Bacchus, Ceres en Venus explained
Bacchus, Ceres en Venus is a 1686 Dutch-language pastoral opera by Johan Schenck.
It is one of the earliest surviving Dutch-language operas, 8 years after with Carolus Hacquart's De triomfeerende Min (1678).[1]
[2] The libretto was by Govert Bidloo an Amsterdam regent, physician and poet.[3] [4] A large number of selections from the opera were published as Schenk's Op.1 in 1687[5] enabling a reconstruction as the basis for a recording by Camerata Trajectina in 2011.
The opera had its (rather late) premiere in Utrecht at the "Festival voor oude muziek" in 2011.The production was directed by Marc Krone and featured Bernard Loonen as Mercurius, Hieke Meppelink as Cerus, Jasper Schweppe as Bacchus, and Renate Arends as Venus.
Notes and References
- John Warrack The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera 1996 -- Page 234 De triomfeerende Min (1678, to celebrate the Peace of Nijmegen), by Carolus Hacquart (c.1640'?1701), is often claimed as the first Dutch opera but is really a pastoral play with music, Attempts at Dutch opera were made by Hendrik Anders (1657-1714) and Servaas de Konink (7-1717 or 1718), especially in the latter's De vnjadje van Cloris en Roosje (1688, lost)."
- Oud Holland 2002 - Volume 115, Issues 1-2 - Page 64 "Veel verwante onderwerpen, bij- voorbeeld enkele goden, eventueel met gezelschap, zoals Diana met haar nimfen, of niet-verhalende groeperingen zoals die van Bacchus, Ceres en Venus, zijn dus niet behandeld. Of dat jammer is, valt ..."
- Sven Dupré, Christoph Lüthy Silent Messengers: The Circulation of Material Objects of ... 2011 - Page 191 "He published a Dutch translation of Pierre Corneille's Pompée in 1684, ridiculed the Nil in 1685 in a satirical pamphlet and wrote the libretto for Ceres, Venus and Bacchus, the first Dutch opera in 1686. His monumental Anatomia humani ..."
- Quaerendo 1973 - Volumes 3-4 - Page 91 "J. Schenk, Enige gezangen uit de opera van Bacchus, Ceres en Venus (text: G. Bidloo; 1687, for the composer) 21. J. Schenk, Hooglied (text: M. Gargon) (1697) G. Song-books with arrangements for two voices: 22. J. Butler, Stichtelycke ...
- Jolande van der Klis - The essential guide to Dutch music: 100 composers and their work 2000 "Op.1 (1687) comprises a collection of songs based on the score of the opera Bacchus, Ceres en Venus, which was set to a libretto by Govert Bidloo, an Amsterdam regent, physician and poet. The two other volumes containing vocal music are ...
