CANCELLED: Handel: Rodelinda

In the mid-1720s, Georg Frideric Handel had reached the pinnacle of a sensational career. Born as a doctor’s son in the Saxon town of Halle an der Saale, he had his breakthrough at Hamburg’s Gänsemarkt Opera House in 1705. After travelling in Italy for several years, he settled in London in 1712, where several wealthy aristocrats were among his patrons, as well as the king himself: Handel had been appointed Kapellmeister to George, Elector of Hanover, in 1710, who was crowned King George I of England four years later. Handel turned out to be a brilliant opera entrepreneur in London. He wrote one spectacular work after another (42 in all), hired the best singers of the day such as star castrato Senesino or the opera diva Francesca Cuzzoni, and in addition to the patronage of the nobility, he enjoyed popularity among the common people, whom he lured into his theatre with clever marketing tactics. His opera »Rodelinda« dates from this period, and tells the story of the Lombard queen of the same name and the two men who were rivals for her affections. As part of this year’s Handel spotlight at the Elbphilharmonie, Harry Bicket and his English Concert put on a concert version of »Rodelinda« in the Grand Hall. The vocal cast led by Lucy Crowe would definitely have met with Handel’s approval.