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Main article: Music in Russia in the XVIII century
1762: Unfulfilled production of the opera "Cephalus and Prokris" by Sumarokov and Araya
The production of the opera "Cephalus and Prokris" by Francesco Araya to the libretto by Alexander Sumarokov in Oranienbaum was being prepared in a new theater built by Rinaldi, but it did not take place or for some reason was not mentioned in the documents, says musician Andrei Penyugin.
Araya, who left Russia in 1759, returned again in 1762 in the hope of getting a job at the court of Emperor Peter III. It is possible that during this period he was involved in the preparation of a new production of the opera Cephalus and Prokris. At this time, Peter Fedorovich was already emperor and could put her in St. Petersburg, but remained very attached to Oranienbaum. All productions in the summer season would have taken place there anyway.
The notes of this version were preserved in the Scientific Library of the St. Petersburg State Conservatory, and the missing recitatives for the 2016 premiere were added by Andrei Penyugin[1].
In the parts from Oranienbaum in the First Action after the overture there is a choir, which is not in the score or in the libretto. Usually, such inserted choirs at the beginning of the action were associated with some important event in the life of the court (birth of an heir, coronation, peace treaty, etc.). Araya could be its author, but no evidence of this has yet been found.
Perhaps it was the opera "Cephalus and Prokris" that was supposed to be staged in mid-July 1762, suggests Andrei Penyugin, but the coup and assassination of the emperor prevented these plans. On the other hand, it is not clear what solemn date the production could be preparing for, since it is known that Peter III went to meet his name day on the day of the coup on June 28, 1762 from Oranienbaum to Peterhof.
According to another version, the production of the opera with the participation of Grand Duke Pyotr Fedorovich could have taken place earlier at the end of the 1755 season, or at the beginning of the 1756 season at the theater of the Picture House, which was summer. The season ended in autumn, before the arrival of cold weather, and began at the end of spring, wrote musician Andrei Reshetin. But this version comes up against many obstacles.
The theater in the Picture House was so small that the number of people in the choir, ballet and orchestra, compared to the large court premiere, should have been minimal. Of course, those paintings by Antonio Perezinotti based on the sketches of Giuseppe Valeriani, which were created for the theater on Tsaritsyn Lugu, could not be used in the Picture House, since baroque scenery for the opera seria is always created for a specific theater, for a specific machine. It is impossible to imagine that two sets of scenery in different sizes were immediately made for this opera, especially since that at the time of the premiere of Cephalus and Prokris on February 27, 1755, the theater in the Picture House did not yet exist.
The conservatory set of notes "Cephalus" with a note notebook with the name of the Grand Duke indicate their Oranienbaum origin. All notes, like printed opera librettos, if the name of the Grand Duke stood on them, belonged to Oranienbaum. In addition, the set of notes of "Cephalus" was found in the same collection with those works of Araya that were specially created for Oranienbaum. The existence of these notes confirms that the opera "Cephalus and Prokris" was being prepared for production in Oranienbaum.
The instability of the voices of children from 11 to 14 years old is a factor that does not allow to postpone the performance of the opera for a long time. The end of the 1755 season, or the beginning of the 1756 season, is the most likely time of the Oranienbaum production, if it was carried out.
It is difficult to imagine a four-hour performance staged at this time with scenery and full-fledged machinery, repeating the court premiere, in the theater, the decision to build which was made so suddenly and which was created in such a short time. As Andrei Reshetin suggested, the surprise of the decision is connected with the choice: to get a very small and cheap theater, but right now, or wait and build a theater in a separate building. Impatience won. "Cephalus and Prokris" does not appear on the list of those iconic Oranienbaum productions for which they have been preparing for a long time, carefully considering their decorative side.
