Esclarmonde

Esclarmonde is an opéra (Opéra romanesque) in four acts and eight tableaux, with prologue and epilogue by Jules Massenet, to a French libretto by Alfred-Édouard Blau and Louis Ferdinand de Gramont. It was first performed at the Opéra Comique in Paris on May 14, 1889 with American soprano Sybil Sanderson in the title role in her professional debut . Esclarmonde is perhaps Massenet's most ambitious work for the stage and is his most Wagnerian in st... more

Esclarmonde is an opéra (Opéra romanesque) in four acts and eight tableaux, with prologue and epilogue by Jules Massenet, to a French libretto by Alfred-Édouard Blau and Louis Ferdinand de Gramont. It was first performed at the Opéra Comique in Paris on May 14, 1889 with American soprano Sybil Sanderson in the title role in her professional debut . Esclarmonde is perhaps Massenet's most ambitious work for the stage and is his most Wagnerian in style and scope. In orchestral coloring and structure of melody, however, it is French to the core. The opera has been revived sporadically in the modern era, most notably during the 1970s with acclaimed soprano Joan Sutherland, conducted by Massenet champion Richard Bonynge. The role of Esclarmonde is notoriously difficult to sing, with stratospheric coloratura passages that are possible for only the most gifted of performers. The story of the opera is based on the medieval chivalric tale Parthénopéus de Blois, which was written in the middle... less