Any suggestions on a good but not overused duet from an opera for a Mezzo and Soprano?
I am performing in an opera concert in about two months, and everything is pretty much set EXCEPT...the soprano and I are trying to find an upbeat duet from an opera that is not used 500 times, but is easily accessible for the first number. We looked into doing the duet from Rinaldo "Fermati, No crudel", but we can't find the daggone thing anywhere since the opera is rarely sung (especially that duet). We found the score, but who wants to pay 50 dollars for one duet?
She is a lighter lyric, and I am a heavier lyric mezzo. It would be nice to have something from the Baroque period, but it isn't necessary. We are both seasoned singers, so advanced operatic suggestions would be great as well.
Please, no Sull'aria and please no Lakme. We are so tried of those two duets that we would ALMOST rather slit our wrists. LOL! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. We plan on finalizing our decision this weekend. My brain is gone and I can't think of anything fun and upbeat for us.
2009-05-03T09:37:15Z
Thank you guys for the awesome answers. You know Lynn, I never thought about the Merry Wives of Windsor (slapping forehead). Snide....I cannot thank you enough. I got on that website and there it was. I found the duet and sent her a copy via e-mail.
And Lam, don't be so down. Mezzos do have some great roles. We have Delila, Rosina, Charlotte from Werther, RInaldo (of course), Hansel, his mother, or the Witch, Azucina, Edwige, Dorabella, Augusta, Leonora, and more recently Margaret Garner just to name a few. Its the contraltos that get the raw end of the stick, and most mezzos sing those too. The only thing about Mezzos is that we are usually the skany types, evil, or someone's mom. Which actually I enjoy doing on stage. LOL!
MissLimLam2009-05-02T21:32:13Z
Favorite Answer
Flower Duet from Madama Butterfly? I nearly died laughing at that... Usually when people say Flower Duet they mean the Lakme, and then I realised that it was "Tutta la primavera."
"Fermati, No crudel" would be great. Maybe you could borrow this from a library/music conservatorium, and just photocopy the pages. (I know thats not really advisable but that would be such a perfect song for what you have described.)
“L'amo come il fulgor” from La Gioconda (Ponchielli). It is a bit overdone, but not like Sull'aria!
Bacarolle - from the Tales of Hoffman... over done but awesome.
Mira Norma from Bellini's Norma
Or the most awesome duet ever! "Via, resti servita," from Le Nozze di Figaro....
Another good Mozart duet is A guarda sorella, but that is really overdone, and the mezzo doesnt come in until halfway through the song! Grrr.... Sopranos get everything.
Hmmm.... Baroque stuff. There is plenty of Baroque repertoire that would be appropriate. (I am counting Gluck as baroque, he isnt but oh well...) I am just looking at one of my favourite music books "Opera Duets for Two Female Voices and Piano" I googled it and found this: http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/store/smp_detail.html?cart=345029784582657869&item=980399&lc=recs:detail&cm_re=detail-_-recs-_-link4
In this book the best duets for you would be:
Ricordati Mio Ben from Flavio (Handel) Komm, und vertrau meiner Treue from Orpheus (Gluck)
Things not in that song book:
Pur ti mio - from the Coronation of Poppea (Monteverdi)
How about something from Oratorio?
Laudamus Te - Gloria (Vivaldi) Prepare then, Ye immortal choir - Semele (Handel) (This one is good, as it is a secular oratorio, more like opera...)
EDIT: Ok... good roles, but like that saying "we get to play: witches, bitches, and britches..." Its true, and annoying. (But I adore Rosina, Cenerentola, Griselda, and Azucena!)
well, if you would consider a sidestep to belcanto, what about either the Norma/Adalgisa duet ( Norma, Bellini) or AnneBoleyn/ Jane Gray ( Anna Bolena,Donizetti)?
there are other Händel operas where the mezzo is a trousers role for the no longer extant castrato. I think Xerxes comes under that heading, and there's a really great duet for Xerxes and Amastris.
to jump a couple hundred years, the opera Arabella by Richard Strauss has a to-die-for duet between the sisters Zdenka ( sop) and Arabella ( dramsop but not out of the range of a mezzo) Comes towards the end of the first act, and starts with the words Aber der Richtige. If you want upbeat, can you countenance first act Hansel and Gretel? Where they get into the Griesgam, hinaus! section. If you are singing and dancing, you wind up happily out of breath. Get your pianist to give a final chord, otherwise, you'll run straight into Mother's entrance.
Dorabella/Fiordiligi ( Cosi, Mozart) it's late here too otherwise I'd be glad to think up others. Is there a copy of Rudolf Kloiber's Handbuch der Oper in your music library? You'll find lots in there Oh last minute brain storm- first act duet fromNicolai's Merry Wives of Windsor between Mrd. Ford and Mrs Page. lyric col sop and lyric mezzo. Very upbeat. Good show opener. where is my brain??
I think you could find a nice excerpt for Sophie and Octavian from Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier. Would the "Flower Duet" from Madama Butterfly be out of the question?
BTW, you can find a Handel Rinaldo score online for free here.
Rinaldo was the first Handel opera to be "revived" in modern times, and has proved most popular, and is firmly established in the repertory. It is being performed many many times this year in Britain as we celebrate our famous musical guest. it was on the wireless only the other day!