Oratorio ( lat. Oratorium , ital. Oratorio ) - a major piece of music for the choir , soloists and orchestra . In the past, oratorios were written only on scripture subjects. It differs from the opera in the absence of stage action, and from the cantata in the larger size and ramified nature of the plot.
Content
History
The oratorio originated in a congregation of oratorians . Their meetings, in which "Laudes spirituales" ( lauds ) were sung, took place in a separate room at the church, called the oratorium (oratorium). This name also passed to the music performed in this room. The oratorio developed simultaneously with the opera and was conceived as a counterweight to the latter, with its non-Christian plots; but the main purpose of the oratorio is not a stage, but a stage . The oldest oratorio is The Representation of the Soul and Body , written by Emilio de Cavalieri ( 1600 ). However, with equal success, this work can be considered an opera on a spiritual plot, since the work was performed in costumes and with theatrical scenery. The first classic of the genre was Giacomo Carissimi , who called his works not oratorios, but “stories” (the most famous is “The History of Jephthah”, circa 1650). Karissimi's “stories” are based on biblical and gospel stories; their texts are written in Latin, but are not exact quotes from scripture. The story is narrated by the Storyteller (Historicus), in the first person there are characters performing small monologues (arias) and dialogues.
Prominent composers in the field of ancient oratorio were Leo and Hasse . The ancient oratorio was divided into two parts, in contrast to the opera, divided into three acts. The choral part in the oratorio was of great importance, although solo singing was also allowed. Oratorios were given precisely on those days when opera performances were banned. The oratorio gained a new character under Handel ; not to mention the external form (division into three parts), in particular, the number of arias increased. The spiritual musical and dramatic works of Schutz and JS Bach that arose in the Protestant church are not similar in form to the oratorio that arose in the Catholic Church, but nevertheless many also call them oratorios. The authors of oratorios include Graun , K.F. E. Bach , Mozart , Haydn , Beethoven .
In the XIX century, the genre was developed by Mendelssohn . In the 19th century , the concept of a secular oratorio appeared, for example, the musical and dramatic works of Schumann , not intended for the scene (The Wandering of the Rose , Paradise and Peri). A few Russian oratorios of the 19th century (S. Degtyarev - author of the first Russian oratorio, N. Zaremba, A. Rubinstein).
The oratorio genre received a large scale in Soviet times. One of the outstanding works of that era was the “ Pathetic Oratorio ” by Georgy Sviridov .
See also
- Hierodrama
Literature
- Oratorio // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
- Böhme. "Geschichte des O." ( 1887 )
- Kretzschmar, "Führer durch den Konzertsaal" ( 1890 ).