The Old Testament as Opera
Below are a list of operas based on Old Testament stories (certainly not exhaustive) with some comments about the librettos and how they relate to the Biblical texts. I will add pictures and links as I can.
"David
et Jonathas" - Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1688) – French
This opera by Charpentier
begins with the Witch of Endor (Prologue) – I Samuel 28:3-25
Then the opera begins by moving
back in time. The basic narrative is pieced together from chapter 14 of I Samuel
until Jonathan and his father Saul are killed (I Samuel 31 and II Samuel chapter
1 for David’s reaction). The libretto picks and chooses. Also the libretto has turned the Commander Joab (Joadab) into the bad guy. In the text Joab is the go-to guy to get violent and nasty things done, but he is not the one who initiates many of these things. Mostly in the Biblical narrative he does David's dirty work. Also, in the Biblical text Saul is
pronounced as a failure long before Jonathan is even introduced into the
narrative. "La Somme le Roy" from 1290 CE.
"Juditha Triumphans" - Antonio Vivaldi (1716) – Latin
The story comes from the Old
Testament Apocryphal book of “Judith.” These Apocryphal books were always
considered important by the Roman Catholic Church and are still included in the
“Catholic Bible.” Luther and the reformers excluded the Apocrypha. The story is
embellished, of course, but it is pretty close to the basics of the narrative.
There are some incredible paintings of Judith and Holofernes (or at least his
head). This is one of my favorite Baroque operas and easily one of my favorites on this list. Below - the beheading of Holofernes by Caravaggio.
"Nabucco" - Giuseppe Verdi (1841) – Italian
Well, there is little about
this libretto that is Biblical aside from the character of Nabucco (Nebuchadrezzar) himself.
Nebuchadrezzar II was the King of Babylon and he became king just following the
Babylonian defeat of the Assyrians and the destruction of their capital
Nineveh. Possibly Neb participated in this action on behalf of his father, Nabopolassur. Upon becoming King he
continued the expansionist, empire-building policies of his father. He also continued certain policies such as the resettling of loosing
populations away from their homelands and the demand for vassals to pay tribute - both Judah and Egypt were vassal states to Babylon. Historically Neb had removed King Hezekiah of Judah around 589 BCE and had replaced him with King Zedekiah, who he thought would do his
bidding. But Zedekiah betrayed Neb and sought to make a secret alliance with
Egypt in order to break the yoke of the Babylonians. It was a fatal error. Neb found out about it and
swiftly moved against Jerusalem, besieging the city and finally taking it in
587 BCE. He cruelly dispatched poor King Zedekiah and his family and took the
aristocrats, priests, prophets, scribes and intellectuals into captivity in
Babylon (her pretty much left the peasants). This begins the Babylonian exile – perhaps one of the most important
events in the history of the Jewish people. So in the opera the fall of Jerusalem is
depicted (sort of) in Act 1 – II Kings 25, and most of the first part of the
prophet Jeremiah. The narrative in the libretto for the rest of the opera is
all fantasy – no history at all.
The tradition that Neb went mad has no
historical veracity and may well have actually been based on a different
Babylonian King, Nabonidus, who wasn’t really mad, but did some off the wall
things so some of his people (mostly his enemies of whom he had quite a few) thought he was mad. There was method in his madness, but
unfortunately for him few got the point and history has not been kind to him (I kind of like him actually). Also, the book of the prophet Daniel records
several stories which have King Neb as a principal character and in these he is
not quite sane and always ends up converting to Yahwehism. These are not
historical. In fact much of the Book of Daniel was originally written in
Aramaic (not Hebrew) because it was composed during the Greek period – which is
after the rest of the OT was written and about the same time as the composition of the Apocrypha.
The use of “Babylon” is actually a code for “Seleucid Greeks” under Antiochus
IV Epiphanes. Interestingly enough when the opera Nabucco was premiered the
narrative was considered symbolic of the struggles for Italian independence
with the Republicans identifying with the exiled Hebrews. This I think is the strongest parallel between the Biblical narrative and the opera.
There are lots of recordings of this opera on YouTube
"Samson
et Dalila" - Camille Saint-Saëns (1877) – French
The story of the Judge Samson
begins in Judges chapter13 and runs through 16. The plot of the opera covers
only chapter 16. There is a lot of embellishing. It is a curious story (like
most of those in the book of Judges) and reflects perhaps an underlying paganism in the
beginnings of early Yahwehism (This faith does not really begin to resemble Judaism as we understand and experience it until after
the return from the exile of the Judeans to the land of Judah.) There is little about
Samson that makes him attractive as a spiritual hero.
