Coronis – Concert Version « Le Poème Harmonique

Coronis – Concert Version

Zarzuela in two days (c. 1701-1706) by Sebastián Durón (1660-1716) to a libretto by an anonymous poet

« Performed before the young king of Spain, Philip V, the grandson of Louis XIV, this mythological pastorale is entirely sung: something of an exception at the end of the Golden Age when Spain was under the sway of the zarzuela, combining song and declamation, in the same way that London was falling for the semi-opera as illustrated by King Arthur.

So what exactly is the work about? Coronis, a nymph of unparalleled beauty, narrowly escapes Triton the sea monster who is trying to abduct her, when a ruinous conflict erupts between Apollo and Neptune. One sets ablaze and the other floods the land of Thrace over which both yearn to reign. Fleeing the disaster, Coronis is caught again by Triton, but Apollo suddenly appears and kills him. The two lovers, nymph and god, are anointed king and queen by Jupiter.

Durón, master of the royal chapel in Madrid seized on this arresting narrative to present an exotic performance to the court. Of course, Coronis, is as far-removed from French musical tragedy as it is from Italian opera. It finds its origins in a musical theatre unique to Hapsburg Spain which remains largely unknown today despite the renewed interest in baroque opera. The variety of influences in it is no less prodigious. There are sumptuous choruses; poignant Italian-style lamenti; tonadas – popular songs typical of Spanish theatre; grands airs that foreshadow opera seria; and coplas, or couplets whose refrains enliven the dialogue. In short, a whole world conducive to a combination of registers in a narrative where burlesque counters tragedy.

Even more remarkable still is the almost entirely female cast, divided between seven sopranos embodying not just the heroine but also Apollo and Neptune, with a tenor playing the old soothsayer Proteus. A reflection of a Spain in which women alone were trained to sing in theatre troupes – a profession that the cantors of the royal chapel looked down upon with scorn.»

Vincent Dumestre