The truth behind the mysterious opera?! How to enjoy Handel's Scilla to the fullest

A world of art to visit, see and feel
File.24 Kanagawa Prefectural Music Hall "Scilla"
Miyuki Inoue (Magcal Editorial Department)

Handel's opera Scilla was written on the latter half of the life of Lucius Cornelius Sulla, a real dictator in ancient Rome. Although the script and sheet music remain intact, it is not clear whether it was performed at the theater at the time, and it is said to be a work that is rarely performed even in modern Europe. From an amateur's perspective, I wonder, "Is that because it is poorly made?" (sorry!).
This mysterious opera will be performed at the Kanagawa Prefectural Music Hall. Prior to the performance, a lecture concert entitled "The Mystery of Handel and the Opera Scilla - A Tale of Ancient Rome" was held. This was a chance to get closer to the world of opera, which I had always felt was intimidating! With a long-held admiration in mind, I went to see it.

The lecture started with "Scilla from the Script" by Ryoko Suwa, who translates the script for the Japan Handel Society. First, we listened to an introduction to the plot and characters.
Even so, the main character, Scilla, is a terrible guy. He flirts with his friend's wife and girlfriend, and when they treat him coldly, he demotes the couple and their spouses, committing all sorts of power and sexual harassment. However, the theme is also apparently the subject of Mozart's opera "Lucio Scilla," so perhaps it's a typical "tyrant story."
Although Suwa says that "the development is abrupt and ignores theory too much," he is apparently attracted to the structure and unique scenes.
"It does lack emotion in some areas, but the idea of going beyond the sentimental framework of opera is rather interesting. The characters, although rough around the edges, are vividly drawn, so I don't think it's the worst script by any means."
I see. I'm beginning to think that a story might be more interesting if it has a "bad guy."

Next up was a talk titled "Scilla in History and Politics" by Tadashi Mikajiri, a member of the Japan Handel Society and a Handel researcher.
First of all, I was surprised to hear that "in this era, opera was a way to appeal to political claims and the legitimacy of the monarchy." However, when I compared the period in which Scilla was written with the actual chronology, and even matched the characters to real people, it certainly made sense.
The issue of succession to the British throne in the first half of the 18th century and the War of Spanish Succession. As history unravels, the world of the opera takes on a realistic color. When criticized by rulers for a critical plot, the opera can be excused by saying, "No, no, it's just a historical piece," which is a similar idea to Japanese ukiyo-e and kabuki.

Despite being so meticulously written, there is no record of it ever being performed, and Mikajiri concludes that "it was never performed in public." Why?
This is because in the real world, John Churchill (aka Silla), the Duke of Marlborough, was overthrown, and there was no longer any need to criticize his tyranny. In a sense, the work has become outdated.
It may seem a bit wasteful, but don't worry, much of the music was later reused in the opera "Amadigi." Apparently, this kind of "reusing" was not uncommon at the time.

Finally, Masami Hara, the music director of the Japan Handel Society, gave a lecture on "The Music and Appeal of Silla." With a performance by harpsichordist Akiko Ito, the lecture covered the structure of the opera, the composition process, and the effects of sound.
Unfortunately, I didn't understand much about the technical aspects of music. However, what was interesting was that the expression of the music changes greatly depending on the tempo of the performance.
Many of the songs in Scilla's score do not show the tempo, which leads Hara to speculate that "they were not performed after all." So how do you decide the tempo for an actual performance? There are various ways to do this, such as thinking about the script or referring to songs used in other operas, but since it is just a guess, there is no single answer.
As an "experiment," Hara proposed two different tempos with different interpretations, which he performed with Mariko Higuchi (soprano) and Ayumi Yokomachi (mezzo-soprano).

I was surprised when I listened to it! It's the same music, but just changing the tempo can change the nuance so much. Music is so deep...
I wonder if the music director and conductor Fabio Biondi will decide the tempo for each piece in this performance of Scilla. It's a very interesting task, and I'm a little happy that it will be premiered in Japan.

*Handel (1685-1759)

It seems that many of the operas in Handel's time had complicated stories and were difficult to understand. In that respect, Scilla is extremely simple and compact. And yet it is filled with beautiful and attractive music, so even beginners can enjoy it.
Due to various "adult circumstances," Scilla was not performed at the time. I would like to experience it in Yokohama in 2020, 300 years later.

This event has been cancelled.
Handel's "Scilla" in 3 acts
[Performance date] Saturday, February 29, 2020, Sunday, March 1, 2020
[Start time] 14:00 (doors open 13:00) *Pre-show talk from 13:15
[Venue] Kanagawa Prefectural Music Hall
[Music Director] Fabio Biondi (Conductor, Violin)
[Performed by] Europa Galante
[Cast]
Silla: Sonia Prina (contralto)
Claudio: Hilary Summers (contralto)
Metella: Seunghye Lim (soprano)
Lepido: Vivica Junod (mezzo-soprano)
Flavia: Roberta Invernizzi (soprano)
Celia: Maria Hinojosa Montenegro (soprano)
God: Michael Bols (baritone)
[Direction] Tadashi Miroku
[Art] tamako☆
[Costume] Tomoyuki Mariko
[Lighting] Naoto Inaba (ASG)
[Script and subtitle translation] Asako Motoya
[Stage Director] Yutaka Osawa (The Staff)
[Price] S seat ¥15,000, A seat ¥12,000 (few seats remaining), B seat (SOLD OUT), Student (under 24 years old) ¥8,000
[Inquiries] Kanagawa Prefectural Music Hall Tel. 045-263-2567