Luogo e data di registrazione		Saal des Festspielhauses, Hitzacker (Germania) - agosto 1976
	Registrazione: live / studio		studio
	Producer / Engineer		Andreas Holschneider / Werner Mayer / Heinz Wildhagen
	Prima Edizione LP		Archiv - 2533 348 - (1 lp) - durata 65' 40" - (p) 1977 - Analogico
	Edizione "Collectio" CD		Archiv - 437 074-2 - (1 cd) - durata 65' 40" - (c) 1986 - ADD
	Note		Co-Produktion mit den "Sommerlichen Musiktagen Hitzacker" 1976.

In January 1608, in the midst of splendid carnival festivities, a brilliant gathering at the Court of Mantua attended the world premiere of a new opera: the favola “Dafne” by Marco da Gagliano. Already known as the composer of several books of madrigals, Gagliano lived in Florence, where he held the post of director of music at S. Lorenzo. He owed his links with the Court of Mantua to the young Cardinal Gonzaga, who had become the patron of a musical and literary association which Gagliano had founded in Florence a little earlier. This association, entitled “Accademia degli Elevati”, could be considered the younger sister of the celebrated “Camerata dei Bardi”, the circle of artists and men of learning who, in pursuit of humanistic aims, intended to restore ancient Grecian drama to life in a manner appropriate to the changed circumstances of their day. As is well known, their intensive theoretical and aesthetic discussions, combined with the practical study of music, gave rise to the new art form of opera. One of the favourite subjects in its early years was that of the nymph Daphne who, fleeing from the love of Apollo, appealed for help to her father, the river god Peneus, and was at once transformed into a laurel tree. Ottavio Rinuccini, who was himself a member of the “Camerata dei Bardi”, had given this fable the poetic form in which it was first set to music jointly by Jacopo Peri and Jacopo Corsi in 1594 (only fragments of this version survive), and by Giulio Caccini in 1602. Thus the composition by Marco da Gagliano was the third setting of Rinuccini’s libretto, and the poet revised it for the new Mantua version. With the composition of his first opera, “Dafne”, Gagliano addressed himself to an audience which was not only brilliant but also extremely knowledgeable. No less a musician than Claudio Monteverdi was court composer to the Gonzagas, and a year earlier the Hall of Mirrors in their palace had witnessed the first performance of his celebrated “Orfeo”. Gagliano’s “Dafne” also enjoyed great success both with the public and with connoisseurs. Jacopo Peri wrote to Cardinal Gonzaga: “Gagliano’s Dafne is composed with extraordinary artistic feeling, and undoubtedly surpasses all other compositions of the same opera” (evidently including his own), “because Signor Marco’s manner of writing vocal music is the most appropriate, and comes far closer to the inflections of speech than that of any other outstanding composer.” As early as October 1608 the new opera was printed by Marescotti in Florence. This publication is a contemporary document of great importance. Gagliano provided his work with a detailed foreword which gives us not only valuable facts concerning the Mantua performance - the casting of the parts, the stage technique and production - but also revealing information about the manner in which vocal music was to be sung. The title role and the part of Venus were doubled (this practice was evidently already known) by the young court singer Catarina Martinelli (Monteverdi’s “Arianna”). The role of Apollo was sung by Francesco Rasi (Monteverdi’s “Orfeo”), and that of the Messenger (Tirsi) was taken brilliantly by the Florentine alto Antonio Brandi. Gagliano advises that in the dragon scene the singer of Apollo should be replaced by a double - a dancer or fencer. The production notes in the foreword, two of which are here given word for word, show clearly in what detail dramatic action, gestures and acoustical illusion were planned: “When [Apollo] sings Faran ghirlanda le tue fronde e i rami, he should wind that piece of laurel branch upon which he has mourned around his head like a crown. But as this presents some difficulty, I wish to facilitate the manner of performing this action with grace. Choose two small laurel branches of equal size (the royal one will be more suitable) not longer than half a yard; and placing them together, tie the ends and hold the stems fast so that they seem one; when it is time to wear the crown, spread them apart, set them upon the head, tying the stems together. I wish to write this note because this operation is more important than people think. And although it seems so easy, it was, however, not so easily devised. On the contrary, often in performance this action has been omitted, being considered impossible to carry out successfully, even though many have thought about it, because a great laurel branch in Apollo’s hand looks ugly and besides, it is most unsuitable for making a crown since it is not pliable enough. And a thin twig is of no use. These difficulties were overcome by Messer Cosimo del Bianco, a true, conscientious professional with a singular flair for stage effects, costumes and the like.” “I also wish to mention that when Apollo, as he sings the terzets, Non curi la mia pianta o fiamma o gelo, has to place the lyre on his chest (which he must do with a graceful movement), it is necessary to create the illusion in the audience that an extraordinary melody proceeds from Apollo’s lyre. To achieve this effect, position four viola players (either a braccio or a gamba - it is of no consequence) in one of the [stage] streets where, unseen by the audience, they can see Apollo, and as he places the bow on the lyre, must play the three notes written, being careful to bow simultaneously so that they sound like one bow. This trick cannot be detected by anyone other than an expert musician”. The instructions given in the foreword have been followed carefully in making the present recording. Especial attention has naturally been given to the singing of recitatives (stile recitativo). Gagliano frequently emphasizes the fact that the many ornaments, the groppi and trilli, must not give the impression of being something added, but must grow out of the monody as the natural expression of feeling. Gagliano also gives precise instructions concerning the use and entrances of the chorus, whose size is to be related to that of the stage, but which should consist, in his opinion, of “not fewer than 16-18 persons”. Both score and foreword leave us unclear on one point, namely the question of instrumentation. Gagliano touches on this only cursorily. He mentions viols (see above), and wants the rise of the curtain to be preceded by “a Sinfonia with diverse instruments, which are used to accompany the choruses and to play the ritornelli”. However, details of the instruments to be employed are not to be found either in the score or in its foreword. We have assembled an orchestra similar to that used by Monteverdi for the pastoral scenes (i. e. those set on earth as opposed to the underworld) in “Orfeo”: 21 strings, 2 recorders, harpsichord and virginal, with 2 chitarroni, lute and cittern (in the dance scenes), and organo da legno. As the Sinfonia is not given in the score, and has not come down to us in any other way, we have preceded the opera with a Sinfonia which Gagliano composed for his “Ballo di donne turche” (published in 1615). We have shortened the Prologue by omitting three verses - those relating to the Court of Mantua, which Rinuccini introduced into the libretto in 1608. It seemed to us useful to the musical-dramatic structure to employ also as preludes to the chorus verses the instrumental ritornelli intended to follow them, and to precede the finale, which is separate from the rest of the opera, by the Ballo which Gagliano wrote as interlude to the vocal verses. Andreas Holschneider, Jürgen Jürgens Translation by John Coomb