Academic literature on the topic 'Porpora, Nicola'

“Where Porpora is concerned, misfortune is bound to ensue. Beware, in faith, of having anything to do with his company.” Metastasio’s damning indictment of Nicola Porpora in a letter published in his Opere (the offending passage omitted from Charles Burney’s English translation) is put into the context of the “Palchetti Wars” in Rome in 1732/33 and a court case against the impresario Francesco Cavanna of the Teatro della Dame. The court case was filed by a group of musicians, presumably led by Porpora, after the cancellation of the premiere of his Issipile during the spring of 1732 as a result of the closing of the theatres by the pope due to the controversy between the ambassadors of France and Austria over their boxes (palchetti) at the opera. In the court case between two of his old friends, Metastasio took the cause of the impresario over the composer because the case resulted in the bankruptcy of Cavanna and the closure of the della Dame. Although arrangements were made for the premiere of Porpora’s Issipile the following year at an alternate venue, the Teatro Pioli—which got around the theatrical ban by replacing its palchetti with a large balcony or palchettone, the della Dame, preserving its celebrated five tiers of palchetti—remained closed until 1738. This was probably part of the strategy of the directors of the delle Dame in dealing with the twists and turns of the palchetti controversy.

Abstract Farinelli came to Venice only when his career was already well advanced. In 1728/29 he performed there in two operas, Catone in Utica by Leonardo Leo and Semiramide riconosciuta by Nicola Porpora. These operas needed to become a financial success because of the high remuneration the star singer earned. The composition and adaptation of the operas to the stage uncover the strategies by the impresarios of the Teatro San Giovanni Grisostomo, the Grimani brothers, and by Farinelli himself to secure income and renown. Catone in Utica underwent a highly unusual procedure at its very premiere because the opera was “impasticciata”, i.e. merged with pre-existing or newly-composed music by other composers. The substitutions reveal Farinelli's aim to stun the audience in his very first aria on stage. His brother's (Riccardo Broschi's) “Mi lusinga il cor d’affetto” Farinelli had sang earlier in 1728 presents his entire vocal profile in a single aria. In subsequent arias, Farinelli adds some features not present in this aria or concretizes several aspects of it. In the second opera, Porpora's Semiramide riconosciuta, Farinelli concentrates on another feature of his vocal style: small, fast, quasi-improvisational motives. Although they are also found in operas by other composers and were also sung by other singers, Semiramide riconosciuta is a special case because of their high frequency in Farinelli's role. All in all, the two operas of his first appearance in Venice seem to follow the intention to present his entire vocal spectrum to the audience.

Studies of Italian opera in London during the first half of the eighteenth century have focussed on George Frideric Handel (1685-1759). As the most prolific composer of this genre in the English capital, this is unsurprising, but it has meant that other composers, contemporaneously active in this field, have been relatively neglected. This is especially true of the period 1733 – 1737, during which time two Italian opera companies attempted to co-exist in the city. Leading one of the companies was Handel, with the Neapolitan, Nicola Porpora (1686-1768), recruited to compose the works for the rival opera company, the so-called ‘Opera of the Nobility’. This study therefore discusses Porpora’s contribution of five operas to the London operatic stage during his three year residency between 1733 and 1736, in opposition to Handel’s company. This has required an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the formation of the rival opera company, its operation in terms of repertoire and the influence of its librettists on Porpora’s works. Detailed analysis of the music has been undertaken to consider Porpora’s style, establish how he adapted this in London for an English, rather than Italian audience, and determine the efficacy of his communication of the drama through his music. This thesis is the first large-scale detailed study of Porpora and his operas. Although the primary focus of this work is his London operas, the necessity of providing a context for these has resulted in a contribution to greater knowledge of Porpora’s overall style. There is still much work to be done on a full study of all of Porpora’s 44 operas and other compositions. This study also significantly adds to the current knowledge of operatic rivalry in London between 1733 and 1736, for the first time evaluating the fabric and importance of Porpora’s operas within this period.