera is quite recent although she admits that it is in this type of
theatre that she really excells. In 1999 she started as assistant artistic director in Massanet’s Werther
and in Verdi’s Falstaff at the Teatro Romolo Valli of Reggio Emilia. In 2002 and at the same opera
house, she was also assistant artistic director for the world premiere of Colla’s Il Processo and Bizet’s
Les Pecheurs de perles. In 2003 she was also assistant artictic director to Pierfrancesco Maestrini in a
production of Verdi’s Rigoletto at the Teatro Verdi of Sassari. In 2004, she was again assistant artictic
director to Pierfrancesco Maestrini in a production of Pagliacci at the prestigious Teatro Massimo
Bellini of Catania.
As artistic director, Panini is more inclined to promote the operatic repertoire in minor theatres and
historic places. In 2005, she was the artistic director of Puccini’s La Bohème produced at the Teatro
Asioli of Correggio. In 2006 and at the same theatre she produced Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro. Panini
forthcoming engagements includes Tosca for the Teatro Nazionale of Rome.
Cristina Russo will be Assistant stage Director.
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7.
CONDUCTORS:
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Antonino Manuli (Conductor of Cavalleria Rusticana)
Antonino Mauli received his diploma from the Conservatorio A. Corelli in Messina. He won the
contest as horn player at E.A.R Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania, while studying composition with
Salvatore Chellemi. He eventually received his conducting diploma from the Accademia Musicale
Pescarese and has subsequently became assistant to the renowned conductor Donato Renzetti.
Manuli gained much experience in Italy and in the USA conducting orchestras such as Orchestra
Filarmonica George Enescu, Orchestra Filarmonica of Arad, Orchestra Sinfonica dell’Universita of
Neuvo Leon in Mexico, Orchestra Sinfonica of Bacau, Orchestra Sinfonica of L’Aquila, Plainfield
Symphonic Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica of Pescara, Orchestra Sinfonica of Bari, Orchestra Cantelli
of Milan, Orchestra degli Archi of Florence, Orchestra dei Nuovi Cameristi Italiani, Orchestra
Sinfonica Siciliana of Palermo, Orchestra of Catanzaro and Orchestra of the Teatro Massimo Bellini of
Catania.
Since 1998, Mauli conducted many performances of Stravinsky’s Histoire du Soldat together with
soloists of the Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania. In 2002 he was even invited to the prestigous
“Festival Puccini” of Torre del Lago to conduct a production of Madama Butterfly. In 2003 he assisted
Donato Renzetti in a tournee in Japan where he conducted two highly successful performances of
Puccini’s La Bohème with the Teatro Massimo Bellini Orchestra of Catania. He recently conducted the
successful world premiere of Opera per film e musica by Marco Betta.
•
Joseph Debrincat (Conductor of Pagliacci)
Born in 1976, in Gozo, Malta, Joseph Debrincat graduated in music from the University of Malta in
1998, studying with Malta’s leading composers Charles Camilleri, Joseph Vella, and John Galea.
Besides, he studied conducting with Maltese conductor Michael Laus. In this field, Debrincat also
pursued his studies abroad, attending master classes in Milan with renowned conductor Herbert Handt.
As a matter of fact Debrincat is one of the most active musical directors of the Maltese young
generation.
In 2005 Debrincat has been awarded the M.Phil degree from the University of Malta, submitting a
dissertation focusing on Francesco Azopardi’s unique compositions as found in Archives in Gozo.
Besides being a clarinetist, holding a diploma from the London College of Music and a member of the
Victoria Clarinet Quartet, Debrincat devotes most of his time to conducting. Presently, he is the
musical director of the Santa Margerita Band of Sannat, and the assistant director of both the Leone
Band of Victoria and the Victory Band of Xaghra. In 2000, he was appointed maestro di cappella of
the Parish Church of Sannat. Debrincat has also a special interest in opera, serving as backstage music
coordinator at the Aurora Opera House.
More than this, Debrincat has also arranged/orchestrated a considerable number of works for band,
clarinet quartet, orchestra, and other mediums. Worth mentioning is his orchestration of Puccini’s onemovement Requiem, originally for choir, solo viola, and harmonium.