Unfortunately, the studies of S. B. Gorbatenko and M. A. Pavlova, dedicated to the Picture House and the theater in it, do not clarify the situation with theatrical machinery. What did Jimelli manage to build in two weeks in June 1755? What was added for later productions? One thing is clear, the size of the theater in the Picture House does not imply the opportunities for machinery that the theater had in the Promenade garden on Tsaritsyn Meadow in St. Petersburg.
1760: Production of the opera "Recognized Semiramid" to the music of Manfredini
On December 30 or 31, 1760, at the new Oranienbaum Theater, the opera "Recognized Semiramid" was given with the ballet "Sacrifice of Iphigenia" by Calcevaro.
Opera composed by Abbot Peter Metastasia, music by G. Vincent Manfredini (with Italian text).
1759
Opera "Alexander in India"
On September 1, 1759, the production of Alexander in India took place at the Oranienbaum Theater. Libretto by Metastasio. Music by F. Araya.
Rinaldi is building a large wooden theater
In 1759, Rinaldi built a large wooden theater, which allows large operas with large-scale scenery and machinery to be staged in Oranienbaum. The size of the new theater (it was two-tier) made it possible to expand the orchestra, which in the Picture House, apparently, could not exceed 20 musicians. Rinaldi's wooden theater was located near the current western entrance to the park, opposite the Picture House, wrote musician and researcher Andrei Reshetin. In 1824 it was dismantled and transported to Petersburg, where it burned down almost immediately.
Ballet "Chinese Imperial Wedding" in the Picture House to the music of Joseph Starzer
On April 29, 1759, the ballet troupe of the Oranienbaum Grand Ducal Theater showed a two-act ballet, "Chinese Imperial Wedding." The music for this performance was written by the Austrian composer Joseph Starzer, who was then working in Russia. G.B. GRZhBOVSKAYA [2]. Court ladies and gentlemen participated in the performance.
In December 1759, the production of the ballet Prometheus and Pandora was mentioned.
1757
The full opera "Alexander in India" to the music of Araya
Stelin writes about theatrical life in Oranienbaum: "In 1757, the full opera was first staged" Alexander in India to the music of Araya, and then every year a new opera by the grand-ducal bandmaster Manfredini was staged.<...> In the orchestra, almost every time he sat next to the accompanist, on the first violin, the Grand Duke himself, who diligently played the whole opera, once even played Violino solo accompagnate and at the end of the aria a skillful cadence, which each time was accompanied by applause of lodges and stalls. " (It is possible that Stelin writes about Vologez's aria from Araya's Seleucus, which was staged in Oranienbaum in 1761).
Opera "Bellerophon" and cantata "Prophetic Urania" in Upper Park
A large musical festival was given in Oranienbaum on July 17, 1757. It opened with Bonecca and F. Araya's opera Bellerophon, staged on the Picture House stage with sets by Valeriani. Stage driver Jibelli. The opera presented a grand enchanting spectacle, with choirs and ballets, with many stage effects.
On the evening of the same day, Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna was given a musical holiday in honor of her husband, Grand Duke Peter Fedorovich - an amazing performance of the cantata "Prophetic Urania." The holiday took place in Upper Park, apparently on the current Triple Linden Alley. This is how an eyewitness described this event:
"At first there was a rich evening table in the garden, several thousand wax lamps decorated. Against the place where His Imperial Highness, Sovereign Grand Duke, sat, there was a perspective that amused all those present in an impartial way. But their pleasure was even more multiplied when, without knowing anything in advance, they suddenly saw at the end of this prospect, great, in the likeness of a solemn chariot, a car made, which was carried by 24 richly decorated and wreaths decorated with oxen. This chariot, arranged in a Roman way, was removed by flowers, festons and other decorations. Musicians and singers sat on it, all in the same dress, representing different geniuses. At the very top of the machines was the muse Urania, sitting on many shining celestial spheres and globes. It differed from others not only in the elevation of the place, but also in its very rich decoration. Mrs. Garani, chamber singer of Her Imperial Majesty, represented the persona of the muse. The chariot arrived quietly and lushly as it finally approached the table. Before her was a large choir of singers and dancers who produce the most beautiful ballets with all the change. As the car, coming close to the table, stopped, Urania sang a pretty aria... "
Chariot, was made according to the project of A. Rinaldi. The holiday ended with a "masked ball," a lottery and a magnificent fireworks display. The inventor of fireworks was the scientist M.V. Lomonosov, he also built a model of the universe. The holiday was such a success. which was repeated the following year.
