''Koanga'' is an opera written between 1896 and 1897, with music by

Frederick Delius file:Fritz Delius (1907).jpg, Delius, photographed in 1907 Frederick Theodore Albert Delius (born Fritz Theodor Albert Delius; ; 29 January 1862 – 10 June 1934) was an English composer. Born in Bradford in the north of England to a prospero ...

and a libretto by

Charles Francis Keary Charles Francis Keary (29 March 1848 – 25 October 1917) was an English scholar and historian. His later work as a novelist influenced the modernist writer James Joyce. However, the English novelist George Gissing read four of Keary's works, ...

, inspired partly by the book '' The Grandissimes: A Story of Creole Life'' by

George Washington Cable George Washington Cable (October 12, 1844 – January 31, 1925) was an American novelist notable for the realism of his portrayals of Creole life in his native New Orleans, Louisiana. He has been called "the most important southern artist wo ...

(1880). Inspiration also came from Delius's own experiences as a young man, when his family sent him to work in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. It was Delius's third opera, and he thought better of it than of its predecessors, ''

Irmelin ''Irmelin'' is an opera in three acts with music by Frederick Delius. Composed between 1890 and 1892, it was his first opera, and was not premiered until 1953, nearly twenty years after his death. The libretto was by the composer, and weaves toget ...

'' and ''The Magic Fountain'', because of the incorporation of dance scenes and his treatment of the choruses. ''Koanga'' is reputed to be the first opera in the European tradition to base much of its melodic material on

African-American music African-American music is a broad term covering a diverse range of musical genres largely developed by African Americans and their African-American culture, culture. Its origins are in musical forms that developed as a result of the Slavery in ...

Performance history

''Koanga'' was the first of Delius's operas to be performed. It was also the most labour-intensive with regard to the libretto, which was continually revised. The opera was posthumously published in 1935. It was performed privately in March 1899 at the residence of

Adela Maddison Katharine Mary Adela Maddison, née Tindal (15 December 1862 – 12 June 1929), usually known as Adela Maddison, was a British composer of operas, ballets, instrumental music and songs. She was also a concert producer. She composed a number of ...

in Paris.

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers. ...

was among the performers, and the audience included

Prince Edmond de Polignac Prince Edmond Melchior Jean Marie de Polignac (19 April 18348 August 1901) was a French aristocrat and composer. Ancestry Edmond was a member of the Polignac family, one of the more illustrious families of France. His grandmother, the duchess ...

and the Princesse de Polignac. Selections from the opera were performed in London on 30 May 1899 at

St James's Hall St. James's Hall was a concert hall in London that opened on 25 March 1858, designed by architect and artist Owen Jones (architect), Owen Jones, who had decorated the interior of the Crystal Palace. It was situated between the Quadrant in Regen ...

, in a concert of his own music organised by Delius. The first public staging of the opera was at the Stadttheater Elberfeld, Germany, on 30 March 1904. It was sung in German, using a translation by Jelka Delius, and conducted by

Fritz Cassirer Friedrich (Fritz) Leopold Cassirer, (29 March 1871 – 26 November 1926) was a German conductor. He was one of the early proponents of the music of Frederick Delius, and conducted the premiere of Delius's first opera. Biography Cassirer was born ...

. Sir

Thomas Beecham Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philh ...

directed the British premiere of the full opera at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

, on 23 September 1935. John Brownlee sang the title role, with

Oda Slobodskaya Oda Slobodskaya (28 November/10 December 1888 – 30 July 1970) was a Russian soprano who became a British citizen. Early life Slobodskaya was born on 28 November 1888 * in Vilno (now Vilnius, Lithuania). She was one of seven children. She wo ...

as Palmyra. In 1958 Stanford Robinson directed the BBC Chorus & Orchestra with

Lawrence Winters Lawrence Winters ''(né'' Lawrence Lafayette Whisonant; 15 November 1915 King's Creek, South Carolina – 24 September 1965 Hamburg, Germany), bass-baritone, was an American opera singer who had an active international career from the mid-1940s th ...

(Koanga) and

Leonora Lafayette Leonora Gwendolyn Lafayette (born July 8, 1926, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; died October 23, 1975) was an African American soprano with a significant career in Europe during the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Leonora Lafayette was born to Howard and ...

(Palmyra).

Washington Opera Washington National Opera (WNO) is an American opera company in Washington, D.C. Formerly the Opera Society of Washington and the Washington Opera, the company received Congressional designation as the National Opera Company in 2000. Performance ...

staged it successfully in December 1970 at

Lisner Auditorium Lisner Auditorium is a performance venue sited on the Foggy Bottom campus of George Washington University at 730 21st Street Northwest, Washington, D.C. Named for Abram Lisner (1852-1938), a university trustee and benefactor whose will provided o ...

Frank Corsaro Frank Corsaro (December 22, 1924, New York City, New York – November 11, 2017, Suwanee, GeorgiaRobert ViagasNight of the Iguana Director Frank Corsaro Is Dead at 92/ref>) was one of America's foremost stage directors of opera and theatre. His Br ...

was the director. This was the first U.S. staging of any opera by Delius. A revival in 1972 for the Camden Festival at

Sadler's Wells Theatre Sadler's Wells Theatre is a London performing arts venue, located in Rosebery Avenue, Islington. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site. Sadler's Wells grew out of a late 17th-century pleasure garden and was opened as a theatre buil ...

, London, was conducted by Sir

Charles Groves Sir Charles Barnard Groves CBE (10 March 191520 June 1992) was an English conductor. He was known for the breadth of his repertoire and for encouraging contemporary composers and young conductors. After accompanying positions and conducting ...

