This Opera scene was part of a project created by International Opera Theater and premiered in 2010 in Philadelphia followed by performances in Città della Pieve in Italy during the summer of 2011. Seven composers were commissioned to write the music for a seven scene multistory opera using different stories from the Decameron. The libretto was written by Karen Saillant, Artistic Director/Stage Director of IOT and the Italian translation was by Tommaso Sabbatini. The final result was a two act opera named Decameron and featured a total of 8 singers and a small chamber ensemble. The story I was to put to music was the one about Ghismunda & Guiscardo.
The first lines of the Fourth Day - Novel I from the Decameron read as follows: Tancredi, Prince of Salerno, slays his daughter's lover, and sends her his heart in a golden cup: she pours upon it a poisonous distillation, which she drinks and dies. Reading the tale one learns that Trancredi's daughter, Ghismunda, has fallen in love with Guiscardo who is her father's Page. The scene develops in Ghismunda's room where her father comes looking for her and not finding her falls asleep while hidden in the room, waking up to find her daughter with his page. Trancredi is enraged to find out that she is in love with his servant and from there the drama unfolds. The heart of this scene is Ghismunda's aria, which I composed first. I later used a leitmotif of the minor third from the aria throughout the whole scene as the generating element that would unify the dramatic structure. The aria itself has four sections, A-B-A'-B'. The A sections are more dramatic, expressing dark and strong emotions as anger and pain. The B sections are almost introspective and longing for a peaceful resolution in death.. Click here to watch the full orchestra version premiere on YouTube.
Efraín Amaya

Duration: ca. 14:00

Characters
  Ghismunda: (Soprano) Daugher of Tancredi, Prince of Salerno. She is secretly in love with Guiscardo, a Page of her father.
  Guiscardo: (Tenor) Servant and Page of the Prince Tancredi.
  Tancredi: (Baritone) Prince of Salerno

Instrumentation
Original small ensemble: Soprano, Tenor, Baritone, Flute, Clarinet in Bb, Percussion, Piano, Violin, Cello.

Orchestra version: Soprano, Tenor, Baritone, 2/2*/2/3* - 4/3/3/1 - Tmp + 2 Perc., Harp, Strings.

 

Ghismunda & Guiscardo - 2014 (soprano, tenor baritone & orchestra) 14:00 (Operatic Scene)
Parts Music Rental only
Full score $80.00 / Vocal score $40.00 / Original chamber version score $50.00

Ghismunda & Guiscardo Scores

Vocal Score $40.00 USD Full Orchestra Score $80.00 USD Chamber Version Score $50.00 USD

To take a look at the Full Orchestra Version Score click here

 

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