Rossini - Moses in Egypt
Opera on 3
Christopher Cook presents Welsh National Opera's new production of Rossini's Moses in Egypt, given at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff. Although not as well known as the Barber of Seville, La Cenerentola, or William Tell, Moses in Egypt is among Rossini's greatest musical achievements. First heard in Naples in 1818, Rossini's telling of the Old Testament story pulls focus between the epic and the intimate, as the story of an entire people persecuted by a cruel tyrant is juxtaposed with the forbidden love of two young people on either side of a religious divide.
The Pharaoh refuses to free the Hebrews from slavery and allow them to leave for the Promised Land. Moses, with God's help, brings down plagues on the Egyptians until eventually he and his people are freed. But Pharaoh's son, Osiris, is in love with a Hebrew girl, Elcia, and he is punished when he attempts to have Moses killed.
The Hebrews reach the Red Sea and are rescued from the pursuing Egyptians by divine intervention.
Characters (in order of singing)
Osiride / Osiris Pharaoh's son.....David Alegret (tenor)
Faraone / Pharaoh..... Andrew Foster-Williams (bass-baritone)
Amaltea Pharaoh's wife..... Christine Rice (mezzo-soprano)
Mosè / Moses..... Miklós Sebestyén (bass-baritone)
Aronne / Aaron..... Barry Banks (tenor)
Mambre, Egyptian high priest..... Nicky Spence (tenor)
Elcia, Hebrew girl..... Claire Booth (soprano)
Amenofi, Hebrew woman..... Leah-Marian Jones (mezzo-soprano)
Chorus of Welsh National Opera
Orchestra of Welsh National Opera
Carlo Rizzi (conductor)
This torrent includes a selection of images from the production
Synopsis:
Act 1
Darkness envelops Egypt. It has been brought about by God in order to punish the Pharaoh and his people because he has failed to allow the Hebrews to leave the country for the Promised Land across the Red Sea. Moses is brought in and the Pharaoh declares that, when the sun shines again, he will release the captives. Cautioned by his brother Aaron not to believe the Egyptian leader, nevertheless Moses pleads to God and light returns.
However, because the Pharaoh's son Osiride is in love with the Hebrew girl Elcia and does not want to see her leave with her people, he persuades the High Priest, Mambre, to help him. The Priest does not believe in Moses' powers and he agrees to find a way to prevent the exodus by encouraging the Egyptians to revolt against allowing the Hebrews to depart. The Pharaoh then withdraws his promise and warns Moses that any Hebrew who tries to escape will be killed.
Amaltea, Pharaoh's wife, has secretly converted and she tries to intervene, but to no avail. Moses then threatens further punishment and is set upon by Osiride's soldiers, intent upon killing him, but Pharaoh arrives in time to prevent it. Moses then prays for fire to rain down upon the country.
Act 2
Pharaoh orders the Hebrews to leave at once, so as to avoid the curse placed on his people. Then, telling his son that he has negotiated a treaty whereby Osiride will be married to the Princess of Armenia, he does not understand why his son hears his announcement with little enthusiasm.
Shortly afterwards, Moses learns that Osiris has kidnapped Elcia, but Aaron knows where they are hiding. Amalthea is warned and accompanies him to find the lovers.
Together in the cave, Osiris tells Elcia of his father's plans for him and he suggests that they can live together in hiding in the countryside. The Queen with her guards and Aaron interrupt the two lovers, but they refuse to separate and Osiris declares that it intends to give up the throne.
Meanwhile, the Pharaoh once again reverses himself and states that he will not allow the captives to leave, fearing that the Hebrews will support Egypt's enemies. Outraged, Moses declares that the Crown Prince and all the firstborn males of the country will be hit by a divine lightning strike. Pharaoh orders Moses to be put in chains, and, to protect his son from the prophecy, declares Osiris to be his co-ruler and that he will be the one to proclaim the death sentence on Moses. Elcia then comes forward revealing her relationship with Osiris and begging him to free Moses and his people. She tries to persuade him to accept his destiny and marry the royal princess of Armenia. But Osiris remains adamant and immediately orders that Moses be killed. As he does so, he falls dead from being struck by a bolt of lightning.
Act 3
On the shores of the Red Sea
Having crossed the desert, the Hebrews arrive on the shores of the Red Sea, but find themselves unable to continue their journey to the Promised Land. Leading his people and telling them to wait for God's action, Moses prays. As the advancing Egyptians appear, the Hebrews are panicking, but Moses touches the waters with his staff and the Red Sea opens to provide a pathway to the opposite shore. Following closely behind, the Egyptians, led by Mamre and Pharaoh, enter the gap in the waters but they are swamped by the waves which close over them.
Media info:
General
Format : MPEG Audio
Overall bit rate mode : Constant
Overall bit rate : 320 Kbps
Audio
Format : MPEG Audio
Format version : Version 1
Format profile : Layer 3
Mode : Joint stereo
Mode extension : MS Stereo
Bit rate mode : Constant
Bit rate : 320 Kbps
Channel(s) : 2 channels
Sampling rate : 48.0 KHz
Compression mode : Lossy
Writing library : LAME3.98r
Encoding settings : -m j -V 4 -q 3 -lowpass 20.5
