Set in Egypt round 80 BC, Handel’s Berenice tells the story of the Egyptian Queen’s involvement in a convoluted romantic net which is fortunately resolved in the long run. The three-act opera premiered at London’s Covent Backyard Theater on Could 18, 1737, however proved to be unsuccessful, and closed after solely 4 performances.
Within the Baroque interval, the French overture offered a well-recognized formal template. It begins with a stately sluggish introduction propelled and enlivened by regal dotted rhythms, and proceeds on to a full of life Allegro part. Handel’s Berenice Overture follows this mannequin. The Allegro erupts with a vibrant imitative dialogue between the strings and oboes. The elegant Menuetto which follows often is the most recognizable music from the Overture. The work concludes with a joyful, celebratory Gigue. Maybe it’s no shock that Dr. Charles Burney, who chronicled Handel’s musical actions in London, described Berenice Overture as “glad and pleasing to an unusual diploma.”
Recordings
- Handel: Berenice, HWV 38, Overture, Minuet, Gigue, Christopher Hogwood, Academy of Historic Music Amazon
Featured Picture: “The queen (Cleopatra I, Cleopatra II or Berenice III) has a curly, Libyan-style hairstyle and might be portrayed because the Egyptian goddess Isis,” (2nd century, B.C.)
