Vanda (opera)

Antonín Dvořák

Operas Alfred (1870) King and Charcoal Burner (1874) The Stubborn Lovers (1874) Vanda (1875) The Cunning Peasant (1877) Dimitrij (1882) The Jacobin (1887) The Devil and Kate (1898) Rusalka (1901) Armida (1904)

Vanda is a grand opera in five acts by Antonín Dvořák. The Czech libretto was written by Václav Beneš-Šumavský and František Zákrejs after a work by Julian Surzycki.

Performance history

The opera was first performed at the Provisional Theatre in Prague on 17 April 1876.

Roles

Role	Voice type	Premiere cast, 17 April 1876 (Conductor: Adolf Čech)
Vanda, the Polish queen	soprano	Marie Zofie Sittová
Božena	mezzo-soprano	Ema Maislerová-Saková
Homena	contralto	Betty Fibichová
Lumir	baritone	Leopold Stropnický
Roderik, a German prince	baritone	Josef Lev
Slavoj, a Polish knight of humble birth, in love with Vanda	tenor	Antonín Vávra
Velislav	tenor	Josef Šmaha
Všerad	tenor	Josef Chramosta
Vitomír	tenor	Ferdinand Koubek
Messenger	tenor	Jan Sára
Herald	tenor	Petr Doubravský
Pagan high priest	bass	Karel Čech

Synopsis

The story is about the Polish queen, Princess Wanda, who drowns herself in the Vistula river in order to save her people from the German invaders.

Recordings

2004: Olga Romanenko (Vanda), Valentin Prolat (Slavoj), Ivan Kusnjer (Roderich), Jolana Fogašová (Božena), Oleg Korotkov (Pagan high priest), Roman Janál (Lumír), Yvona Skvárová (Homena); Gerd Albrecht, conductor; National Theatre (Prague)

References

Amadeus Almanac, accessed 24 March 2015
Smaczny, Jan, "Vanda", in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, (Ed. Stanley Sadie). London, 1992 ISBN 0-333-73432-7

External links

Vanda, comprehensive details at antonin-dvorak.cz

String quartets	String Quartet No. 1 in A major String Quartet No. 2 in B♭ major String Quartet No. 3 in D major String Quartet No. 4 in E minor String Quartet No. 5 in F minor No. 6 in A minor, Op. 12, B. 40 Andante appassionato in F major B.40a No. 7 in A minor, Op. 16, B. 45 String Quartet No. 8 in E major No. 9 in D minor, Op. 34, B. 75 String Quartet No. 10 in E♭ major (Slavonic) String Quartet movement in F major String Quartet No. 11 in C major String Quartet No. 12 in F major (American) String Quartet No. 13 in G major String Quartet No. 14 in A♭ major Cypresses quartet (Dvořák)

Other	Piano Quintet No. 2 in A major Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor (Dumky) Romantic Pieces Serenade in D minor for Wind Instruments Silent Woods Sonatina in G major String Quintet No. 2 in G major String Quintet No. 3 in E♭ major (American) String Sextet in A major Terzetto in C

Piano music

Named for Dvořák

Portal:Classical music

Authority control	GND: 30050313X

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