13^th February 1725

Premiere of the opera “Rodelinda”

The opera Rodelinda is the last of Handel's three masterpieces, the premieres of which fall within a period of about one year in the fifth and sixth seasons of the Royal Academy. The first of these, Giulio Cesare in Egitto, was premiered on 20^th February 1724, the second, Tamerlano, in October and November of the same year, and the third, Rodelinda, was premiered at His Majesty's Theatre in the Haymarket on 13^th February 1725, ten days before Handel's birthday. The premiere was very successful, the opera was repeated several times and its performances took place in the following years. The contemporary press (‘The Kentish Post, or Canterbury News Letter’) mentioned on 15^th January 1726 (almost a year after the premiere), that "Tuesday Evening his Majesty was present at the Theatre in the Hay Market and saw the Opera called, Rodelinda.”

The origin of the libretto was complicated: the 7^th century theme came from the chronicle History of the Lombards by Paul the Deacon, and became the basis for Pierre de Corneille's unsuccessful play Pertharite, roi des Lombards (1652). In the 18th century, the play was successfully adapted into a libretto by Antonio Salvi, originally for Giacomo Antonio Perti. The theme gained popularity until Salvi's libretto was finally adapted for Handel by Nicoló Francesco Haym (also the author of the librettos for the operas Giulio Cesare and Tamerlano).

The widely publicized premiere and subsequent performances were a huge success, featuring the then stars of His Majesty's Theatre, Francesca Cuzzoni (Rodelinda) and the famous castrato Senesino (Bertarido). The first performance outside London was in Hamburg in 1734 and later in the 1735/1736 season. As was the custom of the time (and as is sometimes the case today), the arias were sung in Italian, while the recitatives were sung in German.

Rodelinda was the harbinger of the modern renaissance of Handel's operatic work. The modern premiere took place in Göttingen on June 26, 1920, thanks to Handel enthusiast Oskar Hagen.

Links

• Rodelinda on the English Wikipedia.
• Rodelinda on the German Wikipedia. A very detailed and rich source of information about the opera.
• The latest and probably the best recording so far — by Harry Bicket with the English Concert ensemble and top soloists (Lucy Crove as Rodelinda) was created during the coronavirus crisis and can be purchased directly on the English Concert ensemble's website, but also elsewhere.
• Paul the Deacon: History of the Lombards.