''Scylla et Glaucus'' (''

Scylla In Greek mythology, Scylla ( ; , ) is a legendary, man-eating monster that lives on one side of a narrow channel of water, opposite her counterpart, the sea-swallowing monster Charybdis. The two sides of the strait are within an arrow's range o ...

and

Glaucus In Greek mythology, Glaucus (; ) was a Greek prophetic sea-god, born mortal and turned immortal upon eating a magical herb. It was believed that he came to the rescue of sailors and fishermen in storms, having earlier earned a living from the ...

'') is a

tragédie en musique ''Tragédie en musique'' (, musical tragedy), also known as ''tragédie lyrique'' (, lyric tragedy), is a genre of French opera introduced by Jean-Baptiste Lully and used by his followers until the second half of the eighteenth century. Operas i ...

with a prologue and five acts, the only surviving full-length

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

Jean-Marie Leclair Jean-Marie Leclair l'aîné (Jean-Marie Leclair the Elder) (10 May 1697 – 22 October 1764) was a French Baroque violinist and composer. He is considered to have founded the French violin school. His brothers, the lesser-known Jean-Marie ...

. The French-language

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

by d'Albaret is based on Ovid's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' (, , ) is a Latin Narrative poetry, narrative poem from 8 Common Era, CE by the Ancient Rome, Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''Masterpiece, magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the world from its Cre ...

'', books 10, 13 and 14. It was first performed at the

Académie Royale de Musique The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

in Paris on 4 October 1746.

Background

The quality of the vocal writing in ''Scylla et Glaucus'' came as a surprise to many, given that Leclair was much better known for composing instrumental music, and therefore had little experience in opera. By the time the ''Scylla'' was performed in 1746, Leclair was already known for his forty-eight violin

sonatas In music a sonata (; pl. ''sonate'') literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cantare'', "to sing"), a piece ''sung''. The term evolved through the Music history, history of music, designating a variety of ...

, his

trios Trio may refer to: Music Groups * Trio (music), an ensemble of three performers, or a composition for such an ensemble ** Jazz trio, pianist, double bassist, drummer ** Minuet and trio, a form in classical music ** String trio, a group of three ...

, and his

concertos A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The ty ...

. He received much of his musical training in Italy, where he was exposed to the influence of

Pietro Locatelli Pietro Antonio Locatelli (3 September 1695 in Bergamo – 30 March 1764 in Amsterdam) was an Italian Baroque composer and violinist. Biography Bergamo Little is known about Locatelli's childhood. In his early youth, he was the third violinist a ...

and other Italian composers of the time. This is why the writing of ''Scylla'', while remaining recognisably in French, is full of italianisms. Leclair dedicated the work to Marie-Anne-Françoise de Noailles, Countess of La Mark (or La Marck), an accomplished musician who sang and played the

harpsichord A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. Depressing a key raises its back end within the instrument, which in turn raises a mechanism with a small plectrum made from quill or plastic that plucks one ...

. Madame de La Mark often enjoyed having operas performed in her home.

Roles

Synopsis

Prologue

A temple of Venus where the people of Amathus celebrate a festival in honour of the goddess, the laws to which even the dreaded Mars himself yields. The party is interrupted by Propoetides (the daughters of Propoetus from the city of Amathus on the island of Cyprus), who are jealous of the presence of Venus; they abhor religion and deny the divinity of the goddess. The goddess descends to punish them by way of petrification; "woe to those who despise the pleasures over which she presides". Through her son Amour, she promises happiness and prosperity to those who revere her.

Act 1

The setting is Sicily. On one side, there is a forest, on the other, a vast countryside. The nymph Scylla is equally cold to all of her lovers, including Glaucus, a young prophetic sea-god in Neptune's court, born mortal and turned immortal upon eating a magical herb. It was believed that he commonly came to the rescue of sailors and fishermen in storms, having once been one himself. He is in love with Scylla, and led to despair by the hardness of Scylla's heart, goes to seek help from Circe, the sorceress.

Act 2

Circe is in her palace, and she confesses that she cannot live without love. Inevitably, she goes mad with love for Glaucus when she first sees him. Glaucus asks for assistance in arousing Scylla, but it's for herself that Circe goes to work, devising a spell to make Glaucus fall in love with her instead. A lavish party follows, during which Circe's henchmen attempt to seduce Glaucus. The spell is successful; Glaucus falls at Circe's feet and Scylla is quickly forgotten. A close friend of Glaucus comes to inform him that Scylla complained of his absence, and Scylla's name proves to be enough to break the spell. Glaucus leaves hurriedly to go to his mistress, and Circe, furious, swears revenge.

