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Purcell Dido and aeneas an opera

Purcell Dido and aeneas an opera. How is it evident that Dido and Aeneas was written in the style suitable for English Masque theatre?. By. Anika Brand and norisuke iwahashi. What is an english masque.

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Purcell Dido and aeneas an opera

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  1. PurcellDido and aeneasan opera How is it evident that Dido and Aeneas was written in the style suitable for English Masque theatre? By. Anika Brand and norisuke iwahashi

  2. What is an english masque • A form of entertainment, involving costumes, scenery, dances, music and poetry, that flourished in England in Tudor and Stuart times (esp. 1601-31). • The subject matter was usually mythological, allegorical, or heroic. • Its musical characteristics: • consists of many dances. • has episodic structure. • affectation of key is evident. • sectionalisation of harmony. • musical declamentation.

  3. Content • Mythological • The characters are from Greek mythology. The account of the story is given by the Roman poet Virgil in his Aeneid. Musical declamentation • Speech rhythms • Syllabic and melithmatic • Long and short vowels • Word paintings • ‘storm’, ‘fierce’ and ‘valour’(‘Whence could so much virtue spring’) • Declamentation is tied together harmonically  tonal sense and reflects dramatic situation.

  4. structure • The opera is in an episodic structure, as a typical English Masque piece i.e. consists of many pieces, which each can function as an individual complete piece. • Dances (ballet) are placed in between the beginning and the end of acts (More a theatrical purpose).e.g. The Triumphing Dance in Act I,Echo Dance of Furies in Act II, scene i • Many of Purcell’s dances follow the features of French dances which are especially significant in Lully’s works. The features of Lullian dances are: slow tempo, dotted rhythm and homophonic texture.

  5. Harmony & key signature • EXAMPLE: Whence could so much virtue spring. • Harmonically: the piece originally starts from C minor, then resolutes into more G Major (b.23, p94. Harris). ‘Anchies’ valour’ (b.42-52) is in C Major, then F Major in ‘Venus’ charms, how soft’ (b.54-6). • i.e.frequent modulations and accidentals occur. • But the C harmony dominates throughout. • These features show the song is a carefully and strictly measured declamatory song.

  6. BIBLIOGRAPHY • Harris, Ellen T. Henry Purcell’s DIDO and AENEAS. Clarendon Paperbacks 1987. UK. • Purcell, Henry. Edited by Price, Curtis. Dido and Aeneas, An Opera. Norton Critical Scores 1986. USA. • Green, Alison. Dress and Décor: The Baroque and Rococo Style – Summary. (12/02/09; http://www.theatre.ubc.ca/dress_decor/baroque_rococo_summary.htm)

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