“Jean-Marie Leclair (1697–1764) was 49 years old in 1746, when – at the peak of his career as one of the most celebrated violin virtuosi in France and the whole of Europe, and as the composer of numerous masterpieces for violin, among them 48 sonatas and 12 concertos – he unexpectedly composed a tragédie lyrique for the Paris Opera. His inspiration might well have been the decision – similarly surprising to his contemporaries – of the celebrated music theorist Jean-Philippe Rameau to turn perman...ently to the opera stage at the age of 50 with the composition of Hippolyte et Aricie in 1733. The Paris performances of Leclair’s lyric tragedy Scylla et Glaucus met with only modest success, the reason for which can be sought not in the work itself but in the circumstances of the time: amid the war driven by rival fans of French opera and Italian opera buffa, the “old-fashioned” (i.e. French-styled) work of a French composer unknown as a writer of operas could not have expected a particularly warm reception. The modern rediscovery of the opera, which had already fallen into obscurity in the mid-18th century, can be attributed to John Eliot Gardiner. When the work was performed again under Gardiner’s baton for the first time in London some 240 years after the composer’s death, the concertmaster was Simon Standage, who will also lead the Orfeo Orchestra in this evening’s performance. Scylla et Glaucus not only resembles Hippolyte et Aricie in the story of its composition, but is also a fitting companion to the Rameau masterwork in terms of its musical values. We performed Hippolyte in April 2011, and this evening we will present Scylla for the first time in Hungary at the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall. As the most brilliant examples of the French Baroque repertoire, these operas stand up to comparison with the finest works of the European Baroque period. We hope you will agree that Scylla et Glaucus merits its place on the 21st century concert and opera stage alongside the major works of Monteverdi, Purcell, Bach, Handel, Rameau and Vivaldi. (György Vashegyi) Presented by: Orfeo Music Foundation
Parking information
We wish to inform you that in the event that Müpa Budapest's underground garage and outdoor car park are operating at full capacity, it is advisable to plan for increased waiting times when you arrive. In order to avoid this, we recommend that you depart for our events in time, so that you you can find the ideal parking spot quickly and smoothly and arrive for our performance in comfort. The Müpa Budapest underground garage gates will be operated by an automatic number plate recognition system. Parking is free of charge for visitors with tickets to any of our paid performances on that given day. The detailed parking policy of Müpa Budapest is available here.
Safe ticket purchase
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