Handel-Xerxes - Overture and "Ombra mai fu" - Ann Murray

[isaba]

True, operas were in Italian. But as long as I remember, there were also early translations around the '50s of the XVIII. I remember now the case of Pergolesi's 'La serva padrona' translated and adapted into French.

[RLZGA]

Ann Murray ... Grandiosa....PERO.............­.la version original 1000 veces mejor que la traducida. Mi humilde opinion.

[bmbenblog]

Was Xerxes originally a castrati role?

[dansimmons21]

@bmbenblog Yes

[ibisvogl]

Lovely voice, marvelous artist, amazing personality, thats Ann Murray !!!!

[Creissels]

They used a beautiful English translation, following the superb tradition of English National Opera which has opened opera to an enthusiastic audience in London for many years. Of course the Italian is gorgeous too, but sometimes accessibility matters. We saw this at the Colisseum. Ravishing, witty and such a visual treat.

[jazzmunky]

Oh no! It's in English! I prefer Italian. Opera in English is sung with a posh accent. Italian is, relative to me, more neutral, though the same issue may apply for Italians too. Obviously the story is set in a specific period with alternate "poshness" - but the accents destroys any sympathy I might have for the characters. It adds a localized aura of yah-yah poshos.This is my prejudice rooted in UK culture, I can't undo it - it's like trying to imagine Justin Beiber as a "cante jondo" singer.

[jazzmunky]

@jazzmunky in other words the "poshness" of the accent is in a sense apt given the setting of the opera, but it is irritating for subjective reasons (not entirely justifiable outside of personal irritation). To conclude, it sounds better in Italian.

On second thoughts I can't really sustain this argument...

[inna999inna]

I love her voice!!!

[albertalowe93]

Accompanied Recitative

[Belerofonte64]

thanks for the translation, I don't think it sounds horrid at all :)

[ishhf]

joder!!! suena horrible traducido

[Artaudin2]

@GreekOperaLover, the joke about Justin Bieber is a little nasty, but undeniably funny.

[kocsogarc]

I agree, too much vibrato.

[ungenannter]

Ugh ... why translate, it loses so much.

[MrPhilipzhao]

After listening intentively for many times, I finally jotted down the complete version of the Aria part:

1.Under thy shade, dearly beloved tree, beauty and harmony are both displayed;

2.Under thy shade, dearly beloved tree, beauty and harmony are both displayed:

3.Beauty and harmony under thy shade, dearly beloved tree, beauty and harmony are both displayed, are both displayed. Oh! I love this aria !!

[hymnofashes]

Rrrrgh. Too much for me to take.

[TheCasTex]

15 people don't have ears.

[TheJbach]

Love the strident formality of English.

[MucusFelidae]

The way she sings keeps me from goin to opera.

[MucusFelidae]

Too much vibrato...reminds me of gurgling

[shortytimmy]

so beautiful.....

[cristiferrer]

Que belleza de música....

[HerrWarja]

Why didn't that great counter sing the role of Serse instead?

[GreekOperaLover]

@HerrWarja because he has not the darkness needed

i agree he has an amazing voice though

[HerrWarja]

@GreekOperaLover And I am not saying the female is bad either, so anyone here don't get me wrong, but it's just when you have music for a castrato you are in a dilemma that can't really be solved to be compleatly accurate for the composerts intentions.

[GreekOperaLover]

@HerrWarja I understand what you say!

during the period the composers wrote operas for the castratos it is said that there where variations of castrato voices e.g. soprano castrato or alto castrato

nowadays there are no castratos but counter tenors and most of them have the soprano range

[ujibo42]

@GreekOperaLover No castratos? Then how do you explain Justin Bieber?

[GreekOperaLover]

@ujibo42 HE IS A YOUNG BOY FOR GOD S SAKE!!!!

HE IS NOT CASTRATED!!

[dstersaab05]

English transcription or not this woman can sing beyond words...and I AM a YANK! She brings true beauty and the solid sheer joy that Serse felt in the moment he planted that tree...like a father to his son...

[Rattywotin]

i just love her voice!!

