Incoronazione di Poppea, L’

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Incoronazione di Poppea, L’ (The Coronation of Poppaea). Opera in prol. and 3 acts by Monteverdi (his last) to a lib. by Busenello after Tacitus and others. Comp. 1642. Prod. Venice 1643, Naples 1651, Paris, concert version ed. d'Indy, 1905, stage 1913, Northampton, Mass., 1926, Oxford 1927, London (RAM) 1969. First opera on an historical, other than biblical or mythical, subject. In the 20th cent. there have been several edns., incl. those by Krenek, d'Indy, Benvenuti, Malipiero, Ghedini, W. Goehr, Redlich, Harnoncourt, Curtis, and R. Leppard (first vers. f.p. Glyndebourne 1962, London 1971; second vers. f.p. Glyndebourne 1984). New edn. by Roger Norrington for Kent Opera 1974. In some respects this was the first ‘modern’ opera by virtue of its treatment of human emotions and personalities and its anticipation of a leitmotiv technique of comp. Scholars agree that some sections of the score were written by Sacreti, Benedetto Ferrari, and Cavalli. Final duet, text and mus., are probably by Ferrari.