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"Il Zefiro" is an opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau in the form of a one-act acte de ballet.
Nothing is known about the date of its composition and in all likelihood it was probably not performed in Rameau's lifetime.
The name of its librettist is also unknown but may possibly have been Louis de Cahusac.
Rameau's handwritten score for Zéphire, like that for Nélée et Myrthis, was entitled Les Beaux Jours de l'Amour (The Beautiful Days of Love). (Nélée et Myrthis is similarly a one-act opera-ballet.) Zéphire and Nélée et Myrthis may thus have been two parts of the same work.[1]
The first known performance of Zéphire did not take place until modern times when it was performed on 15 June 1967 at the Jubilee Hall in Aldeburgh, Suffolk, England.
Roles[edit]
| Cast | Voice type | Premiere |
|---|---|---|
| Zéphyre | soprano | |
| Cloris | soprano | |
| Flore | soprano | |
| Diane (the goddess Diana) | soprano |
Recordings[edit]
- Zéphyre, sung by Philip Langridge (Zéphyre), Michèle Pena (Cloris), Isabel Garcisanz (Diane) with Maîtrise Gabriel Fauré, Choeur Elizabeth Brasseur, & Ensemble Instrumental de France conducted by Jean-Pierre Wallez, IPG 7465, 1976 (1LP).
- La Guirlande & Zéphyre, sung by Gaëlle Méchaly (Zéphyre), Rebecca Ockenden (Cloris / Flore), Sophie Decaudaveine (Diane) with Cappella Coloniensis des WDR, & Les Arts Florissants conducted by William Christie, Erato 8573-85774-2, 2000 (2CD).
References[edit]
- Sources
- Girdlestone, Cuthbert, Jean-Philippe Rameau: His Life and Work, New York: Dover, 1969 (paperback edition)
- Holden, Amanda (Ed.), The New Penguin Opera Guide, New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001. ISBN 0-14-029312-4
- Sadler, Graham, (Ed.), The New Grove French Baroque Masters Grove/Macmillan, 1988
External links[edit]
- Rameau le site, a site dedicated to Jean-Philippe Rameau (in both French and English)
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