[TEgnoto89]

Why is this in english? Come on... I hate english translations.

[HerrWarja]

@TEgnoto89 Maybe birttish want to understand the drama?

[TEgnoto89]

@HerrWarja it's called subtitles.

[HerrWarja]

@TEgnoto89 What has that to do with the cast of this production?

[tamerlano236]

Great aria though strange to hear it in English. The best version on YT is IMO Nicholas Spanos's.

[bag12]

Xerxes in English? Truly a travesty

[Szokao]

fuckin great

[pedrovski10]

More Operas should be sung in the vernacular as they were in the past, their popularity would increae dramatically.

[amrascarpathia]

@pedrovski10 Actually, operas were first ONLY in Italian, as it was the "language of opera". Therefore, operas weren't really translated. Librettists just began to write operas in the vernacular some time later. In fact, Mozart was one of the firsts to highly popularize operas in the language of the people. In his own particular case, it was German, and people still gave him crap about it. I think there is art in the classical librettos as they are. I'm game for new ones, though. =)

[tiwo1008]

This is one of my favorite aria's, yet i don't think she did a good job with it. Don't get me wrong, she has a lovely voice, she just didn't really sing it with a baroque style.

Plus the english translation totally just takes away from the meaning of the song.

[MoscowMaestro]

@tiwo1008 Clearly you don't know much.

[tiwo1008]

@MoscowMaestro Clearly that was a very unjustified statement. Are you telling me that meaning isn't lost when translated to a different language? Or are you referring to the fact that i said that i didn't really like her rendition of this aria? I said she had a great voice, but in my opinion there are a lot better versions able to be found, some of which can be heard on youtube. Does that mean it's bad? No, of course not, or else she wouldn't be doing this. But hey, to each his own =D

[MoscowMaestro]

@tiwo1008 You claimed she doesn't sing it "with a baroque style". And what do YOU know about baroque style??? Nothing at all, is the answer!! So STFU when you have no clue, HUH, YANKEE?! Do they teach baroque style at McDonalds?? ROFL!

[tiwo1008]

@MoscowMaestro Actually i'm currently studying operatic performance at The Boston Conservatory, so I actually do know a little bit when it comes to opera... From your post i can tell that your maturity level is rather low... Handel originally wrote this aria for a castrato, and i think that her voice type is slightly darker than the role calls for. HOWEVER, she makes up for that with superb acting and control. I never said that she was bad (Cont.)

[tiwo1008]

@MoscowMaestro (Cont.) I just said that i think that there are others who have interpreted Handel's meaning better. I see from your channel that you play in an orchestra. So not to sound condenscening, but what do you know about singing or operatic interpretation when you play in an orchestra... Please lets be a bit more mature =)

[MoscowMaestro]

@tiwo1008 I see from YOUR profile that you like Justin Bieber, and that you're an obese yankee-doodle from the LAND OF MORONS. You know JACK SHIT about music, John Wayne, and about baroque music in particular. Now wobble back to your kitchen for another 20 packs of donuts, yankee scum.

[tiwo1008]

@MoscowMaestro I liked a video about Justin Bieber getting hit in the head with a bag of sour patch kids.... Don't see how that makes me like him. But this argument is becoming fairly pointless, as it's impossible to argue with one who refuses to listen to logic and who's head is filled with "yankee" hate slurs. Good day

[MoscowMaestro]

@tiwo1008 You know NOTHING about baroque music, yankee slob. I play in a baroque orchestra. You work in a car-wash. Which of us is better qualified in baroque music, yankee doodle??

[Aleksi535]

@MoscowMaestro WOW!!! we should not ever separate ourselves or think that one is better than the other, but try to educate others who know less, and learn form the experience ourselves! The bigger that gap grows, the worst humanity becomes =(

The Serse overture is one of my favorites. Just amazing and beautiful. Viva la musica =D

[MoscowMaestro]

@Aleksi535 Great performers like Anne Murray deserve to be defended from yankee loudmouth fools.

