Home » Musique baroque » Musique Classique » William Christie » Theodora
Theodora - Front Cover
William Christie

Theodora

Description

"Theodora" affirms the emergence of English opera, based on biblical episodes and whose moralizing message, patriotic exaltation, choral splendor combined with an exuberant vocality directly derived from opera, could only conquer the bourgeois middle class, commercial and enlightened, of Georgian England. "Theodora" is Handel's only oratorio based on a Christian subject, drawn from a play by Corneille and a novel by Robert Boyle adapted into a libretto by Thomas Morell. The story of the martyrdom of the young princess of Antioch and the Roman officer Didymus, of their chaste loves and their unwavering faith, flows effortlessly into a dramatic framework divided into acts and scenes and into the alternation typical of opera of recitatives, arias, and characterized duets. Warner Classics reissues at a low price the legendary version by William Christie, with Sophie Daneman, Richard Croft, and Nathan Berg.

Buy Theodora at the best price

This page contains affiliate links. As an eBay Partner Network affiliate, Vinyles.com earn from qualifying purchases made through these links, at no extra cost to you.

Amazon See offers on Amazon
eBay See offers on eBay
Rare Vinyl See offers on Rare Vinyl

Product information

Share this product on social media

Music excerpts Reviews (0)

Disc 1

  1. Ouverture
  2. Trio
  3. Courante
  4. Part i, scene 1 : recitative: 'tis Diocletian's natal day
  5. Part i, scene 1 : air: go, my faithful soldier, go
  6. Part i, scene 1 : chorus: and draw a blessing down
  7. Part i, scene 1 : recitative: vouchsafe, dread sir, a gracious ear
  8. Part i, scene 1 : air: racks, gibbets, sword and fire
  9. Part i, scene 1 : chorus: for ever thus stands fixed the doom
  10. Part i, scene 2 : recitative: most cruel edict!
  11. Part i, scene 2 : air: the rapture'd soul defies the sword
  12. Part i, scene 2 : recitative: I know thy virtues
  13. Part i, scene 2 : air: descend, kind pity, heav'nly guest
  14. Part i, scene 3 : recitative: tho' hard, my friends
  15. Part i, scene 3 : air: fond, flatt'ring world, adieu!
  16. Part i, scene 3 : recitative: o bright example of all goodness!
  17. Part i, scene 3 : air: bane of virtue
  18. Part i, scene 3 : chorus: come, mighty father
  19. Part i, scene 4 : recitative: fly, fly, my brethren
  20. Part i, scene 4 : air: as with rosy steps the morn
  21. Part i, scene 4 : chorus: all pow'r in heav'n above
  22. Part i, scene 5 : recitative: mistaken wretches!
  23. Part i, scene 5 : air: dread the fruits of christian folly
  24. Part i, scene 5 : recitative: deluded mortal!
  25. Part i, scene 5 : accompagnato: o worse than death indeed!
  26. Part i, scene 5 : air: angels, ever bright and fair
  27. Part i, scene 6 : recitative: unhappy, happy crew!
  28. Part i, scene 6 : air: kind heav'n, if virtue by thy care
  29. Part i, scene 6 : recitative: o love, how great thy pow'r
  30. Part i, scene 6 : chorus: go, gen'rous, pious youth

Disc 2

  1. Part ii, scene 1 : recitative: ye men of Antioch
  2. Part ii, scene 1 : chorus: queen of summer, queen of love
  3. Part ii, scene 1 : air: wide spread his name
  4. Part ii, scene 1 : recitative: return, Septimius
  5. Part ii, scene 1 : chorus: Venus, laughing from the skies
  6. Part ii, scene 2 : symphony
  7. Part ii, scene 2 : recitative: o thou bright Sun!
  8. Part ii, scene 2 : air: with darkness deep as is my woe
  9. Part ii, scene 2 : symphony
  10. Part ii, scene 2 : recit: but why art thou disquieted, my soul?
  11. Part ii, scene 2 : air: oh, that I on wings could rise
  12. Part ii, scene 3 : recitative: long have I known
  13. Part ii, scene 3 : air: tho' the honours that Flora and Venus receive
  14. Part ii, scene 3 : recitative: o save her then
  15. Part ii, scene 3 : air: deeds of kindness to display
  16. Part ii, scene 4 : recitative: the clouds begin to veil the hemisphere
  17. Part ii, scene 4 : air: defend her, heav'n
  18. Part ii, scene 5 : recitative: or lulled with grief
  19. Part ii, scene 5 : air: sweet rose and lily, flow'ry form
  20. Part ii, scene 5 : recitative: o save me, heav'n
  21. Part ii, scene 5 : air: the pilgrim's home, the sick man's health
  22. Part ii, scene 5 : accompagnato: forbid it, heav'n
  23. Part ii, scene 5 : recitative: or say, what right have I
  24. Part ii, scene 5 : duet: to thee, thou glorious son of worth
  25. Part ii, scene 6 : recitative: 'tis night, but night's sweet blessing
  26. Part ii, scene 6 : chorus: he saw the lovely youth

Disc 3

  1. Part iii, scene 1 : air: lord, to thee, each night and day
  2. Part iii, scene 2 : recit: but see the good, the virtuous Didymus!
  3. Part iii, scene 2 : air: when sunk in anguish and despair
  4. Part iii, scene 2 : chorus: blest be the hand
  5. Part iii, scene 3 : undaunted in the court
  6. Part iii, scene 3 : accomp: o my Irene, heav'n is kind
  7. Part iii, scene 3 : duet: whither, princess, do you fly
  8. Part iii, scene 3 : recit: she's gone, disdaining liberty and life
  9. Part iii, scene 3 : air: new scenes of joy come crowding on
  10. Part iii, scene 4 : recit: is it a christian virtue, then. scene 5 : recit: be t
  11. Part iii, scene 5 : air: from virtue springs each gen'rous deed
  12. Part iii, scene 5 : air: cease, ye slaves, your fruitless pray'r
  13. Part iii, scene 5 : recit: 'tis kind, my friends
  14. Part iii, scene 5 : chorus: how strange their ends
  15. Part iii, scene 5 : recit: on me your frowns
  16. Part iii, scene 5 : recit: and must such beauty suffer!
  17. Part iii, scene 6 : air: streams of pleasure ever flowing. duet: thither let our
  18. Part iii, scene 6 : recit: ere this their doom is past
  19. Part iii, scene 6 : chorus: o love divine, thou source of fame

From the same artist

See all records by William Christie