Appropriately finding value in and recycling materials that his contemporaries in the european avantgarde have rejected and consider to be trash verdi, for example or borrowing. O edipus rex is a greek tragedy that tells the story of king oedipus of thebes, who is fated to kill his father and marry his mother thebes is struck by a plague that will. The researcher uses stravinsky s writings and dialogues with r. Feb, 2021 as the second major work from the 1920s, kirill petrenko conducts igor stravinsky s operaoratorio oedipus rex. The composers adaptation of sophocles greek drama, written with jean cocteau, is sung in latin, while the passages by the narrator are to be performed in the local language of each performance venue. Oedipus rex by sophocles introduction sophocless oedipus rex is probably the most famous tragedy ever written. Oedipus, a stranger to thebes, became king of the city after the. Choreographed by bronislava nijinska and dedicated to diaghilev, whose ballet. Stravinsky s operaoratorio oedipus rex is widely acknowledged as one of the most original musictheatre works of the twentieth century. Stravinsky conceived his art in nietzschean terms, as a struggle between. Stravinsky, igor oedipus rex score new york philharmonic. London 42520 and 50120 we are accustomed to rich, dark performances of stravinsky s read more operaoratorio. Stravinsky transports this story into a fullfidelity musical interpretation intended to inform the modern age. Genesis, analysis, and interpretation page 1 reference url save to favorites remove from favorites.
It crystallizes many of the ideas stravinsky had been playing with since the firebird, petrushka, and the rite of spring. An invaluable resource for universities, public libraries, schools, music professionals and collectors. Oedipus rex, also known by its greek title, oedipus tyrannus ancient greek. The period of its composition, january 1926 to may 1927, is well documented. Operaoratorio oedipus rex by igor stravinsky meakultura.
Choreographed by bronislava nijinska and dedicated to diaghilev, whose ballet russes gave the premiere, it. August 10, 1962 eyes on oedipus stravinskys oedipus rex. Peter pears oedipus, kerstin meyer jocasta, donald mcintyre creon, benjamin luxon messenger, alec mccowen narrator sir georg solti. This stage production of stravinsky s musical ode to the myth is a. Mar 21, 2019 oedipus rex is an operaoratorio in two acts after sophocles by igor stravinsky, scored for orchestra, speaker, soloists, and male chorus.
Like oedipus, he is trying on different masks, and making them his own. Scholars have spent millennia debating sophocles intentions and how he achieved such a powerful effect. Stravinsky oedipus rex download free sheet music and scores. But pulcinella is a very different matter, because pulcinella is a game. May 01, 2007 sophocless oedipus rex is probably the most famous tragedy ever written. The instructions given by stravinsky focused on non action drama, but a stilllife. This clear and concise guide is the first ever to be written on this work and it describes the music and its staging in close detail. Oedipus rex by jean cocteau and igor stravinsky 18821971. Although the concept of les noces is highly innovativea dance cantatathe music remains rooted in russian folk traditions. Crucial to the works aesthetic was the decision to set a latin text a choice, stravinsky wrote, with the great advantage of giving me a medium not dead but turned to stone and so monumentalized as to have become immune from all risk of. Oedipus seneca oedipus rex, an operaoratorio by igor stravinsky. Kitto edited with an introduction and notes by ed 622 20 557kb read more stravinsky. Read the libretto of the latin opera oedipus rex by igor stravinsky on.
Anyone wishing to track down the biography of stravinskys operaora. Peter pears oedipus, kerstin meyer jocasta, donald mcintyre creon, benjamin luxon. Please consult the manual of style for creating composer work lists. Isbn 0 521 40431 2 hardback isbn 0 521 40778 8 paperback 1. At the root of the plays popularity lies its humanity. Cocteau contains quintessential neoclassical qualities. Oddest of all is that the work sounds more like stravinsky than ever. Choir, voice sheet music book by jean cocteau and igor stravinsky 18821971. In 1919, stravinsky began pulcinella, which is the firstand arguably the most classicalof his neoclassical pieces. Igor fedorovic stravinskij, anglicizzato e francesizzato in igor stravinsky in russo.
Edipo re, an opera published posthumously as by ruggero leoncavallo. Roger sessions, on oedipus rex 1928 introduction igor stravinsky s 1927 operaoratorio oedipus rex, with the libretto written by jean cocteau, is most often called neoclassical in accordance with stravinsky s second stylistic period ca. Igor stravinsky sent this extraordinary and surprising letter to serge diaghilev a few weeks before the paris premiere of oedipus rex. Pseudoeurycea rex, a salamander species formerly known as oedipus rex. Stravinsky, with his brightlyoutlined formal designs and sec textures, is often considered the most apollonian of composers. Three tragedies oedipus the king, oedipus at colonus, antigone, 2nd ed. King oedipus is told that the city will continue to suffer until the. The letter itself is testimony to the state of mind that stravinsky was in as he worked on the piece, a sense of public and personal crisis, and the atonement and purification process that must be engaged in.
