Pygmalion (opera)
| Pygmalion | |
|---|---|
| Monodrama by Georg Benda | |
 Georg Benda in 1751 | |
| Librettist | Friedrich Wilhelm Gotter |
| Language | German |
| Based on | Rousseau's Pygmalion |
| Premiere | 20 September 1779 , Gotha |
Pygmalion is a monodrama in one act by composer Georg Benda with a German libretto by Friedrich Wilhelm Gotter. The opera's first performance was at the , the court theatre in Gotha, on 20 September 1779.[1] Pygmalion was the fourth of the five theatrical collaborations of Benda and Gotter. Gotter based his text on Jean-Jacques Rousseau's 1762 play Pygmalion. Benda's melodrama is unusual as it has no singing roles. Two of the three characters, Pygmalion and Galatea, are spoken roles; the other, Venus, is silently acted on stage.
Synopsis[]
Pygmalion, having renounced women, is in love with the statue he has made, his Galatea. Venus allows her to come to life, giving him final happiness.
Discography[]
- Benda Melodramas: Ariadne auf Naxos/Pygmalion with conductor Christian Benda and the . Cast: Brigitte Quadlbauer (Ariadne) and Peter Uray (Pygmalion). Released in 1996 on the Naxos label.
References[]
- ^ Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Pygmalion, 20 September 1779". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).
External links[]
- Pygmalion (Benda): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- Pygmalion at Naxos Records
| Operas |
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|---|---|
 Category:Operas by Georg Benda | |
Categories:
- Operas
- Operas set in Cyprus
- German-language operas
- 1779 operas
- Operas by Georg Benda
- Melodramas
- Monodrama
- Operas based on Metamorphoses
- Works based on Pygmalion from Ovid's Metamorphoses