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''Giulio Cesare in Egitto'' (; Italian for "Julius Caesar in Egypt", HWV 17), commonly known simply as ''Giulio Cesare'', is a dramma per musica (''opera seria'') in three acts composed for the Royal Academy of Music by George Frideric Handel in 1724. The libretto was written by Nicola Francesco Haym who used an earlier libretto by Giacomo Francesco Bussani, which had been set to music by Antonio Sartorio (1676). The opera was a success at its first performances, was frequently revived by Handel in his subsequent opera seasons and is now one of the most often performed Baroque operas. ==Performance history== It was first performed at the King's Theatre in Haymarket, London on 20 February 1724. The opera was an immediate success. A contemporary wrote in a letter on 10 March 1724: ...the opera is in full swing also, since Hendell's new one, called Jules César - in which Cenesino and Cozzuna shine beyond all criticism - has been put on. The house was just as full at the seventh performance as at the first.〔 Handel revived it (with changes) in 1725, 1730, and 1732; it was also performed in Paris, Hamburg, and Brunswick. Like Handel's other works in the opera seria genre, ''Giulio Cesare'' fell into obscurity in the 19th century.〔 The roles of Cesare and Cleopatra, sung by the castrato Senesino and famous soprano Francesca Cuzzoni respectively, and which encompass eight arias and two recitatives ''accompagnati'' each, make full use of the vocal capabilities of the singers. Cornelia and Sesto are more static characters because they are completely taken by their primary emotions, she with pain because of her husband's death and constantly constrained to defend herself from the advances of Achilla and Tolomeo, and he consumed by vengeance for his father's death. Cleopatra, on the other hand, is a multifaceted character: she uses at first her womanly wiles to seduce Cesare and gain the throne of Egypt, and then becomes totally engaged in the love affair with Cesare. She has great arias of immense dramatic intensity ''Se pietà di me non senti'' (II, 8) and ''Piangerò la sorte mia'' (III, 3). Her sensual character is described magnificently in the aria ''V'adoro, pupille'', in which Cleopatra, in the guise of Lidia, appears to Cesare surrounded by the Muses of Parnassus (II, 2). This number calls for two orchestras: one is an ensemble scene with strings with ''sordino'', oboe, tiorba, harp, bassoons and viola da gamba concertante. Curio and Nireno do not get any arias in the original version, only singing recitatives, though they take part in the first and final choruses. However, Handel composed an aria for Nireno for a later revival in 1730. In the 20th century, the opera was revived (in heavily altered form – reorchestrated and revamped with the male castrato roles transposed down for a baritone, tenor or bass) in Göttingen in 1922 by the Handel enthusiast Oskar Hagen. Hans Knappertsbusch and Karl Böhm both conducted it in Munich in 1923, and its first American performance took place at the Smith College of Music in Northampton, Massachusetts, in 1927. The first British revival of a Handel opera was the staging of ''Giulio Cesare'' at the Scala Theatre in London in 1930, by the London Festival Opera Company, singing in English. In 1966, the New York City Opera revived the then virtually unknown opera seria with Norman Treigle as Cæsar and Beverly Sills as Cleopatra. Sills' performance in the production, and on the cast recording that followed, made her an international opera star. The first uncut performance of modern times with the voices at correct pitch did not take place until 1977 at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts in Birmingham, England.〔 It has subsequently proven to be by far the most popular of Handel's operas, with more than two hundred productions in many countries. In modern productions, the title role, written for a castrato, is sung by a contralto, mezzo-soprano, or, more frequently in recent years, a countertenor. The roles of Tolomeo and Nireno are normally sung by countertenors. The role of Sesto, written for a soprano, is now usually sung by a mezzo-soprano. The work is considered by many to be one of Handel's finest Italian operas, possibly even the best in the history of opera seria. It is admired for its superb vocal writing, its dramatic impact, and its deft orchestral arrangements. ''Giulio Cesare'' is now regularly performed. The opera is scored for two recorders, flute, two oboes, two bassoons, four horns, viola da gamba, harp, theorbo, strings and continuo (cello, theorbo, harpsichord). 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Giulio Cesare」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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