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LA LLUNA EN UN COVE

Children's opera for orchestra, mixed choir and soloists | 60'ca. (1998-2001) download | purchase
PROGRAM NOTE
Written for six children soloists, children's choir and chamber orchestra, its intention is to reach all the audiences. The treatment is entirely classical music, with understandable melodies and a plain, simple and direct music style, with a deliberate desire to bring joy and pleasure. Emphasizing the tenderness and the good taste through the treatment of the characters and the message of the opera is derived from the idealist and romantic utopia of following up ones dreams, a theme that can teach the little ones to fight for their ideals, despite adversity.
Of note is the sense of the whole educational work, particularly accentuated in the fifth scene where melodies are taken literally from the great works of musical literature. Authors such as Rossini, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saents, Johann Strauss, Prokofiev ... are cited in the royal banquet where a musical reference for each dish or food.
The production of the work to a stage in small format (soloists, chorus, piano and percussion) or large format (soloists, chorus and orchestra). The singers have to be boys or girls of about ten to fifteen years, while the musicians have to be professional.
The opera is situated in a Middle Ages, in a castle where the local Prince is in love with the moon. Initially there are two soldiers searching for the Prince because he has escaped, once again, after midnight, searching for the moon with the intention of kissing "her lover" and thus fulfill his great dream. The first scene ends with the appearance of the King who has raised the possibility that his kid has a rare disease. He thinks his son is a "lunatic". Therefore he calls the Doctor so he can do the diagnosis. The Doctor, moved by his own interest, is seeking to marry his daughter Griselda with the heir to the throne, but when the man finds out that the Prince is in love with someone else, gets really angry and tells the King to send the Prince to jail, due an estrange mental disease. That's the way the Prince won't be able to go out anymore and concentrate on Griselda. Here is where the Jailer comes in (which is the comic character of the play). Being aware of the injustice that represents that imprisonment, he will develop a friendship with the Prince and will try to help him escape from jail. His idea is to serve a lot of food so the Prince patten up and doesn't fit into his cell. This way they have to take him out!
One night, while sleeping, the Prince dreams about three stars that will help him achieve his dream of kissing the moon. Right at the moment, just before the kiss, the Prince falls in the moat and was drowned. The scream of a rooster announces the new day and … surprise! the figure of the Prince emerges inside the sun. The opera ends with a wedding march on the occasion of the celebration of the engagement between the Sun (Prince) with the Moon, and also, the Jailer with Griselda who had fallen also in loved.

Intention of the work:
The book is written for six children soloists, children's choir and chamber orchestra and is intended for all audiences. The treatment is entirely classical music, with melodies and understandable plain, simple and direct, with a deliberate desire to play. It should be emphasized tenderness and taste of the treatment of characters and the message derived from the idealist and romantic utopia theme that teaches little ones to fight for his ideals, despite adversity.
Of note is the sense of the whole educational work, particularly accentuated in the fifth scene where melodies are taken literally from the great works of musical literature. Authors such as Rossini, Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saents, Strauss, Prokofiev ... are cited in the royal banquet where a musical reference for each dish or food.
The production of the work to a stage in small format (soloists, chorus, piano and percussion) or large format (soloists, chorus and orchestra). The singers have to be boys or girls of about ten to fifteen years, while the musicians have to be professional. There is the possibility of exporting the production to other theaters later once translated the Libretto.
Albert CARBONELL - LA LLUNA EN UN COVE [full score].pdf