Porsile : Spartacus

Giuseppe Porsile (1680-1750) Spartacus Duration: 3h including interval The rediscovery of Porsile's opera Spartacus, led by Orkester Nord and conductor Martin Wåhlberg, marks a critically acclaimed event

Giuseppe Porsile (1680-1750) Spartacus

Duration: 3h including interval

The rediscovery of Porsile's opera Spartacus, led by Orkester Nord and conductor Martin Wåhlberg, marks a critically acclaimed event. As a composer at the imperial court in 1720, Porsile was the equal of the greatest creators of his time: Caldara, Fux, Conti, Porpora, and even Vivaldi (who died in Vienna in 1741). Spartacus, created for the Carnival of February 1726, is one of his finest lyrical works and one of the very few operas of the era about a gladiator. Spartacus was a great success at its premiere in Vienna in February 1726, thanks to an excellent libretto and a lavish score. The renown of Spartacus is also explained by the cast, dominated by the barytenor Francesco Borosini, who created the title role and notably the impressive scene of paranoid delirium in Act III. With a voice covering at least two octaves, Borosini inspired Caldara, Conti, Porsile, Fux, and Gasparini to compose roles of sensational virtuosity. Borosini was also one of the main artists who enabled Handel to compose emblematic roles such as Bajazet in Tamerlano, Grimoaldo in Rodelinda, or the spectacular transposition of Sesto in the revival of Giulio Cesare in 1725. Facing Borosini in this work were the fantastic soloists of the Viennese court, notably Regina Schoonjans in the noble role of Vetturia and Faustina, the quintessential Handelian muse, as Gianisbe. Spartacus is an opera that speaks of freedom to varying degrees. From the outset, the plot unfolds at the end of Spartacus's revolt, with the gladiator leader cornered in the city of Capua. As the siege of the city begins, Spartacus attempts to win the heart of the noble matron Vetturia and to marry her daughter Gianisbe to the Roman Licinio, who is already promised to Vetturia. Beyond these sentimental twists, Spartacus is an opera that shows how absolute power can indulge in the worst e