[Aleksi535]

@MoscowMaestro When you say defend, what should we do... get rid of them or attack them? If they don't get it or feel it, well that's their opinion and feelings. As long as they're not hurting anyone, it's all good!

[MzMeanE]

@MoscowMaestro Dang Nabbit! Now just you quit rippin' on us yanks!

[ZombieCyclops]

"I must go back to bed sir."

That line put me with my original thought that it was a man.

But really, is it just a matter of a woman playing the role of a man? I would imagine this would be to sing so high.

I'm am reawakening my love for classical music.

I've always like Handel. Thanks so much for sharing this with the world, it's magnificent.

[olympicfreak678]

actually, that one to whom Elviro addresses I must go back to bed is a MAN. It is a countertenor. The first one who comes out is Ann Murray, a mezzo-soprano, a woman.

[kocsogarc]

@olympicfreak678

Yeah, but she is playing a male character.

[olympicfreak678]

@kocsogarc yes, i'm aware of what trouser roles are. It just seemed that zombie cyclops was confused that Christopher Robinson, the Arsamenes in this production, is in fact a man. Ann Murray, of course a female mezzo-soprano (redundant to say that), plays Xerxes.

[durandal87]

Thank you very much indeed The GreatPerformers for this delicious music payed in this video and for this delectable rendition! What a skilful singer!:) I really did not see time passing! Ah more more and more please! More renditions like!:)

Excellent day and continuations! Do continue to enchant us with such admirable pieces and renditions!:)

[oonchee]

why is that guy so whiiiiiiiite!!!!!!!!

[durandal87]

^^Excellent question,oonchee! They are so amusing both by their whitness^^^ and their so wholly solemn way of walking and also by their harmony in putting chairs straight!^^

[camposi]

pretty cool at 5:30 the statue of the composer Handel! I agree to many people: in italian it sounds much better. It´s truely ste speech of the opera!

[AnneSofieLovesArt]

amazing version

[NoirOrchestre]

Is it me or the orchestra is really lame ?

[HerrWarja]

@NoirOrchestre Well atleast in the recitativ in my opinion. They got nervous in the beginning of the opera. It often happens.

[Chayastri]

Lovely staging. I wish it were subtitled, though. I find it a bit hard to understand the words.

[SkeletonSinger]

let's go back to the italian. in english it just doesn't flow so well. at all infact. she sings it quite low down doesn't she. still very enjoyable though

[GuaraldiGuy]

Wow! That was very enjoyable.

[stickom]

Herr Court Director- "..Italian is language of opera!!!".....

Just kidding- Hytner is a geniuous I salute to his production of Cosii Fan Tutte and now this....,, beutiful!!!!!

[elisek1984]

thankyou for posting.

<3 Ann

[shetzer]

It's not a question of the language being wrong or not, but opera is a poem and like all poems no translation of it will be as good as the original, that's why I loath when an opera is translated, the play is utterly destroyed

[macanudo1808]

ESTE COMPOSITER ES GRANDE

TIENE LA GALANTERIA QUE PLAGIO CÓRPORA Y J.B.LILLY NACIÓ PARA LA MUSICA ,SIN TENER ANTECEDENTES FAMILIARES Y fue un autentico prodigio y el que mas dinero consiguio en vida por su obra . es uno de los pocos genios y grandes artistas que no tenian ningun problema mental; porque lo normal es que tengan una psicologia diferente a la mayoria .

[samdon815]

English is too "brutal" for this beautiful aria.

[gustavs9]

obviuosly italian would be better..

[jorgealbertobaron]

250 AÑOS DE FALLECIDO

[mariosilveyra]

Siiiii. ¿A cuantos de nosotros recordarán dentro de 250 años? Caramba, hay que ser popular para que tu nombre y tu música perdure tanto tiempo...

[jorgealbertobaron]

ESTE AÑO HAY QUE ESCUCHAR MUSICA DE CHARPENTIER, PURCELL, TORELLI, HAENDEL, SPOHR, MENDELSSHN, ALBRECHTSBERGER, HAYDN, BOIELDIEU, SMETANA, ALBENIZ, DELIUS, ELGAR, HOLST, VILLA-LOBOS y MARTINU. TODOS CUMPLEN ALGUN ANIVERSARIO. FAVOR INVESTIGAR

[mariosilveyra]

¡Si Señor! ¡Lo haremos! Gracias por la idea motivadora... (te invito a escuchar mi música en mi canal... o como se llame...)

