Synopses & Reviews
A change of pace from the
opera seria of his day,
Xerxes is a rare venture into musical comedy by Handel. Set in the Persian Empire around 475 B.C., a tangled love triangle is slowly woven around the central character, Emperor Xerxes I. A rarity among Baroque operas,
Xerxes remains one of Handel's most popular works and is frequently performed today.
Synopsis
One of Handel's rare ventures into comedy,
Xerxes parodies the conventions of opera seria. Love triangles, swaggering heroism, and all manner of operatic pretensions receive a playful tweaking in a subtle treatment that never descends into farce. This new edition of Handel's innovative work offers an authoritative, practical, and inexpensive resource.
Synopsis
One of Handel's rare ventures into comedy,
Xerxes parodies the conventions of opera seria. Love triangles, swaggering heroism, and all manner of operatic pretensions receive a playful tweaking.
Table of Contents
Libretto
List of Characters / Personaggi
Scene Index / Indice
Instrumentation
Overture
Act I / Atto Primo
Act II / Atto Secondo
Act III / Atto Terzo