Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i>
This article discusses Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera <i>Idomeneo: Re di Creta</i> (1781, to a text by Giambattista Varesco) as a Christian parable in the historical context of its genesis. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> is based on a short episode in François Fénelon’s <i>T...
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| description | This article discusses Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera <i>Idomeneo: Re di Creta</i> (1781, to a text by Giambattista Varesco) as a Christian parable in the historical context of its genesis. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> is based on a short episode in François Fénelon’s <i>Télémaque</i>, but also on Antoine Danchet’s adaptation of this episode for the theater in his tragédie lyrique <i>Idoménée</i> (1712; set to music by André Campra). In important aspects, Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> changed the narrative with a marked independence of Fénelon as well as Danchet. In recent scholarship, important new information has come to light concerning Mozart’s composition of the Oracle scene, constituting the dénouement of the music drama. Based partly on these new insights, I attempt to provide a picture of a basic spiritual intention governing Mozart’s composition of the opera for the Carnival season of 1781 at the Munich court. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> is a Christian sacrifice drama modeled on the Aqedah (the sacrifice of Isaac; Gen 22: 1–14), which, in Christian traditions, is understood typologically as pointing to the Passion of Christ. Oppositely, Fénélon’s and Danchet’s versions rather correspond to the biblical story of Jephthah (Judges 11: 29–30). In a brief concluding section of this article, I also discuss the contemporary cultural importance of reading a classical opera such as Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> as a conscious product of Enlightened Christianity. In modern times, ecclesiastical boundaries and religious doctrines often seem to matter little in the music and theater culture of the Western world; classical opera is often staged more in order to respond to contemporary political or social issues than to communicate the original intentions of its creators (the so-called <i>Regieoper</i>). I argue that <i>Idomeneo</i>, with its historical intention, potentially can have an impact in a cultural theology (or a theologically informed modern worldview), and further, in dialogue with a recent volume discussing the “music of theology”, that such a role for a piece of music must be developed in concrete musical (or music dramatic) contexts, not as a general philosophical contention. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> may work in a modern cultural context because it functions as a parable, easily understandable also in a modern political or social context, because of its deep human (psychological) insight and the empathy brought to bear on all the characters of the opera. |
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| spelling | doaj-art-33780639cb104685b7ca8a2c088ae7992025-01-24T13:47:34ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442025-01-011618610.3390/rel16010086Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i>Nils Holger Petersen0Department of Church History, University of Copenhagen, 2300 Copenhagen S, DenmarkThis article discusses Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s opera <i>Idomeneo: Re di Creta</i> (1781, to a text by Giambattista Varesco) as a Christian parable in the historical context of its genesis. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> is based on a short episode in François Fénelon’s <i>Télémaque</i>, but also on Antoine Danchet’s adaptation of this episode for the theater in his tragédie lyrique <i>Idoménée</i> (1712; set to music by André Campra). In important aspects, Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> changed the narrative with a marked independence of Fénelon as well as Danchet. In recent scholarship, important new information has come to light concerning Mozart’s composition of the Oracle scene, constituting the dénouement of the music drama. Based partly on these new insights, I attempt to provide a picture of a basic spiritual intention governing Mozart’s composition of the opera for the Carnival season of 1781 at the Munich court. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> is a Christian sacrifice drama modeled on the Aqedah (the sacrifice of Isaac; Gen 22: 1–14), which, in Christian traditions, is understood typologically as pointing to the Passion of Christ. Oppositely, Fénélon’s and Danchet’s versions rather correspond to the biblical story of Jephthah (Judges 11: 29–30). In a brief concluding section of this article, I also discuss the contemporary cultural importance of reading a classical opera such as Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> as a conscious product of Enlightened Christianity. In modern times, ecclesiastical boundaries and religious doctrines often seem to matter little in the music and theater culture of the Western world; classical opera is often staged more in order to respond to contemporary political or social issues than to communicate the original intentions of its creators (the so-called <i>Regieoper</i>). I argue that <i>Idomeneo</i>, with its historical intention, potentially can have an impact in a cultural theology (or a theologically informed modern worldview), and further, in dialogue with a recent volume discussing the “music of theology”, that such a role for a piece of music must be developed in concrete musical (or music dramatic) contexts, not as a general philosophical contention. Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> may work in a modern cultural context because it functions as a parable, easily understandable also in a modern political or social context, because of its deep human (psychological) insight and the empathy brought to bear on all the characters of the opera.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/1/86Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo Re di Creta</i>sacrifice dramaEnlightenment Christianitymusic and theologyChristian parable |
| spellingShingle | Nils Holger Petersen Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> Religions Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo Re di Creta</i> sacrifice drama Enlightenment Christianity music and theology Christian parable |
| title | Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> |
| title_full | Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> |
| title_fullStr | Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> |
| title_full_unstemmed | Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> |
| title_short | Music Drama as a Christian Parable: Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo</i> |
| title_sort | music drama as a christian parable mozart s i idomeneo i |
| topic | Mozart’s <i>Idomeneo Re di Creta</i> sacrifice drama Enlightenment Christianity music and theology Christian parable |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/1/86 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nilsholgerpetersen musicdramaasachristianparablemozartsiidomeneoi |