(Click on image below to see a full-size photo of the Angel Records LP cover)
The action takes place on a plantation on the Mississippi in Louisiana.
Time: The second half of the 18th century.
There was
Delius'
KOANGA
Opera in Three Acts with Prologue and Epilogue
"The FIRST African-American Opera"
CAST OF CHARACTERS:
KOANGA, an African Prince and Voodoo Priest
PALMYRA, a mulatto, half-sister to Clotilda
DON JOSÉ MARTINEZ, a planter
SIMON PEREZ, Don Jose's overseer
CLOTILDA, Don Jose's wife
RANGWAN, a Voodoo Priest
UNCLE JOE, an old slave
PLANTERS' DAUGHTERS:
RENÉE, HÉLÈNE, JEANNE, MARIE, AURORE, HORTENSE,
OLIVE, PAULETTE
NEGRO I, NEGRO II, CHORUS OF NEGRO SLAVES
Frederick (Fritz) Delius began composing KOANGA in 1896 and completed it in early 1897.
Joplin's TREEMONISHA (1910) and Gershwin's PORGY AND BESS (1935) are often referred to as the "First African-American Opera", but Delius' KOANGA was actually the first.
An excellent reference resource on KOANGA is found in The Delius
Society
Journal, Numbers 113 and 116, which are special issues dedicated
exclusively
to KOANGA. THESE ARE NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE USING THE LINKS
BELOW (these are PDF Acrobat files):
Contact The
Delius Society
to order these back numbers, and also get information on
joining the Society.
KOANGA LINKS:
KOANGA: The Complete Libretto (1935 and 1974 versions side by side) Preface to the 1974 version of the libretto (with a history of the different versions)
KOANGA: The "Lost Child" of Delius' Operas
KOANGA: The Production of the American Premiere in 1970 (article by Frank Corsaro)
KOANGA: The "Lost Child" of Delius' Operas
Delius had a special place in his heart for KOANGA for several reasons. It was the first of his operas to be performed. It was the most labor-intensive with regard to the libretto by Charles F. Keary, which was continually being revised (a major overhaul was finally made in 1974 by Douglas Craig and Andrew Page for the first complete commercial recording).
But most importantly, KOANGA was the work in which he best captured musically the sensuous atmosphere of the Old South, where he was first inspired to compose music.
Eric Fenby wrote: "KOANGA is one of those singular works that
attract
attention in Delius's development but which stand apart from the rest
of
his music. Usually, once a work was written, Delius's interest in
it would wane. It would then be renewed and be relived
temporarily
every time he heard it again. For KOANGA, however, he showed
concern
as though it held some secret bond that bound him to his youth in
Florida.
It was the one work he deplored in old age he was never likely to hear
again. And so it proved. A dark grandeur pervades the score
which, whilst yielding to hankerings after Wagner, recalls the tragic
gusto
of Verdi. The elements of time, place and plot allowed him a range of
textures
and moods wider than in his other operas."
Complete Opera:
| 1970 (Live) | IGS 081/2 | 2 LP set | Washington Opera, Callaway |
| 1972 (Live) |
|
2 CD set | London Sym Orch, Groves |
| 1974 (Studio) | EMI/Angel
SBLX-3808
EMI Classics |
2 LP set
2 CD set |
London Sym Orch, Groves |
See a
full-size
scan of the Angel Records LP cover
Excerpts from KOANGA:
Closing Scene:
| 1934 (Studio) | Dutton CDLX 7011 | CD | London Phil Orch, Beecham The restored sound on this disc is amazing! |
| 1995 (Studio) | Naxos 8.553535 | CD | English Northern Philharmonia,
Lloyd-Jones Disk includes 3 World Premieres! |
La Calinda:
(There are many recordings available of La Calinda as arranged for
Orchestra by Eric Fenby. It appears on most of the "Delius Miniatures"
collections.)
KOANGA: Performances
(Information from Stephen Lloyd, The Delius Society)
| May 1899 | London (St. James Hall) | Alfred Hertz, cond. (excerpts) |
| Mar 1904 | Elberfeld (Stadttheater) | Fritz Cassirer, cond. |
| Sept/Oct 1935 | London (Covent Garden) | Sir Thomas Beecham, cond. |
| Nov 1946 | London (Royal Albert Hall) | Richard Austin, cond. |
| Feb 1958 | BBC Broadcast | Stanford Robinson, cond. |
| Dec 1970 | Washington, DC (Lisner Aud.) - AMERICAN PREMIERE | Paul Callaway, cond. (Previews; ticket form; program; photos; sound files; reviews; articles) |
| May 1972 | London (Sadler's Wells) | Charles Groves, cond. |
| Sep 1973 | London (Kingsway Hall) | Charles Groves, cond. (Studio Recording) |
| Apr 1980 | Shreveport, Louisiana | John Shenaut, cond. (Reviews of production) |
| July 1994 | Leeds (Leeds Youth Opera,Civic Theater) | Michael Williamson, cond. (Poster/flyer) |
| May 1995 | London (Chelsea Opera Group, Queen Elizabeth Hall) | David Lloyd-Jones, cond. |
| Jun/Jul 1995 | Port-of-Spain, Trinidad | All-black cast and chorus of 120 accompanied by 4 synthesizers and a steel-drum band (see details and YouTube video links) |
| Dec 1999 | Trier, Germany | Istvan Denes, cond. (Review) |
| April 2007 |
London (Sadler's Wells) |
Martin Andre', cond. (Reviews and program) |
| Nov 2015 |
Wexford, Ireland (Wexford Opera) |
Stephen Barlow, cond. Program notes Article about the production |
| Side
1 |
MP3 (30 MB) |
| Side
2 |
MP3 (32 MB) |
| Side
3 |
MP3 (15 MB) |
| Side
4 |
MP3 (29 MB) |
| Part
1A |
MP3 (29 MB) |
| Part
1B |
MP3 (32 MB) |
| Part
2A |
MP3 (21 MB) |
| Part
2B |
MP3 (25 MB) |
