Opera Scotland

Ainadamar

Tours by decade

Tours by location

Music

Osvaldo Golijov (b La Plata, Argentina, 5 December 1960)

Text

David Henry Hwang (in English)

Spanish translation by the composer.

 

Premieres

First Performance: Tanglewood, 10 August 2003.

First Performance of Revision: Santa Fe (Opera House), 30 July 2005.

First Performance in UK: Glasgow (Theatre Royal),29 October 2022.

First Performance in Scotland:  As above.

Scottish Opera premiere: As above.

 

Background

With its sub-title (from the Arabic) - The Fountain of Tears - it is clear that Ainadamar is not a comedy. It is an opera in three images. Golijov's fascinating mix of musical idioms, including Latin, jazz and modern, make it an attractive work to listen to.

The theme concerns the great Spanish poet-dramatist Federico Garcia Lorca, who was murdered in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War by Franco's forces, the Falange.

The leading character is Margarita Xirgu an actress who was a close friend of his. She fled to Uruguay on the outbreak of the Civil War, devoting much of her subsequent life to keeping his memory alive.

 

Leading characters

Margarita Xirgu, an actress (soprano)

Federico Garcia Lorca, a poet and dramatist (mezzo-soprano)

Nuria, a student of Xirgu's (soprano)

Ruiz Alonso, a Falangist officer (flamenco vocalist)

José Tripaldi, a Falangist guard (baritone)

Maestro, a teacher (tenor)

Torero, a bullfighter (tenor)