The first and presumably only performance of the opera Dafne took place in Torgau on April 13, 1627, as part of the festivities celebrating the marriage of the Saxon Duchess Sophie Eleonore and the Hessian Landgrave Georg II. Although the libretto by Martin Opitz appeared in print, virtually nothing of the music has survived. At first glance, the reconstruction of an opera whose music has not survived appears to be a daring undertaking. In fact, however, there are many clues to the structure of the work, so that it was possible to produce something that, although not identical to the original, is very close to it. In all, there are a dozen mostly secular works by Schütz in the present reconstruction by conductor Roland Wilson, making up about half of the entire opera. Says Wilson himself, "You'll hear some glorious pieces by Schütz and his contemporaries that you probably never would have listened to otherwise."
Please login to post a review
Reviews
“… a concise and captivating 75 minutes … All vocal and instrumental forces are superb. Standouts include Tobias Hunger, a high tenor with the right ethereal quality for Apollo, and Magdelene Harer, whose mellow and flute-like soprano makers her a formidable Cupid.”
Paul L Althouse – American Record Guide – March/April 2023
Interpretation ****** Sound Quality **** Repertoire Value ***** Booklet ****
Dr Matthew Long – Klassik.com – 1 August 2022
**** Excellent Album
Jérémie Bigorie – Classica magazine (France) – November 2022
Media Downloads
Whenever possible we provide a high resolution CD cover image and a PDF version of the CD booklet for you to download and keep. These are found in your history if purchased and once you have logged in.