The delighted Grand Duke made a reciprocal gesture, ordering Araya a reciprocal cantata for his wife - "Juno the Helper."
1756
July 02, 1756 mentions the production in Oranienbaum of the opera Alexander in India. Libretto by Metastasio. Music by F. Araya.
On June 17, 1756, the production of "Azilio de lla pace" (Refuge of the World) took place at the Theater of the Picture House.
1755
The first staging of the dialogue to the music of Araya "Captive of Love"
In the theater of the Picture House, the Grand Duke, playing the violin, together with his Italian teacher friends, violinists of the court orchestra Luigi Madonis, Domenico Dalolio, Tito Porto, with the cellist Giuseppe Dalolio and Francesco Araya performed Araya operas for his home and friends.
If in St. Petersburg in the 1730-1740s no more than one new opera was staged per year, then in the period from 1755 to 1762 all Russian Araya operas were staged in Oranienbaum. In addition, especially for Oranienbaum, the composer wrote several cantatas dedicated to various festivals.
The first production in the new theater was the play "Captive of Love" ("Captive Cupid," Amor prigioniero), a one-act in two scenes "dialogue to music" by Francesco Araya to poems by Pietro Metastasio.
The general leadership, as stated in the surviving description, was carried out by the Grand Duke himself. The performances were also attended by artists of the imperial court chapel.
When its premiere took place on June 30, 1755, in the theater and in the Picture House itself, the work was still in full swing: on the day of the premiere, 65 builders worked there; carpenters and finishers were released only on July 1. For the production, two sets were performed: "a charming area with waterfalls, hills and mountains," and the other depicted grottoes, fountains, and statues surrounded by vases and plants. They were also invented by Valeriani and performed by Perezinotti. All this information is provided by M. A. Pavlov in his book "Oranienbaum Notebooks," which was published by the publishing house "Historical Illustration. St. Petersburg "in 2016.
Opening a school for children, from which Berezovsky and Khandoshkin subsequently left
By personal order of Pyotr Fedorovich, a school was opened in Oranienbaum in 1755 for "gardening and bobyl children" aged 10-13 years. Subsequently, many famous Russian artists came out of the walls of this school: musicians, singers, composers, including Maxim Berezovsky and Ivan Khandoshkin. At the same time, a ballet school was organized in Oranienbaum, one of the first in Russia.
Extension to the building on the east side of the Opera Hall
In the Picture House, created by Shtelin for the grand-ducal couple Pyotr Fedorovich and Ekaterina Alekseevna, a very small theater was arranged. A wooden extension for the Opera Hall was made to the east end of the building.
As you can understand from the book by M. A. Pavlova, "Oranienbaum Notebooks," which was published by the publishing house "Historical Illustration. St. Petersburg "in 2016, the idea of the theater in the Picture House arose already during the plastering work, in May 1755. We read page 175: "On May 25, 1755, the contractor O. Kozhin received money 'for cutting down the picture house from the right wing where the upper ceiling beams are to be an opera, for lowering them to the bottom and pulling them out...', i.e. the decision to expand the functions of the Picture House entailed the alteration of the floor structures."
On the other hand, at the end of the same page, M. A. Pavlova writes: "It is known that in early February 1755, the'machinist' Carlo Jibelli 'came to Oranienbaum to show opera machines." Since any baroque theater begins with machineria, it is clear that dreams of their own theater began to materialize from this visit. On June 14, Jibelli arrives in Oranienbaum with a team of 25 people and by July 1 they had done all the work on the construction of the stage, theatrical mechanisms and the interior of the hall, including two stairs in the box, as well as balconies. "The theater machinist acted as a theater architect" - M. A. Pavlova, p. 176.
