Work Information
| commissioned by the Commissão Nacional para as Comemoraçôes dos Descobrimentos Portugueses |
| Work Notes |
Opera in five acts in collaboration with Robert Wilson.
Libretto (Portugese) by Luisa Costa Gomes. |
Publisher |
Dunvagen Music Publishers Inc |
| Category |
Opera and Music Theatre |
Year Composed |
1991 |
| Duration |
2 Hours, 20 Minutes |
Solo Voice(s) |
4 Sopranos, 3 Mezzo sopranos, 3 Tenors, 2 Baritones, 2 Bass-baritones, Bass, Speaking role |
| Chorus |
SATB |
Orchestration |
2+pic.2.2+Ebcl+bcl.2/4.3.2+btbn.1/4perc/hp.epf/str |
| Languages |
English, Portuguese |
Availability |
Hire Explain this... |
Programme Note
CAST
Queen, Scientist 1 - soprano
Raven 1, off-stage voice Act 4-B - soprano
Raven 2, Scientist 2 - mezzo
Da Gama, Traveler 1 - bass-baritone
King - baritone
Native Queen, Miss Universe, Dragon - mezzo
Sailor 1, Scientist 3, Traveler 2 - tenor
Sailor 3, Traveler 3 - baritone
Sailor 2, Traveler 4 - bass-baritone
Judy Garland, Siamese Twin 1 - soprano
Siamese Twin 2 - soprano
Barcelos Clock, Dogman - mezzo
Spoonman - tenor
Tin Man, Ocephalus - tenor
Native King, Elephant Foot - bass
Mixed Chorus
Writer - speaking only
SYNOPSIS
The opera touches upon discoveries throughout time, beginning with the expeditions of the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, "The work is not concerned with historical accuracy. It pursues, rather, an open reflection on the concept of discovery of commencement (of what does not exist but comes into being) and the concept of beginning (as Aristotle writes, 'a beginning is that which does not come necessarily after something else, but after which it is natural for another thing to exist or to come to be'). The title "White Raven" alludes to the myth in which Apollo turns a white crow black for denouncing Cronis' infidelity - in the opera the crow is the messenger of the misfortune, the symbol of lost innocence."
© Luísa Costa Gomes
Reviews
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“Philip Glass is a musician of extraordinary ability, and chooses his collaborators well: Cocteau, Wilson, Freyer…he swims like a fish through the waters of the marketplace that contemporary society has become. Building on a foundation of serious music, and with more than a light flirting with light music, Glass has done his bit to attract a new audience to opera. His minimalism has been a crucial reference point for musical aesthetics over the past few decades, and in The White Raven is put at the service of a poetic and ironic text by the Portuguese writer Luisa Costa Gomes. It’s music with more tunes than we’re used to from Glass, and here receives strong support from the production’s visual element…An all-around success for the Teatro Real.”
Juan Angel Vela del Campo, El Pais, 01/11/1998
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