Istria on the Internet - Music

Performance by Miccolis, Marques, Ayres, Mascitti, Rinaudo, at Teatro Sao Paolo Orch., Belardi

Fosca, an Opera Set in Venice and Istria

Fosca was the second opera composed by Brazilian-born Antônio Carlos Gomes (1836-1896) in Italy. After a trip to Rio for the first Brazilian performance of his opera Il Guarany after it premiered at La Scala in Milan in 1870, Gomes returned to Milan, married, and produced Fosca which likewise premiered at La Scala on February 16, 1873 with a libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni.

The opera is based on the romantic novel La festa delle Marie by Luigi Capranica (1821-91) that was first published in Milan in 1869 and republished in 1877 in his Racconti. The story of the novel is derived in part from a legendary event that took place during the 15th century in Venice and Istria and which is celebrated in Venice as La festa delle Marie.

This Fosca has nothing in common with the omonymous novel by Tarchetti whose plot is known by American audiences because it was the subject of a Broadway musical, Passion - that was inspired by Ettore Scola's movie, Passione d'amore, and based on Tarchetti's work - other than the fact that both Foscas are women in prey to an unrequited hysterical passion for a handsome young man.

Marie Gabrielle Krauss as Fosca, 1873 premiere.emiere.

A strong cast led by Marie Gabrielle Krauss in the title role and young Victor Maurel as Cambro won a success on opening night (the rest of the cast included Carlo Bulterini as Paolo, Cristina Lamare as Delia, Ormondo Maini as Gajolo, Angelo De Giuli as Michele Giotta, and Ferdinando Zanutto as the Doge). Composed in an advanced polyphonic form, systematically using leitmotifs, and in a very chromatic way. Gounod was present at the premiere, and made flattering commentaries.

Carlos Gomes was accused of being "Wagnerian" and this style was not appreciated at all in the 19th century Italy. Fosca was acclaimed by the experts, but remained a fiasco for the larger public. It did not enjoy the same success that Il Guarany had obtained three years ago in the same theatre, nor did it travel swiftly through the opera houses of Europe as had Il Guarany. Even South America waited four years to hear it, a visiting ItaIian troupe giving the continental and Brazilian premieres on July 7 and 15, 1877, respectively.

Gomes revised the opera three times. The first and most important revision was for the premiere of the new version (this time described as a melodramma) on February 7, 1878, also at La Scala with major revisions in the score, replacing the original Act One baritone aria "Or vieni o donna" with the more lyrical "D'amore le ebbrezze". He drastically shortened the finale of Act Two which originally called for a long concertato following the defeat of Gajolo, in which Fosca reveals her kidnaping of Delia to the victorious Venetians and forces Paolo to accompany her, leaving her brother and the other pirates presumably to be executed. Furthermore, he inscribes a large section of the duet between Fosca and Delia in Act Three (“Come and seize the instant that my heart opens to clemency”).

In the 1878 production, Maini recreated Gajolo, Francesco Tamagno in the role of Paolo, and the almost aptly named Amalia Fossa as Fosca (others included Adelina Garbini as Delia and Gustavo Morioni as Cambro, with Verdi's close friend Franco Faccio in the pit). This time, Fosca got the public success it deserved. The Gazetta Musicale once again had flattering comments about this work:

One could say that this is an almost entirely opera in Gomes' style. Indubitably Fosca is the best work of the American maestro. He expresses all of his savage inspirations. The great finale consists in a barbaric warrior shout, but only Gomes could translate in music such philosophy and such effects.

The second revision is from 1889, for a performance at the Modena Municipal Theater. Finally, the third is from 1890 at the Dal Verme Theater in Milan, after which the opera was never resumed.

Ultimately, the opera failed due to a dispute between lovers of bel canto and supporters of Wagnerian music-drama, with the publishing war between Lucca (Gomes' publisher) and the house of Ricordi contributing to the opera's undeserved misfortunes: Fosca was bound to remain, during Gomes' lifetime at least, a work appreciated by the intelligentsia and snubbed by the common opera-goers. Gomes seemed to strengthen this situation stating to have composed "Il Guarany for the Brazilians, Salvator Rosa for the Italians and Fosca for the experts".

In any case, Fosca appears to be a complex work, and calls for a lavish, elaborate, often evocative (the viola in Paolo's aria introduction) orchestration, and big voices serving a plot which reminds one of La Gioconda. A revival at the Teatro Dal Verme with the last great European champion of the composer, soprano Hariclea Darclee in 1890, ended Fosca's non-South American career.

Fosca, opera

Composer: Carlos Antonio Gomes (1836-96). Revised 1878. His other operas include A noite do castelo (1861), Joana de Flandres (1863), Nella luna (1868), Il Guarany (1870), Telegrafo elettrico (1871), Salvator Rosa (1874), Maria Tudor (1879), and Lo schiavo (1889).

Librettist: Antonio Ghislanzoni (1824-93), Italian libbretist, after La festa delle Marie by Luigi Capranica (1821-91). Ghislanzoni also wrote the libretto for Gomes's Salvator Rosa (1874). Between 1866 and 1872, he was editor of La Gazzetta Musitale di Milano. He turned the French prose sketch for the libretto of Aida into Italian verses, and also collaborared with Giuseppe Verdi on the revival of La forza del destino. His vast literary output numbered some 85 texts, including those for Alfredo Catalani (Edmea), Amilcare Ponchielli (I Lituani), Enrico Petrella (I promessi sposi), and Antonio Cagnoni (Papà Martin, Re Lear and Francesca da Rimini). ARIAS: Or vieni o donna. D'amore le ebbrezze.

