Musical relationships “constitute a thread of allegorical meaning” linking the
two scenes of doubtful authorship (as per Curtis, #1238) with others that are
surely by Monteverdi. So it may be that Monteverdi did conceive the whole
opera but, being unable to finish, “communicated aspects of his intent” to one
or more of the young composers in his circle.
Chafe looks at “the allegorical dimension and its derivation from the libretto.”
That dimension is expressed in the music, where there is a “dialectic relation-
ship of the modal/hexachord and major/minor tonal systems.” Modal = virtue
and traditional values; key = fortune. For example, Poppea’s eroticism is por-
trayed by “major/minor cadential inflections, reiterated phrygian sigh figures,
the mixture of swift-paced triple-meter lines with drawn-out, languid cadences.”- Osthoff, Wolfgang. Das dramatische Spätwerk Claudio Monteverdi. Tutzing:
Schneider, 1960. 267p. ML410 .M77 O8.
Originally the author’s dissertation, U. of Heidelberg, 1954. A technical study
of Poppeaand Il ritorno d’Ulisse,with attention to structure, ostinato, walk-
ing bass lines, and the use of instrumental interludes. Footnotes, bibliography,
index of names and subjects. - Rosand, Ellen. “Seneca and the Interpretation of L’incoronazione di Poppea.”
JAMS38 (1985): 34–71.
Identifies Seneca as the protagonist and suppports the claim with a study of the
music assigned to him. Relates the libretto to the Roman play Octavia,
ascribed to Seneca. - Day, Christine J. “The Theater of SS. Giovanni e Paolo and Monteverdi’s L’in-
coronazione di Poppea.” Current Musicology25 (1978): 22–38.
Describes the theater in Venice where the Poppeapremiere took place and
gives details on the flying machine and the sets. - Salvetti, Guido. “Alcuni criteri nella rielaborazione ed orchestrazione dell’In-
coronazione.” In “Convegno” (#1210), 332–340.
Compares performances of the work by Gaetano Cesari (1907), Giacomo Ben-
venuti (1937), and Giorgio F. Ghedini (1953 and 1965). Finds the two earlier
productions more faithful to the Venetian manuscript with regard to instru-
mentation.
Orfeo
ASO5 (1976), COH (1986), ENOG 45 (1992), Rororo (1988).
- Chafe, Eric. Monteverdi’s Tonal Language(#1214), chapter 7.
After a description of the “regulating framework,” explains how tonal corre-
spondences involve symmetrical and other large-scale patterns. The tonal lan-
guage of Orfeois analyzed; it shows a tension between “allegorical and
contingent.” - Donington, Robert. “Monteverdi’s First Opera.” In The Monteverdi Compan-
ion(#1211), 257–276.
238 Opera