Musical Offerings ⦁ 2021 ⦁ Volume 12 ⦁ Number 2 47 creators aimed to create a contemporary version of a tragedy.40 “The history of the performance of Greek tragedy is wholly intertwined with the history of opera. From Monteverdi to Wagner, opera has seen itself as the reinvention of Greek tragedy,”41 as quoted from an article by a professor of Greek tragedy. In these tragedies, there was thought to be a chorus that sang to emphasize climactic moments, or comment on the current situation, which is where Monteverdi would have drawn his use of a chorus in Orfeo.42 The ancients would use a musical chorus to comment and express the overall feeling of a scene. Multiple voices present more urgency and are able to express emotions in a more dramatic way. The use of a chorus does not directly move the plot of an opera forward but adds commentary and emphasis. Poets and librettists were aware of this ancient Greek tradition and used it as an expressive musical tool.43 Monteverdi did that in Orfeo and took musical inspiration from the ancient Greeks with the chorus commenting on the situation as seen with the choral madrigal mentioned earlier, “Ahi, caso acerbo.” There is a chorus in Acts III and IV as well, where they consist of the spirits of the underworld. They are strategically placed at the end for dramatic effect, and their anthem sets up for the entry of Plutone and Proserpina in the following scene.44 (See Example 4). Example 4: “Ahi caso acerbo,” mm. 1–445 40 Billings, 37. 41 Billings, 37. 42 Billings, 35. 43 Hamm, 116. 44 Ringer, 73. 45 Monteverdi, 64, https://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/310353.
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