[livetolovemariah]

Thank you for posting this. Youv'e helped me!

[TrebleClefSteve]

LOL i was listening for the italian, and thought what the f** when she started singing... then realised it was english lol.. i prefer italian, not taking away from the fact that she sings this really well.. good pianissimo..

[jusitke07]

I just love the intro musis. It's very perky and quite pompous.

[TFreckle]

Indeed. However not a very original french overture. The fast fuguatic part has a quite nice theme though.

[hillevifan]

could you please please please post Jean Rigby (as Amastis') arias? She is one of my favorite singer and theres not much of her on youtube

[jackstaplegun]

Recitative and aria Xerxes May the Fates be kind, my plane tree, and preserve thy leafy splendour, nor e'er thy glory surrender. Thunder, lightning and rough weather, must henceforth be required ne'er to erode thee, and may no howling tempest e'er incommode thee. Under thy shade, dearly beloved tree, Beauty and Harmony are both displayed.

[Chayastri]

@jackstaplegun ,

Thanks for the translation, I was having trouble figuring out the words.

[arsace72]

This performance is in english, not matter. It's a nice performance, but I prefer Rousset.

[x7starsx]

Nothing. Its great. As was this brilliant ENO production. Ann Murray fantastico.

[3konno]

wtf is wrong with this recording

[molcb1976]

i think english language is suited to opera, though it is not so melodic as the italian language

[bubblesthepowerpuffg]

I'm sorry but the person that says English was useless for Operas is talking out of their backside. Of course it is useful, Handel wrote in English on occasion. Also the fast tempo is a signature of the historical performance music - its just a part of modern taste. So yes, it is just interpretation, although it was a little fast for me.

[classictomatosoup]

As far as I know, Handel only wrote oratorio in English, and occasionally songs, but not opera?

[handel86]

Handel wrote 42 Italian operas and one very boring German one (Almira...a youthful and not altogether inspiring work.) He only began to wirte English Oratorios...indeed he actually invented the genre when Italian opera became unpopular in London in the first half ot the 18th century.

[pianofolle]

Cm'on guys..it's not the best for me neither. but also not as awful as u say! pretty fast tempo yes, but it's a matter of interpretation. besides..does she sings bad? NO

[beqy]

that was the worst ombra mai fu i have ever listened... why the xerses is a woman ? there are too many countertenors in the world and the launguage must have been Italian.. english isn't useful for OPERAs..

[traderida]

I'm sorry, but I think he's right, English isn't good for opera...

Best version of Ombra mai fu is sung by Friz Wunderlich I think.

[sweetaliena]

and Rudolf Shock. He did a very good rendition.

[peymaania]

Now why would Persian Courtiers from 25 Centuries ago be wearing 18th European Dress?

Dare I declare that Persian Gentlemen did not wear Britches 25 centuries ago...nor have they done so since. But the singing & Music are very Beautiful none the less!

[katesinger]

its a production (make believe) they only have so many costumes to choose from! you can never be exact!

[Herzo87]

laddie, you're wrong. this part was originaly written for castrato like most of baroque lead roles. they are now performed by woman or countertenors because of lack of castratos

[DerWandrer]

And it is also a great performance by Ms. Murray. I enjoyed the orchestra's interpretation as well. They have really mastered the Handelian idiom and execute proper and rarely heard ornamentation with great style.

[kampfzwerg2]

oh NOOOOOOO it's not "george frederic handel" xerxes was written by Georg Friedrich Händel.

frederic.... oh no

[elizabethvonslussen]

Oh YEEEEEES! Common, not everybody is German speaking. George Frederick HANDEL, after all, went to work in London. He was an ENGLISHMAN. Booooooooo!