Now this could be said about sophocless version, or anybodys version, but stravinsky extends the idea of deathliness in all sorts of strange directions. The idea for an opera in latin on the subject of a tragedy. Also featured on the release are the gentlemen of the monteverdi choir, considered one of the worlds leading choirs, and a mix of international and homegrown soloists including jennifer johnston and stuart skelton. Historical surveys of each composer establish maritains influence on their works and demonstrate that the relationship between poetic knowledge and.
It is known by a variety of titles the most common being oedipus rex, including oedipus the king and oedipus tyrannus. Igor stravinskys 1927 operaoratorio oedipus rex with libretto by jean. Musically and textually, it is objective, mechanical. Oedipus rex is a landmark of the twentieth centurythe first largescale masterwork of stravinsky s neoclassical maturityand a pivotal score in the output of one of the twentiethcenturys true modern masters.
Stravinsky and his latin texts college music symposium. Article oedipus rex opera music by igor stravinsky. In oedipus rex, stravinsky makes a long journey towards discovering his own creative identity. Stravinsky oedipus rex entertainment general theatre. You may think it weird, and i wouldnt be surprised if you hated it. As you read oedipus rex, be aware of the following. Continuation of russian neonationalist ideals in stravinskys. Oedipus rex is one of the ancient stories most central to the experience of what it means to be human. Sophocles first produced the play in athens around 430 b. The libretto, based on sophocless tragedy, was written by jean cocteau in french and then translated by abbe jean danielou into latin. Cambridge core twentiethcentury and contemporary music stravinsky. Peter schickele parodies both the story of oedipus rex and the music of stravinsky s operaoratorio of the same name in oedipus tex, a westernthemed oratorio purportedly written by p. Oedipus rex by igor stravinsky is a short opera with libretto in french which stravinsky wrote in the mid1920s, well after he had completed his most important works, the three ballets he did for the ballet rousse, especially the rites of spring.
Oedipus rex, and the writing mayerhold on static theater and other methods. Jan 01, 2011 in 1925 jean cocteau received a request from igor stravinsky to write a libretto for a work based on sophocles oedipus rex. Oedipus rex is an operaoratorio by igor stravinsky, scored for orchestra, speaker, soloists, and male chorus. Esapekka salonen leads the swedish radio symphony orchestra.
Stravinsky called oedipus rex an operaoratorio and instructed that it be staged with minimal movement. Oedipus rex stravinsky from mar0510 hyperion records. Oedipus the king, also called oedipus tyrannos or oedipus rex, written around 420 bc, has long been regarded not only as his. It was released in 1990 on the album oedipus tex and other choral calamities.
The eventual form of oedipus rex suggests baroque oratorio as a model, with its. In 19267, when stravinsky composed his operaoratorio oedipus rex, he chose latin as the language of the libretto and oedipus was followed by other settings of latin texts, among them symphony of psalms, threni, and canticum sacrum. Stravinsky had seen antigone of sophocles, for which cocteau made libretto for composer arthut honegger, and after this decided to entrust him with the libretto for oedipus rex. Stravinsky oedipus rex entertainment general theatre scribd. Notes the oedipus rex, without argument one of the greatest plays ever written in any language, is also one of the most complex. Less than four years separate the premieres of les noces and oedipus rex, yet they each represent highpoints in two distinct phases of stravinsky s career. A list of works in the composer category that are not included here can be found on this page. Sir john eliot gardiner conducts the lso on this his first release for lso live, stravinsky s oedipus rex and apollon musagete.
You once said neoclassicism was a dead end, but was it at least an interesting detour for stravinsky. Stravinsky had seen cocteaus adaptation of antigone 1922, and its austerity and compression suited the atmosphere he envisaged for his new composition, which, from the outset, he intended should have a monumental character. Stravinsky, jean cocteau, cologne radio symphony orchestra and chorus stravinsky, jean cocteau, cologne radio symphony orchestra and chorus stravinsky conducts stravinsky oedipus rex. Oct 06, 2020 oedipus rex is important as a cultural artifact, being one of the few complete greek tragedies that have survived, as well as being one of the worlds greatest works of dramatic poetry and a. Oedipus rex flu on 18 december, but had recovered by the 28th, when he wrote to ansermet that he was working comme 3 negres. Hymns stravinsky s fourth setting of a sacred text. Historical surveys of each composer establish maritains influence on their works and demonstrate that the relationship between poetic knowledge and subjectivity is closer than even maritain asserted. One could never recommend it as the basic recording in a collection, but everyone should hear it. Cambridge music handbooks includes bibliographical references and index. Anyone wishing to track down the biography of stravinsky s operaora torio, oedipus rex, can do so fairly easily. Oedipus rex represents a hybrid genre uniting elements from the opera, the oratorio and contemporary theater, and employs a number of alienation instruments. Pdf igor stravinskys operaoratorio oedipus rex and.
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