. Douglas Craig and Andrew Page had worked extensively on revisions to a performing edition, which was used for the first complete commercial recording, conducted by Groves. Robert Threlfall has examined revisions to the text of ''Koanga'' in its various editions. More recent revisions to the libretto have been by

Olwen Wymark Olwen Margaret Wymark (née Buck, 14 February 1932 – 14 June 2013) was an American writer and playwright. Biography Olwen Margaret Buck was born on 14 February 1932 in Oakland, California, the daughter of Philip W. (a professor of political s ...

. The single most famous musical passage from the opera contains the melody known as ''La Calinda'', which is the only part of the score that has remained famous in the concert hall.

Eric Fenby Eric William Fenby OBE (22 April 190618 February 1997) was an English composer, conductor, pianist, organist and teacher who is best known for being Frederick Delius's amanuensis from 1928 to 1934. He helped Delius realise a number of works t ...

, Delius's

amanuensis An amanuensis ( ) ( ) or scribe is a person employed to write or type what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. It may also be a person who signs a document on behalf of another under the latter's authority. In some aca ...

, wrote of the opera as follows:

"''Koanga'' is one of those singular works that attract attention in Delius's development, but which stand apart from the rest of his music. Usually, once a work was written, Delius's interest in it would wane. It would then be renewed and be relived temporarily every time he heard it again. For ''Koanga'', however, he showed concern as though it held some secret bond that bound him to his youth in
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
. It was the one work he deplored in old age he was never likely to hear again. And so it proved. A dark grandeur pervades the score which, whilst yielding to hankerings after
Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...
, recalls the tragic gusto of
Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( ; ; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto, a small town in the province of Parma, to a family of moderate means, recei ...
. The elements of time, place and plot allowed him a range of textures and moods wider than in his other operas."

The Pegasus Opera Company staged ''Koanga'' at Sadler's Wells Theatre in April 2007 and the Wexford Opera Festival in 2015 (broadcast by

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

in 2016). William Randel has studied the relationship of the opera and its libretto to the original story by Cable.

Roles

Synopsis

:Place:

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

plantation in

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

:Time: Second half of the 18th century.

Prologue

Uncle Joe is about to tell the tale of Koanga and Palmyra, at the request of the planters’ daughters.

Act 1

''Years earlier'' Palmyra, the maid to Clotilda (the wife of the plantation owner Don José Martinez), watches Simon Perez, the plantation overseer, rouse up the slaves for their labours. Perez declares his love for Palmyra, but she brushes aside such sentiments. Martinez arrives, and Perez tells him of the arrival of a new slave. The new slave is Koanga, a captured African prince. Koanga invokes his gods to avenge his betrayal. Perez states that Koanga would rather die than be a slave, but Martinez suggests that Palmyra can be used to change his sentiments. Koanga and Palmyra are introduced, and become attracted to each other. Perez becomes angry at this turn of events. Clotilda is appalled at this herself, as Palmyra is her half-sister.

Act 2

Preparations for the wedding of Koanga and Palmyra are taking place. Clotilda consults with Perez as to how to stop this wedding. Perez tells Palmyra the truth about her birth, but she remains determined to marry Koanga. Just as the wedding ceremony is about to occur, Perez kidnaps Palmyra. Koanga then fights with Martinez and prevails in the man-to-man struggle. Koanga escapes to the swamp and invokes magic to bring disease contagion to the plantation. However, he has a vision of Palmyra’s suffering, which causes him to return to the plantation. When he arrives, Perez is trying to embrace Palmyra. Koanga kills Perez, but is in turn captured and executed. Palmyra mourns for Koanga, and then takes her own life.

Epilogue

The planter's daughters respond to Uncle Joe’s story, as the sun rises.

Recording

* EMI Classics 585 142 2 (2003 reissue): Eugene Holmes, Claudia Lindsey,

Raimund Herincx Raimund Frederick Herincx (23 August 1927 in LondonGrove, ''Herincx, Raimund'' – 10 February 2018), was a British operatic bass-baritone. Through a varied international career, Herincx performed in most of the world's great opera houses and with ...

, Keith Erwen, Jean Allister,

Simon Estes Simon Estes (born March 2, 1938) is an operatic bass-baritone of African-American descent who had a major international opera career beginning in the 1960s. He has sung at most of the world's major opera houses as well as in front of president ...

;

John Alldis John Alldis (10 August 192920 December 2010) was an English chorus-master and conductor. Biography Alldis was educated at King's College School, Cambridge and Felsted. He then returned to King's College, Cambridge as a choral scholar under B ...

Choir;

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

; Sir

, conductor. Recorded

Kingsway Hall The Kingsway Hall in Holborn, London, was the base of the West London Mission (WLM) of the Methodist Church, and eventually became one of the most important recording venues for classical music and film music. It was built in 1912 and demolish ...

19–26 September 1973.

References

;Notes

External links

"Koanga (1895-97"
Boosey & Hawkes
Boosey & Hawkes page on Pegasus Opera production of ''Koanga''

with libretto, discography, reviews, sound files and more. {{Authority control Operas by Frederick Delius Operas 1904 operas Operas set in the United States Operas based on novels Operas based on works by American writers

Delius file:Fritz Delius (1907).jpg, Delius, photographed in 1907 Frederick Theodore Albert Delius (born Fritz Theodor Albert Delius; ; 29 January 1862 – 10 June 1934) was an English composer. Born in Bradford in the north of England to a prospero ...