However, The conflict between the
Yahweistic settlers into Canaan and the Sea Peoples (Philistines) was a real
serious conflict which began about the time of the settlement and continued
pretty much uninterrupted until the rise of the Assyrians, which begins during
the reign of Solomon and comes to fruition with the invasion and destruction – actually complete annihilation – of the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE. It is
the during a battle with the Philistines that Saul and Jonathan are killed. Painting by Jose Salome Pina.
There are lots of recordings of this opera on YouTube
"Saul
og David" - Carl Nielsen (1902) – Danish
This opera begins in I Samuel
around chapter 13 and goes through until the end of I Samuel. It overlaps with
the Charpentier above in a couple places (the Witch of Endor for example from
chapter 28.) This narrative however includes a lot of additional material – eg.
the introduction of David to soothe Saul with his singing and David vs Goliath
in acts 1 and 2. Act 3 is really interesting. First the incident where David
has the opportunity to kill Saul but doesn’t has been cleaned up (chapter 24 –
Saul is actually relieving himself when David slips behind him and cuts off a
piece of his garment). The anointing of David actually occurs way earlier (back
in chapter 15). The last act follows the events of the end of the biblical
narrative pretty closely, and parallel the Charpentier.
"Susannah" - Carlisle Floyd (1955) – English
Susannah is based on the OT
Apocryphal book “Susannah and the Elders.” The opera is an updating – set in
rural America during the 19th century. But if you read the story you
can see that there are important points of convergence. The Rev. Olin Blitch is
a creation of the composer who is also the librettist and come out of his own
experience growing up in rural Georgia. For any of us who have ever experienced
this kind of Evangelical Revival led by circuit preachers, a lot about this
plot rings very true. This is one of my favorite 20th century operas. Painting - Susannah and the Elders by Peter Paul Rubens.
Sam Ramey singing the Revival Scene at the Tucker Gala with the Met Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Opera is available on DVD in a performance from St. Petersburg Opera
"The
Burning Fiery Furnace" - Benjamin Britten (1966) – English
This opera is based on the
story of the three men who are throw into the Fiery Furnace from Daniel chapter
3. The King in the story is Nebuchadressar, but the story takes place during
the Persian administration and control of the Levant. The writer of Daniel
mixes up his empires constantly throughout the entire book of Daniel. But
ultimately it is about the Greeks – Neb is a stand in for Antiochus IV
Epiphanes who was guilty of the kinds of things described in many of the
stories. The point of the story is to inspire those who are suffering to hold
true to the faith despite the risk of death. It was during the Greek period
that the risk of loosing Yahweist culture and religion was a serious danger. In many ways I think more so than during the Babylonian exile. The fact is that the
temptation to adopt a Greek lifestyle and culture was exceptionally tempting. Art: 11th Century Mosaic.
"Adam's
Passion" - Arvo Pärt (2009) - Church Slavonic
I do not know this piece at
all. I assume it is somehow based on the Creation accounts from Genesis 2
through 4. Chapter 1 is the famous creation poem, but the 2nd
creation account is where Adamah and Hava are introduced. The encounter with
the serpent is in chapter 3. Cain and Abel are in chapter 4.
Available on DVD
"Mosé in Eggito" – Gioachino Rossini
This opera covers the narrative
from Exodus 5 through the crossing of the Red Sea in chapter 14. There is a lot
of artistic license and creativity.
"Moses
and Aron" – Arnold Schoenberg
This opera is one of the most
important in music history because of its use of Schoenberg’s 12 tone row. This
also makes it hard to sit through. The opera begins with Exodus chapter 3 –
Moses and the Burning Bush; but quickly shifts to the wanderings in the wilderness after the Exodus itself
(Everything covered in the Rossini is skipped in this work). The bulk of this
opera covers the wanderings and the challenges. Schoenberg is however making a theological point at the end of the opera, which is fine, but it is
his own point – not one derived from the narrative itself. Like most of the
operas above the biblical narrative is adapted and enhanced and altered to suit
the composer. Painting by Elizabeth Wang.
Other OT operas worth checking out - "Ruth" by Lennox Berkeley based on the book of Ruth.
"The Queen of Sheba" by Karl Goldmark - Fantasy based on the relationship between King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba from I Kings.
"Le Legende de Joseph en Egypte" by Etienne Nicholas Méhul - Based on the Joseph story from the end of Genesis.
"le Mort d'Adam" by Jean-François le Seur - Based loosely on Genesis
"Noye's Flud" by Benjamin Britten - a terrific work with a large cast, also requiring many children
"Il Diluvio Universal" by Gaetano Donizetti - The Noah story from Genesis
"David" by Darius Milhaud
Numerous Oratorio/Operas by Georg Friderick Handel - "Deborah," Jephtah," "Israel in Epypt," "Saul," "Judas Maccabeaus"
I will stop before starting on Oratorios, because the list will never end!
Simon de Myle c. 1570
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