Orpheus in the Academy - Monteverdi''s First Opera and the Accademia Degli Invaghiti

This book introduces a new perspective on Claudio Monteverdi's Orfeo (1607), a work widely regarded as the 'first great opera', by exploring the influence of the Mantuan Accademia deglia Invaghiti, the group which hosted the opera's performance, and to which the libretto author, Alessandro Striggio the Younger, belonged. Arguing that the Invaghiti played a key role in shaping the development of Orfeo, the author explores the philosophical underpinnings of the Invaghiti and Italian academies of the era. Drawing on new primary sources, he shows how the Invaghiti's ideas about literature, dramaturgy, music, gender, and aesthetics were engaged and contested in the creation and staging of Orfeo. Relevant to researchers of music history, performance, and Renaissance and Baroque Italy, this study sheds new light on Monteverdi's opera as an intellectual and philosophical work.

List of contents

Introduction: "The Invaghiti Orfeo"
Chapter 1: The World of the Italian Academies
Chapter 2: The Invaghiti's Literary Theater
Chapter 3: Musical Virtuosity and the Orphic Ideal
Chapter 4: Oratory and Noble Virtù
Chapter 5: Patriarchal Guidance, Gendered Educational Privilege
Chapter 6: The Mystical Architecture of Orfeo
Envoi: Orpheus's Exit from the Academy

Summary

This book introduces a new perspective on Claudio Monteverdi's Orfeo (1607), a work widely regarded as the 'first great opera', by exploring the influence of the Mantuan Accademia deglia Invaghiti, the group which hosted the opera?s performance, and to which the libretto author, Alessandro Striggio the Younger, belonged.

Report

 "Schwindt's fascinating account is a highlight in the vast scholarship on Monteverdi's Orfeo. The musical analysis is compelling and readers will be drawn to the rich literary and cultural tapestry embedded in this innovative study." -Susan Lewis, co-author of Claudio Monteverdi: A Research and Information Guide

Product details

• Authors: Joel Schwindt, Joel (Boston Conservatory At Berklee Schwindt
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 03.09.2021
• EAN: 9780367465964
• ISBN: 978-0-367-46596-4
• No. of pages: 242
• Series: Routledge Research in Music
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Art > General, dictionaries; Music, HISTORY / Historiography, MUSIC / Genres & Styles / Classical, MUSIC / Genres & Styles / Opera, ART / Performance, Opera, c 1500 onwards to present day, Historiography, History of art: Byzantine & Medieval art c 500 CE to c 1400, baroque, Renaissance art, Art & design styles: Baroque, Renaissance style, Performance Art, Modern Period, C 1500 Onwards, Art music, orchestral and formal music, Medieval & Renaissance music (c 1000 to c 1600), Baroque music (c 1600 to c 1750), Medieval style, Western "classical" music