Opera Astana Premiere of the opera “Orlando Furioso” by Vivaldi

ASTANA – On October 4, the premiere of the song “Orlando Furioso” (Furious Orlando) by the great Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi took place at the Astana Opera House. On the stage of the Kulyash Baiseitova Chamber Hall, fans of Vivaldi and lovers of baroque opera could fully immerse themselves in this story of lovers, dark magic and madness.

Based on the epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto, the opera “Orlando Furioso” dates from 1727. The intricate plot of the opera takes place on the island of the evil sorceress Alcina, who uses her magic to enchant those she desires. The plot tells the story of the knight Orlando, who, consumed by unrequited love for the beautiful Angelica, falls into madness. He goes through a series of emotions, going from deeply in love to completely mad, before finally finding his way to recovery.

The musical director and conductor of the new opera production, Abzal Mukhitdin, who specialized in baroque music during his master’s studies, knew exactly how to make the most of the music in this production.

“In general, chamber opera has its roots in the Baroque era and it was this direction that laid the foundations for the further development of opera,” he said.

In “Orlando Furioso,” the chamber orchestra departs from the typical inclusion of harps, timpani and trombones. Instead, there is primarily a string ensemble, with occasional flute or oboe solos adding delicate nuances to the music.

“Such a light orchestra gives us a unique opportunity to trace the development of the musical language. Vivaldi’s approach to vocal parts is also interesting. The composer makes extensive use of countertenors and contraltos, paying particular attention to the low voices performing coloratura. It should be noted here that coloratura is not a characteristic of the pitch of the voice, as is commonly believed, but of its mobility. Thus, both tenor and baritone can be coloratura voices. There is a deep interplay of instrumental and vocal lines in this opera, which highlights Vivaldi’s uniqueness and innovation as a composer,” Mukhitdin added.

Italian director and vocal coach Alla Simonishvili presented a fresh look at the famous classic.

“Why was ‘Orlando Furioso’ chosen for the exhibition? Because it is a dynamic, dramatic and emotionally rich opera. When it comes to music, of course, baroque music is also specific, it is instrumental and requires special vocal abilities, i.e. we are talking about fast singing here. “I think that artists performing this repertoire gain enormous skills, primarily because it is an extraordinary training ground that teaches singing techniques, sound balance, volume and specific vocals,” said Simonishvili.

On the first day of the premiere, Rassul Zharmagambetov sang the title role of the noble warrior Orlando, leading a trio of outstanding performers – Tatyana Vitsinskaya as the evil sorceress Alcina, the Honored Worker of Kazakhstan Saltanat Akhmetova as the warrior Bradamante and Assem Sembina as Angelica.

The audience can catch on “Orlando Furioso“ also on October 5.