Organization

Conductor

René Jacobs

Singer

Mezzo-soprano

Kateryna Kasper

Soprano

Sophie Harmsen

Galatea

Bass

Andrea Mastroni

Polifemo

MusikTheater an der Wien

Others

Basel Chamber Orchestra

Italian

Aci, Galatea e Polifemo

Vienna

Austria

Halle E im MuseumsQuartier

Aci, Galatea e Polifemo Händel

Public

German

Approved

ACI, GALATEA E POLIFEMO
Georg Friedrich Händel

SERENATA FOR THREE SOLO VOICES
Libretto by Nicola Giuvo 

George Frideric Handel was 23 when he wrote Aci, Galatea e Polifemo in Naples in 1708. Written as a concert entertainment for a wedding among the nobility, the serenata tells the love story of the nymph Galatea and the shepherd Acis which comes to an end when Acis is brutally murdered by the Cyclops Polyphemus. To today’s listeners, this work, along with the oratorio Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno written a year earlier, feels like a glimpse over the young composer’s shoulder as he conducts his experiments: with three singers and in only 90 minutes Handel unfolds a breadth of expressive forms and combinations of instruments almost completely absent from his later works. René Jacobs, who has been tirelessly unearthing Baroque masterpieces for years and is a regular guest at the MusikTheater an der Wien, will conduct Handel’s serenata as a drama of emotions.

 Concert performance in Italian with German surtitles
Introduction to the work 30 minutes before curtain-up

 
Cast
Conductor: René Jacobs

Aci: Kateryna Kasper
Galatea: Sophie Harmsen
Polifemo: Andrea Mastroni

Kammerorchester Basel

English

Aci, Galatea e Polifemo by Händel, From (2024/2024), Conductor René Jacobs, Halle E im MuseumsQuartier, Vienna, Austria

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Ensemble

Program, About & Synopsis

Photos

Further reading

Performance Dates & Venues

Venues