Artists (1873):

Fosca, Gajolo's sister Marie Gabrielle Krauss (soprano)

Gajolo, a Corsair of Istria Ormondo Maini (bass)

Cambro, Venetian, slave of Gajolo Victor Maurel (baritone)

Il Doge, Doge of Venice Giovanni Tanzio (bass)

Paolo, Venetian Captain Carlo Bulterino (tenor)

Michele Giotta, Paolo's father Angelo De Giuli (bass-baritone)

Delia, young Venetian orphan and Paolo's fiancée Cristina Lamare (soprano)

Conductor: Francesco Antonio Faccio (1840-91). Italian conductor and composer (his two operas included I profughi fiamminghi (1863) and Amleto (1865). Conductor at La Scala (1871-90); led the first performances of Otello, La Gioconda, Edgar, Dejanice, and the revised version of Don Carlos and Simon Boccanegra. From 1868 he was Professor of harmony at the Milan Cons. His pupil was the Istrian Antonio Smareglia (1854-1929).

Setting: Istria and Venice, Italy, in 944 AD.

Storyline

The protagonist (soprano) of Gomes' Fosca is the sister of Gaiolo (bass), the leader of the pirates, who are about to embark from their pirate's liar near Piran, Istria, upon an undertaking which has some similarities with the famous rape of the Sabine women. They are going to make a raid in a Venetian church to abduct some young brides on their wedding day. Fosca is desperately in love with Paolo (tenor), a Venetian aristocrat, now prisoner of the pirates, who however is engaged to Delia (soprano), who is faithfully waiting for him in Venice. Senator Giotta (bass), Paolo's father, arrives at the pirates' cove to pay the ransom and bring back his son. Fosca tries to prevent Paolo to leave, playing the first of many a scene of hysterics.

Cambro (baritone), the true villain of the story, wishing to oust Gaiolo from the Pirates' leadership, promises Fosca that, if she is willing to yield to his lust, he will bring Paolo back to her. Fosca accepts, swearing to take revenge on Paolo's rejection of her. The day of the mass abduction arrives. Fosca, who followed the pirates to Venice, at the sight of Paolo and Delia entering the church together, flies off the handle again, and everyone calls her a madwoman. The pirates attack, the women's abduction and rape follow; in the confusion Gaiolo is captured by the Venetian, whereas Fosca and Cambro manage to escape dragging along with them Paolo and Delia.

In Istria, believing that Paolo is dead, Delia wanders a grotto in delirium. Fosca appears. Full of rage, she is however moved by the depth of Delia's love, and (something like in Gioconda) decides to save them both. Cambro is now the leader of the pirates who, nevertheless, do not trust him very much. At the news that Gaiolo may be set free by the Venetians, Cambro, feeling himself in danger, tries to gain total control of Fosca, reviving her jealousy by conjuring the image of the two lovers who will sail away triumphant and mocking. It doesn't take much to excite Fosca's paroxysmic nature, and Cabro very easily convinces her to kill both of them. In Venice, in the meantime, Gaiolo is being set free as he promises to bring back Paolo and Delia. In Istria, Paolo, believing Delia is dead, sings an aria praying to God to let him be united with her. Fosca tries to persuade Delia to drink some poison telling her that that is the only way she can save Paolo's life. Just while Delia is bringing the cup to her lips, Gaiolo arrives, saying that he has just killed Cambro and that Paolo and Delia can now return to Venice. While the two lovers are embarking, Fosca, unseen by anyone, drinks the poison she had intended for Delia, and asks them for forgiveness. The two sail. Fosca begins to totter, and Gaiolo realizes what she has done. The woman dies, and the opera concludes itself with the cry of vengeance of Gaiolo and the pirates who swear to destroy Venice.

As it is immediately evident, this story is full of characters constantly on the brink of a nervous crisis, and such traits are faithfully reproduced in the vocal writing, Fosca's in particular, which requires a veritable dramatic soprano at her ease in the tremendous leaps and intervals, steep ascents to the top and sudden dives in the low range with which this role seems to be studded, a role which is difficult to cast. It is also an ungrateful role, as the most beautiful and lyric arias are assigned to the two amorosi, Paolo and Delia. Paolo in particular has been gifted with a captivating aria Ah! Se tu sei fra gli angeli, which would not make a bad impression next to the most exquisite Verdi's arias. If Delia is written for a soprano lirico puro, Paolo, on the contrary, calls for a spinto tenor, at ease in a singing persistently hammering on the passaggio area. Cambro, with its high and thorny tessitura, appears to have been written for a true dramatic baritone.

Sources: :

OperaWeb reviews - https://archivio.opera.it/English/Recensio/Opere/Fosca.html (no longer accessible)

Opera: An Encyclopedia of World Premieres and Significant Performances, Singers, Composers, Librettists, Arias and Conductors, 1597-2000, p. 103

Album jacket - https://www.klassik-gesamtverzeichnis.de/fosca_8738109.htm

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