Act 3

The setting is the edge of the sea. Scylla realises that despite everything, she is in love with Glaucus. The lovers reunite, which leads, naturally, to a party. Glaucus calls upon all of the sea gods and urges them to sing his victory. The party is disturbed by Circe, who comes down to the scene in a cloud. She ends the act with an anger-filled monologue.

Act 4

The setting is wild, with

Mount Etna Mount Etna, or simply Etna ( or ; , or ; ; or ), is an active stratovolcano on the east coast of Sicily, Italy, in the Metropolitan City of Catania, between the cities of Messina, Italy, Messina and Catania. It is located above the Conve ...

erupting in the background. Circe makes vain efforts to take back Glaucus. Scylla arrives at the scene, and her presence ignites the jealous wrath of Circe. Circe pretends to be softened by Glaucus's tears, but only to more surely destroy her rival. The moment the two lovers leave, she embarks upon magic incantations to take revenge on Scylla. The Moon descends from heaven, transforms into Hecate, and from out of the Underworld brings to Circe "the most deadly poison that the Phlegethon River has ever produced form its shores". It is the poison that will be the instrument of Circe's vengeance.

Act 5

The setting is a place prepared for party. Glaucus and Scylla exchange tender embraces as well as fears. The memory of Circe concerns Scylla, and Glaucus's only task becomes to reassure his lover. The people of Sicily come to celebrate the anniversary of the liberation of their country, which had for years been subject to the tyrannical empire of the Cyclops. Seeing the fountain Circe poisoned, Glaucus exclaims: "It is in this fountain that I saw your beautiful eyes the first time." Scylla looks into the fountain and the poison takes effect. Scylla succumbs to Circe's cruel revenge and runs into the sea. She dies and turns into a rock in the shape of a woman. Circe triumphs, and she finds satisfaction in Glaucus's misery.

Arias

Performance history

Though the opera was not widely acclaimed, it had a successful eighteen-performance run. The first was on 4 October 1746, at the

Académie royale de musique The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

. After the eighth performance, a ballet-pantomime, a genre that was then very popular, was added at the end of the

tragedy A tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a tragic hero, main character or cast of characters. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsi ...

. It was called ''Un Jardinier et une Jardinière'', or "A Gardener and a Planter". In 1747, Jean-Marie Leclair the Younger, brother of the composer, showed the opera at the Academy of Fine Arts in Lyon, directing the orchestra. It was performed in this same way in 1750 and in 1755.

Modern performances

* London – 14 November 1979 (First revival of the opera) * Lyon – Opéra Nouvel – February 1986 (First revival in opera in France): Five performances with other performances at the Bath Festival and the Göttingen International Handel Festival * Versailles – Opéra Royal, 27 and 29 September 2005 * Lyon – Auditorium, 1 December 2005 * Amsterdam – The Royal Concertgebouw, 3 December 2005 * Budapest – Béla Bartók National Concert Hall, 16 May 2013 * Kiel – Ballet Kiel, 6 May 2017 ''Scylla'' is not very widely known today and, for that reason, is rarely performed.

Neal Zaslaw Neal Zaslaw (born June 28, 1939) is an American musicologist. Life and career Born in New York, Zaslaw graduated from Harvard in 1961 with a BA and obtained his master's from Juilliard in 1963. He played flute in the American Symphony Orchestra ...

, an American

musicologist Musicology is the academic, research-based study of music, as opposed to musical composition or performance. Musicology research combines and intersects with many fields, including psychology, sociology, acoustics, neurology, natural sciences, f ...

, attributes its lack of revival to three specific aspects of the opera:

Hecate Hecate ( ; ) is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, or snakes, or accompanied by dogs, and in later periods depicted as three-formed or triple-bodied. She is variously associat ...

's terrifying magic powers, a "thoroughly

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

" musical style, and a tragic ending, viz. the

petrification In geology, petrifaction or petrification () is the process by which organic material becomes a fossil through the replacement of the original material and the filling of the original pore spaces with minerals. Petrified wood typifies this proc ...

of the heroine and the desolation of the hero.

