Opera by G. F. Handel // Musical director: Attilio Cremonesi // Soloists: Francesca Lombardi (Adelaide), Anna Bonitatibus (Matilde), Carlo Vistoli (Lotario), Rafał Tomkiewicz (Idelberto), Krystian Adam (Berengario), Ki-Hyun Park (Clodomiro) // In cooperation with the Handel Festival Orchestra Halle - concert as part of the series "Handel's World".
Introduction: Dr. Boris Kehrmann, Oper Halle // 7 p.m. // Oper Halle, Operncafé // Admission free - unnumbered seating // Duration: approx. 20 minutes (in German only)
55, 45, 30 €
After the collapse of the Royal Academy of Music in 1728, Handel opened his Second Academy in London in 1729 with the opera Lotario. The historical background to the exciting plot is the dispute for the Italian crown between the German king, Otto I (912–973), and Berengar of Ivrea (c. 900–966), Otto’s victory and his marriage to the Italian queen, Adelaide (c. 931–999) in 951. The hero’s name was changed to “Lotario” for Handel, as noted in the autograph: “Note: here, the name Ottone changes to Lotario” (Act 2, scene 12). The appeal of Handel’s powerful music lies in its careful polyphonic treatment, containing numerous magnificent arias with unusual melodies. The Handel Festival Orchestra Halle, which both largely reflects Handel interpretations and the performance practice of Baroque music and influences them, and which has made its mark on the Handel Festival, will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2023. Even back in the 1980s, a gradual move towards historically informed performance practice had begun, but it was the direction set at the founding of the orchestra in 1993 that formed the basis for the continuing Handel tradition in Handel’s native city of Halle. Besides the freshly nominated Handel Prize winner Anna Bonitatibus, internationally known soloists including Karina Gauvin and Carlo Vistoli, who have already made acclaimed appearances at the Handel Festival in Halle, will also be performing.