In 2001 Debrincat founded The Classique Foundation, the first of its sort in Gozo, which was
inaugurated with a highly acclaimed vocal and orchestral concert - Verdi in concerto. This concert was
followed by many others, many of them with the participation of the National Orchestra of Malta. In
fact Debrincat results to be the youngest Gozitan conductor ever to conduct the National Orchestra of
Malta. His operatic debut occurred in June 2002, when he conducted with great success the Malta
Premiere of Puccini’s first opera Le Villi (in concert version) – an event attended by Puccini’s grand4
daughter, Dr. Simonetta Puccini. In 2004 he was invited to conduct the Jugend Sinfonie Orchester
Konservatorium Bern in a concert held at the Aurora Opera House, Victoria, Gozo. In May 2007,
Debrincat was invited by the National Orchestra of Malta and the Manoel Theatre (Malta’s National
Theatre) to conduct two revival-performances of Charles Camilleri’s opera Il-Weghda. In this project
Debrincat was also very involved in the revision of this opera, working side-by-side with the
composer. In November 2008, he organized and conducted the highly acclaimed Puccini 150 –
Anniversary Concert featuring the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and two internationally renowned
singers.
Debrincat is also associated with a number of premieres. Worth mentioning are Charles Camilleri’s
Messa in honorem Sta. Margarita V.M. for 3 Soloists, Choir (S.A.T.B.) and Orchestra and Preghiera
Semplice for Strings.
Joseph Debrincat is also very active in the academic field. He has been teaching theory of music at the
Gozo School of Music since 1999. Besides he teaches clarinet at various band clubs around Gozo.
8.
COSTUMES
For the production of Cavalleria & Pagliacci, the managements of both producers will get the
costumes of both the choir and main artists from the renowned Sartoria Pipi of Palermo which is no
new name in the local opera productions.
9.
SCENES & STAGE
The scenes are deseigned and realised by Italian artist Salvo Tropea.
Giuseppe Spampinato is the stage manager whereas the technicians are those of Associazione
Culturale Golfo Mistico.
10.
TEATRU TAL-OPRA AURORA
Full-scale opera in Gozo knows its origin to the zealous committee of the Soëjetà Filarmonika Leone
AD 1863 who together with many volunteers in 1971 undertook the heavy task of building the Aurora
Opera House. Notwithstanding the various problems and difficulties during the five years of its
construction, it was officially inaugurated on the 9th October 1976. This opera house took its name
after the Aurora Theatre in Archpriest Cassar Street, Victoria that was also a property of the Soëjetà
Filarmonika Leone. This theatre, having been inaugurated on the 28th April 1963, was the only theatre
owned by a philharmonic society at the time. It showed films on a regular basis and provided Gozitans
with theatrical, variety shows and other forms of entertainment.
The Leone Committee's aim culminated in January 1977, just three months after the official opening of
the Aurora Opera House when Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly was staged. It was the first opera
ever to be performed in Gozo and it was also to transform culture-oriented activities in the Maltese
Islands. In particular it revived opera in Malta, till then lying dormant for a rather long time. This was
followed by a string of other highly successful opera productions, under the baton of various renowned
conductors such as the Italians Alberto Leone and Giovanni Veneri, the Maltese Joseph Sammut and
the Gozitans Joseph Vella and Colin Attard, the current resident conductor of the theatre.
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With the largest indoor seating capacity of 1,600, a spacious orchestra pit, an envied stage, perfect
acoustics and the beautiful and original decoration designed by the late well-known Maltese artist Prof.
Chev. Envin Cremona, this is by far the most attractive opera house in the Maltese Islands as well as
the only theatre with specific architectural requirements to host lyric operas. The Aurora Opera House
is run by volunteers who dedicate their time and resources for the love of the art and strive hard to
yearn professional results.
TICKETS & RESERVATIONS
11.
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Prices:
€20 and €15 for the concert Gran Galà dell’Operetta, Canzoni Classiche Napoletane e
brani d’Opera (Friday 23rd April).
€50 and €40 for the double-bill Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci (Saturday, 24th April).
•
Reservations:
Teatru tal-Opra Aurora
Republic Street, Victoria, Gozo ● Tel: 2155 9452
Rain Production Entertainment
103, St. Lawrence Street, Vittoriosa ● Tel: 2704 1200, 9905 3736
e.mail: [email protected]
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