Form

The opera is cast in the traditional ''

'' form developed by

Jean-Baptiste Lully Jean-Baptiste Lully ( – 22 March 1687) was a French composer, dancer and instrumentalist of Italian birth, who is considered a master of the French Baroque music style. Best known for his operas, he spent most of his life working in the court o ...

in the seventeenth century: a prologue followed by five acts. By the time ''Scyllas first performance was given, the form was already becoming outdated, threatened by both the newly evolving form of ''

opéra-ballet Opéra-ballet (; plural: ''opéras-ballets'') is a genre of French Baroque lyric theatre that was most popular during the 18th century, combining elements of opera and ballet, "that grew out of the '' ballets à entrées'' of the early seventeen ...

'' and the increasingly popular Italian

comic opera Comic opera, sometimes known as light opera, is a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending and often including spoken dialogue. Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a ne ...

. However, while the form of the opera might have been old-fashioned, the music was not.

Recordings

* ''Scylla et Glaucus'', Marie McLaughlin (Scylla), Jean-Claude Orliac (Glaucus), Jennifer Smith (Circé),

Monteverdi Choir The Monteverdi Choir was founded in 1964 by Sir John Eliot Gardiner for a performance of the ''Vespro della Beata Vergine'' in King's College Chapel, Cambridge. A specialist Baroque ensemble, the Choir has become famous for its stylistic conv ...

and

English Baroque Soloists The English Baroque Soloists is a chamber orchestra playing on authentic performance, period instruments, formed in 1978 by English Conducting, conductor John Eliot Gardiner, Sir John Eliot Gardiner. Its repertoire comprises music from the early B ...

conducted by

John Eliot Gardiner Sir John Eliot Gardiner (born 20 April 1943) is an English conductor, particularly known for his performances of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, especially the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage of 2000, performing Church cantata (Bach), Bach's church ...

— live in London, 1979, BBC public recording * ''Scylla et Glaucus'', Donna Brown (Scylla),

Howard Crook Howard Crook (June 15, 1947 – August 27, 2024) was an American lyric tenor who lived and worked in the Netherlands and France beginning in the early 1980s. Life and career Crook was born in Rutherford, New Jersey, and educated at Baldwin-Wallac ...

(Glaucus),

Rachel Yakar Rachel Yakar (3 March 1936 – 24 June 2023) was a French operatic soprano and academic voice teacher. She was known for Mozart roles such as Elvira in ''Don Giovanni'', Baroque opera and contemporary opera. She was a member of the Deutsche ...

(Circé), Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists conducted by John Eliot Gardiner — studio recording, Church of St Giles, Cripplegate, 1–28 Feb 1986,

Erato In Greek mythology, Erato (; ) is one of the Greek Muses, the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. The name would mean "desired" or "lovely", if derived from the same root as Eros, as Apollonius of Rhodes playfully sugge ...

* ''Scylla et Glaucus'', Emöke Barath (Scylla), Anders J. Dahlin (Glaucus), Caroline Mutel (Circé), Les Nouveaux Caractères conducted by Sébastien d'Hérin — studio recording, Opéra Royal, Versailles, 29 Oct to 4 November 2014, Alpha Classics cat. Alpha 960 * ''Scylla et Glaucus,'' Chiara Skerath (Scylla), Mathias Vidal (Glaucus), Florine Valiquette (Circé), Il Giardino d’Amore conducted by Stefan Plewniak — studio recording, S2, Warsaw Polish Radio, 12–17 April 2021, Château de Versailles label * ''Scylla et Glaucus,'' Judith van Wanroij (Scylla),

Cyrille Dubois Cyrille Dubois (born 27 September 1984) is a French tenor performing as an opera and lieder singer. Early life and education Cyrille Dubois spent his childhood in Ouistreham in Normandy, France. As a child he demonstrated an early talent for s ...

(Glaucus),

Véronique Gens Véronique Gens (born 19 April 1966) is a French operatic soprano. She has spent much of her career recording and performing Baroque music, Baroque music. Gens was born in Orléans, France, and studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, winning fir ...

(Circé), Purcell Choir, Orfeo Orchestra, conducted by

György Vashegyi György Vashegyi (born 13 April 1970 in Budapest) is a Hungarian harpsichordist and conductor. He founded the Purcell Choir in 1990 for a performance of ''Dido and Aeneas''. From November 2017 he was elected president of the Hungarian Academy of A ...

— studio recording, Grand Hall, Liszt Academy, Budapest, 24–26 March 2022, Glossa label

Notes and references

Notes References