1754
The library of Father Pyotr Fedorovich was delivered. Placement of the art gallery and kunstkamera
In the summer of 1754, under the supervision of J. Shtelin, the library of the Grand Duke was delivered from Kiel to Oranienbaum in thousands of books, "seven bookcases. The library was based on a collection of books by Father Pyotr Fedorovich.
In addition to the library, the west wing of the building housed the art gallery and Kunstkamera. Kunstkamera in Oranienbaum in its composition repeated in miniature Kunstkamera of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg. The Oranienbaum collection included anatomical and zoological preparations, stuffed animals and birds, samples of marine fauna, botanical rarities. She was of great value for her time.
The art gallery contained paintings on mythological and historical subjects, as well as landscapes, portraits, genre and hunting scenes.
Jacob Shtelin creates the Picture House for Pyotr Fedorovich and Ekaterina Alekseevna
Before arriving in Russia, Jacob Stelin was a flutist in the Leipzig orchestra of I. S. Bach, was close to his family, played a lot with his older sons. It was Stelin who created the Picture House in Oranienbaum, with its library, collection of paintings, theater.
Two paired paintings around which the spread of the southern wall of the Painting Hall was formed were revealed in the Oranienbaum funds: these are the works of the unknown Italian school artist L. Giordano "Famar and Amnon" (N 8) and "Joseph and the Wife of Pentephria" (N 11).
Two more works from the collection of the Picture House are located on the east wall. It is "The Childhood of Romulus and Remus" (N 4; collection of the State Hermitage) by the Venetian painter G. Lazzarini. This picture presents a well-known episode from the legendary history of Rome, described by Ovid ("Fastes," II, 381-442; III, 53-56) and Titus Livius ("From the Foundation of the City," Book I, 4): Rhea Sylvia, daughter of the Alban king, gave birth to twins from the god of war Mars. To protect them from the wrath of the king, Rhea Sylvia put her sons in the basket and entrusted her with the waters of the Tiber. The basket was caught by the shepherd Faustul and brought them to his wife Lorence, who fed and raised the twins.
"Three Parks" by S. Mazzoni (N 6; collection of Oranienbaum) the Grand Duke acquired back in 1746.
"Three Parks" is written on the plot of ancient mythology. Against the backdrop of cloudy skies and architectural ruins overgrown with wild shrubs, three goddesses of fate are depicted with their characteristic attributes. Nona, in charge of the birth, holds a yarn in the form of a cornucopia from which the infant emerges. Winged Decima spins and measures the thread of life, the duration of which depends on the mood of the capricious Morta, holding sharp scissors in her hands. Snakes crawling next to her on stone ruins symbolize the inevitable death.
From the Oranienbaum painting collection of Peter Fedorovich, the work of the Italian artist D. Majotto "Quarrel over Maps" (western wall, N 7; collection of the State Hermitage), as well as "Portrait of an Old Jew" by the German master B. Kalau (North Wall, N 35; collection of Oranienbaum).
1751: Upper Park Stone Concert Hall
In 1751, a stone Concert Hall ("Stone Hall") was built in Upper Park.
1750: Opening of the wooden opera room at the palace wharf
In the middle of the 18th century, Oranienbaum unexpectedly became the musical and theatrical capital of Russia. The summer stay of the "young court" of Peter Fedorovich and Ekaterina Alekseevna in the seaside residence transforms it not only architecturally. Thanks to Pyotr Fedorovich's passionate passion for violin, concert halls are built one after another in Oranienbaum, in which music constantly sounds.
The predecessor of the Opera House was a wooden opera hall at the palace pier on the sea canal. On July 25, 1750, the hall was inaugurated.
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