[kampfzwerg2]

but Georg FRIEDRICH Händel was born in Germany, grew up and learned there. so he definetly is GERMAN!

and his name is Georg Friedrich Händel (ä is an a with two dots.......! or, for the english ä=ae)

[elizabethvonslussen]

Hej look, I know that letter of the alphabet you are invoking. I speak and write Swedish and those extra letters are there. But I still insist that in terms of musicality George Frederick HANDEL could be considered an ENGLISHMAN. Period.

[DerWandrer]

Yes, he did. But so did King George I of England, who did not speak one word of English when he ascended the throne.

Mr. Handel is so important in baroque music because he successfully combined the three main styles of baroque music: His native contrapuntal German style, the lyric, melodic Italian style (where he lived & studied w/ Vivaldi), and the florid French style. He was even influenced by English folk music during his tenure in England making him unlike any other composer of the time.

[palcika1]

Plus, Handel himself spelled his own name in quite a few different ways, including the English version 'George Frederick Handel'. If it was ok for him, why nor. This spelling is used to the present day in Britain, isn't it?

[pabs661]

when he went to london he changed his name George Frederck Handel as a symbolic gesture of him becoming an Englishman and making England his home

Besides British couldnt pronounce hie name correctly

[vickersman]

lovely gardening outfit!

[inhasfo]

El rigor sencillo de Purcell junto a una gran potencia italiana y majestuosidad francesa. Handel infinito

[WinkelHoof]

I agree, she have a good voice but not good enough, and I dont like the english translation...but thanks for the vid! :)

[dorisboy52]

She does have a fine voice...but this piece belongs to a counter-tenor...There is a difference...Not crazy about the English either...

[DrGarri]

To a countertenor???? The role of Serse is for a high lyric mezzo, a countertenor could never sing the tessitura and range of this role. One thing is to sing Ombra mai fu, which is the only aria that Serse sings in this opera which is in the countertenor range, and another very different is to sing the whole role. If you tell me that a Sopranist can sing it, then I would agree with you.

[JWSNEAKERS]

Actually, you are incorrect on that point. This role was originally written for a countertenor. Check out David Daniels... He does all of the the "Handel" roles and he's quite phenominal.

[DrGarri]

Am I? Who was the countertenor for whom the role of Serse was composed for? I know David Daniel much better than you think, and he only sings "ombra mai fu" since this is the only aria in the opera where Serse's tessitura is similar to that of an alto. And no, David doesn't sing all of the Handelian roles. How about some probable facts when you post your comments?

[margotlorena]

it was not composed for a countertenor. back at that time castrati were used.

[armycasa]

buuuuuuuu

[peymaania]

My Pudenda is Pained & Sore, and inspiration a fleeting Muse! Be Gone O Vagabonde Rage...

Be Gone!

[mozartgia]

Por favor, quiero ver mas, toda toda la opera bufa, Xerxes me encanta. A podrias subir arias con Christopher Robson.

[niemandsrose]

Mich hat noch selten im Leben eine Stimme so tief berührt und bewegt. Ann Murray in der Münchener Staatsoper in Ariodante oder Julius Cesare zu erleben, war für mich ein musikalisch-sinnlicher Höhepunkt in meinem Leben!

Danke!

Niemandsrose

[DrGarri]

I agree, she is wonderful!!!

[Tigermuc]

Dear Ann,

your voice is wonderful as always when I watched/heard you in Munich...remember our brief encounters? If we shall meet at the met in N.Y.?

Yours great fan

Christian

[fairyboy3]

the words no fall in to my herat like in italian

[colibridelapampa]

Why in english??? Opera do not be translated!!!

No, no, no!!!

[eurypheus]

Dear Ann Murray,

wonderful. I am just a countertenor, but your performance and your voice is really superb. Chapeau, Madame!

Thomas

[Mimabailarina]

Trovões, relâmpagos e procelas não vos venham a mais ultrajar a cara paz!

[Mimabailarina]

Bravissimo.

[Mimabailarina]

Should anyone post me "Ombra mai fu" in English, please?

[tipoual]

More! More! More!

[planthi80]

surperb~! post some more~! thank you~!