Conferences

Parole del Metastasio: opera and emotions in 18th-century Europe

4-7 May 2022 | Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Biblioteca Histórica Marqués de Valdecilla

In eighteenth-century Europe, Metastasio’s work marked poetic, musical, and cultural boundaries within which the production of sung music developed for more than a hundred years. His vision of the world, and of human relationships and passions, influenced not only the hundreds of composers who ventured into the musical setting of his lyrics, but also all other poets inspired by his words for music.

Given the unparalleled impact of Metastasio’s texts in operatic composition throughout the eighteenth century, complete exploration of the librettist’s figure requires attending to the myriads of musical versions prompted by the emotions expressed in his lyrics. Therefore, we warmly invite presentations investigating the relationship between text and music around Metastasian passions, with special attention to the dramaturgical and musical treatment thereof within his recitatives and closed pieces. We particularly encourage papers using novel methodologies for the study of the librettist’s world, including digital, computer-assisted techniques for data extraction from both music and poetry.