Lascia ch'io pianga

'Lascia ch'io pianga' (Almirena)

Aria in F major for soprano, 2 violins, viola and basso continuo

From the opera 'Rinaldo', HWV 7 (No. 22)

Libretto: Giacomo Rossi, on a synopsis by Aaron Hill, after Torquato Tasso's 'Gerusalemme liberata' (1581)

Music: Georg Friedrich Händel (1685-1759)

First performance: 24 February 1711 in London (Queen's Theatre, Haymarket)
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Almirena: Sandrine Piau, soprano

Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin,
conducted by Bernhard Forck (concertmaster)

Concert: 20 October 2008 in Vienna (Theater an der Wien)

Pitch: A = 415 Hz
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Lascia ch'io pianga
mia cruda sorte,
e che sospiri
la libertà.

Il duolo infranga
queste ritorte,
de' miei martiri
sol per pietà.
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My translation:

Let me weep
over my cruel fate,
and long
for freedom.

May grief
break my bonds,
if only out of pity
for my sufferings.
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In this performance, the first eight bars are first played by the instruments alone, then with the soprano. I have edited the score accordingly (the first two pictures are additions).

Marc D.