The Iliad and The Odyssey --- a musical experience

[springrite]

Since I am teaching the Iliad and the Odyssey in school, I am thinking about music based on these stories. I do have the Monteverdi opera and, of course, the Berlioz's opera. I am about to order Penelope.

Does anyone have other recommendations?

[Mandryka]

Tippet,  King Priam and Monteverdi Il ritorno d'Ulisse are the first things that come to mind.

If you generalise to Achilles, then there's a lot of opera because the story of Achilles on Skyros was something which classical musicians and artists seemed to find fascinating. It's not mentioned in Homer though. I got to know about it by reading a fabulous book by Vincent Delecroix called Tombeau d'Achille, which in turn put me on to a short story by Marguerite Yourcenar -- Yourcenar as a result has become a major interest of mine. Here's a wiki page

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achilles_on_Skyros

Telemachus was also a major subject of C 18 operas, none of which I've ever heard -- if you look on his wiki page you'll see.

[Wanderer]

Tippet,  King Priam

This one, of course, has the potential of turning students off both Homer and classical music at the same time. If you use it in class, tell us what happens! 

[Wanderer]

Since I am teaching the Iliad and the Odyssey in school, I am thinking about music based on these stories. I do have the Monteverdi opera and, of course, the Berlioz's opera.

Technically, Les Troyens is based on the Aeneid.

[Jo498]

There must be a few more baroque operas although the more famous operas are all from the periphery or aftermath, namely several Iphigenies (such as Gluck's), Elektra or Idomeneo (Idomeneo also returns from the Trojan War).

Then there is obscure stuff like early 20th century symphonic poems on episodes from the Odyssey by Ernst Boehe, some of which have been recorded by cpo.

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https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_Boehe

[North Star]

There are choral works by Bruch: Achilleus, Leonidas and Odysseus, at least the last one has been recorded, and I see it has been described as Bruch's finest secular choral work, not that it necessarily means much.
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[pjme]

Nausicaa is another figure that has inspired composers ( Nausicaa allein by Ingvar Lidholm).
There are several "Homeric symphonies" - by Belgian Lodewijk Mortelmans (on Hyperion) or Austrian Theodor Berger (YT).

Rimsky Korsakov wrote a thundering Wagnerian (fun...) cantata :"Page from Homer"

There must be much, much more... La belle Hélène!

P.

[ritter]

There's also Luigi Dallapiccola's Ulisse.The composer's own libretto is based on Homer, Dante and Giovanni Pascoli.

There's only two recordings available, AFAIK, neither of them easily obtainable.

A studio production from Radio France from the early 90s:
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The recording of the work's world premiere in Berlin in 1968 (in German translation):

[ritter]

There must be a few more baroque operas although the more famous operas are all from the periphery or aftermath, namely several Iphigenies (such as Gluck's), Elektra or Idomeneo (Idomeneo also returns from the Trojan War).

To add to these works based on the periphery that Jo498 mentions (or "greater story" if you will ), there's Gluck's Paride ed Elena, Nicola Manfroce's bel canto ópera Ecuba, and Othmar Schoek's Penthesilea (based on Kleist, but with Achilles as the male lead character).

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[springrite]

Thanks for all the recommendations so far! I do have the Schoeck! I will certainly look into the Bruch and more.

[springrite]

There are choral works by Bruch: Achilleus, Leonidas and Odysseus, at least the last one has been recorded, and I see it has been described as Bruch's finest secular choral work, not that it necessarily means much.
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Many consider Bruch to be a better choral composer than a symphonic composer and I tend to agree!

[Biffo]

A couple of warnings.

The Boehe work mentioned above was discussed in the Amazon UK forum a few years ago and on the strength of that I bought Vol I. I found it pretty dull; on reporting this the original enthusiast agreed but said the interesting parts were in Vol II. I didn't bother to find out.

Also discussed in the same forum was Nicholas Maw's Odyssey - an orchestral work that is epic or long-winded according to taste. Either way, the work is not based on Homer but 'the sense of spiritual journey and quest' the title invokes.

[Cato]

Nikos Skalkottas: The Return of Ulysses

Great work, and an opportunity to explore more of his music!

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It might interest you to know that the name Penelope is derived from the Ancient Greek word for a mallard duck (penelops), the significance being that mother ducks are known to be highly protective of their eggs and nest (i.e. for Penelope, her son and the family's property and rights).

[springrite]

The Skalkottas and Dallapicola both sound interesting! I have the Maw work and I agree that it is rather dry and of interest only from compositional technical perspective.

I actually bought Priam's Gate the last time I was in California but I somehow left it in my friend's house. He listened to it for ten minutes and was not completely enamoured with the music. But I do appreciate Tippett quite a bit. It's not exactly ear-pleasing music but can be emotionally powerful in its own way. 

The Iliad music from Denmark I do know. I remember listening to it once and the Death of Patroclus was the only track I found satisfying.

Thanks to all and keep them coming! I will make an order (probably from Presto in England or JPC in Germany) in two days!

[pjme]

Aeneas - a ballet by Albert Roussel:

Aeneas - Roussel's late choral ballet - was written for Hermann Scherchen and conducted by him at the 1935 Brussels International Exhibition. Its libretto is to words by Joseph Wetterings. Like the much more famous Bacchus et Ariane, this little known ballet addresses a classical subject. The plot tells the tale of Aeneas, founder of Rome and the survivor of Troy. Worldly distractions do nothing to alleviate Aeneas's depression. He rejects his gilded past and turns from his companions. At last freed of the baggage of his glorious past, Rome is revealed in imperial splendour. The ballet ends in an impassioned hymn to the entwined gleaming futures of Aeneas and Rome. The Greeks may have destroyed Troy but a young and indomitable Roman Empire will soon tread down the glories of Greece.

Read more: http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2004/oct04/Roussel_psalm80.htm#ixzz5UCBI7pXk

André Grétry wrote a three-act opera, Andromaque, with a libretto based on the Racine play, which premiered in 1780. In addition, Rossini's two-act 1819 opera, Ermione, is based on Racine's play.

[DaveF]

There are several "Homeric symphonies" - by Belgian Lodewijk Mortelmans (on Hyperion) or Austrian Theodor Berger (YT).

And Alan Hovhaness - no.25 is his Odysseus symphony, also on YouTube.  From listening many years ago I recall quite a merry trumpet theme that recurs throughout the piece.

[Mandryka]

This one, of course, has the potential of turning students off both Homer and classical music at the same time. If you use it in class, tell us what happens! 

It's very good when Achilles and Patroclus are in the tent together -- and I love Achilles' war cry.

Do you think that Achilles and Patroclus were, like, . . . . . gay lovers . . . ?

[Jo498]

It was probably understood that way later on when paiderastia was mostly accepted in Greece but I don't think it is implied in the Homeric texts and while there is plenty of heterosexual love and sex (recall that the "homeric laughter" was by the other gods when the cuckolded Hephaistos had trapped Ares and Aphrodite while they were having sex) I don't think it is clear that Achilleus and Patroklos were more than firends.

[North Star]

It was probably understood that way later on when paiderastia was mostly accepted in Greece but I don't think it is implied in the Homeric texts and while there is plenty of heterosexual love and sex (recall that the "homeric laughter" was by the other gods when the cuckolded Hephaistos had trapped Ares and Aphrodite while they were having sex) I don't think it is clear that Achilleus and Patroklos were more than firends.

Agreed, certainly not in Homer, although others such as Aeschylus and Plato did depict them as lovers.

[Mandryka]

I must say I think the replies in this thread are really impressive, there's a lot of music to explore!