''Orpheus'' (full title: ''Die wunderbare Beständigkeit der Liebe oder Orpheus'', ''The Wonderful Constancy of Love, or Orpheus'') is an

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 ...

in three acts by the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

composer

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. He is one of the most prolific composers in history, at least in terms of surviving works. Telemann was considered by his contemporaries to b ...

. It was first performed in a

concert version A concert performance or concert version is a performance of a musical theater or opera in concert form, typically without set design or costumes, and mostly without theatrical interaction between singers. Concert performances are commonly pres ...

at the Oper am Gänsemarkt in Hamburg on 9 March 1726. The anonymous libretto is based on the 1690 opera ''Orphée (Louis Lully), Orphée'' by Michel Duboullay, originally set by the French composer Louis Lully. Most of the work is in German but it also contains passages in French and Italian drawn from famous operas by George Frideric Handel, Handel and Jean-Baptiste Lully. The music to these words is Telemann's own, however. The manuscript score of Telemann's ''Orpheus'' was not rediscovered until the late 20th century.

Roles

Synopsis

;Act 1 :Queen Orasia of Thrace is in love with Orpheus, but he rejects her in favour of Eurydice. The queen plots to kill Eurydice as she is picking flowers in a garden. Orpheus tells his friend Eurimedes he is tired of life at Orasia's court and flees to the countryside. Eurydice is bitten by a snake and dies in Orpheus's arms. ;Act 2 :Orpheus descends to the underworld to rescue Eurydice. He charms the king of the underworld, Pluto (god), Pluto, with his music. The god allows him to return with Eurydice on condition he does not look back at her until they have reached the land of the living once more. Orpheus fails in this task and Eurydice is lost to him. ;Act 3 :Orasia believes that, with Eurydice gone, Orpheus will love her. But the grieving Orpheus rejects her advances. Orasia is furious and vows revenge. She urges on the followers of Dionysus, Bacchus to kill Orpheus. Orasia repents of what she has done when she sees a vision of the dead Orpheus reunited with Eurydice. In despair, she kills herself.

Recordings

*''Orpheus'' Dorothea Röschmann (Orasia), Roman Trekel (Orpheus), Ruth Ziesak (Eurydice), Werner Güra (Eurimenides), María Cristina Kiehr, RIAS Kammerchor, Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, conducted by René Jacobs (Harmonia Mundi, 1998) *''Orpheus'' Markus Volpert (Orfeo), Dorothee Mields (Orasia), Ulrike Hofbauer (Eurydice), Christian Zenker (Eurimedes), Reinhard Mayr (Pluto). L'Orfeo Barockorchester, Michi Gaigg DHM 2011

References

{{Authority control 1726 operas Operas by Georg Philipp Telemann German-language operas Operas Operas about Orpheus Opera world premieres at the Hamburg State Opera Works based on Georgics Operas based on works by Virgil