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''Lurline'' is a grand romantic opera in three acts composed by William Vincent Wallace to an English libretto by Edward Fitzball, It was first performed on 23 February 1860 at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden by the Pyne and Harrison English Opera Company with Louisa Pyne in the title role. The libretto is based on the legend of the Lorelei. ==Background and performance history== Wallace conceived the idea for ''Lurline'' during a trip on the Rhine river〔Flood (1912) p. 27〕 and began writing the opera while he was in the United States. It was to have premiered in 1848 at the Paris Opera under the title ''Lorelei, ou La fille du Rhine'' and then be performed in Covent Garden later that same year. The project was shelved, however, with just one performance in Germany in 1853. Wallace did not return to the opera until 1859 when he further elaborated the score. Lurline premiered in its full version on 23 February 1860 at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden, conducted by Alfred Mellon.〔Rosenthal and Warrack (1972) p. 539〕 It met with considerable success. The ''Illustrated London News'' of 3 March 1860 wrote "this piece is not only the chef d’oeuvre of the composer but may challenge a comparison with the best German, Italian or French dramatic music of the present day", although it also noted that "the simplicity and wild horror of the tale are entirely lost amid the melodramatic absurdities of the cockney school."〔Quoted in Bonynge (2010)〕 The Pyne and Harrison English Opera Company who had staged the work for its premiere revived it again at the end of the season and in the following season as well. The opera then premiered in Dublin on 30 April 1861 and in Sydney in 1862. ''Lurline'' was presented in a concert performance in Cambridge, Massachusetts on 1 June 1863,〔Casaglia (2005)〕 and received its first fully staged American performance in New York on 13 May 1869 at the Academy of Music, followed by a production in Chicago on 14 October 1870. The opera was revived in New York in 1898 when it had a brief run at the American Theatre. ''Lurline'' was toured in Britain in the 1880s and early 1890s by the Carl Rosa Opera Company and the Moody-Manners company. There was also a revival at London's Drury Lane on 12 April 1890.〔Burton, Nigel (1992), 'Erismena' in ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7〕 However, by the 20th century, the opera had fallen into obscurity. Neither Wallace, who died in 1865, nor his widow ever profited from the initial success of ''Lurline''. In 1858, two years before its premiere, Wallace sold the English performing rights for the opera to the Pyne and Harrison company for 10 shillings〔In the pre-decimal British currency, 10 shillings was equal to one half of a pound sterling.〕 which he then handed over to the widow of a carpenter in the Covent Garden Theatre.〔Flood (1912) pp. 27-28〕 It was estimated that Pyne and Harrison's company made at least £50,000 from its various productions.〔See Flood (1912) pp. 27-28; Graves (July 1928) p. 4; and ''The Brisbane Courier'' (6 June 1890) p. 4〕 Following its premiere, twelve of the main arias and duets from ''Lurline'' were published as parlour songs in ''The Vocal Gems of William Vincent Wallace's Grand Romantic Opera Lurline''. Several composers produced fantasias on the score, including René Favarger〔René Favarger (1815-1868) was a French composer. His fantasias enjoyed great popularity in England, France, and Germany. He lived in London for many years where he had considerable success as a music teacher.〕 and Wilhelm Kuhe.〔Wilhelm Kuhe (1823–1912) was a Prague born pianist, composer, and impresario.〕 ''Lurlines music also found its way into two popular dance arrangements by Charles d'Albert – ''Quadrille: Sail! Sail! on the midnight gale'', and ''The Lurline Polka''.〔Charles Louis Napoleon d'Albert (1809-1886) was a pianist, ballet dancer, and composer who was the ballet-master at the King's Theatre and at Covent Garden.〕 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「Lurline (opera)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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