Located in the UK
Located in the USA
Located in Europe
- Philip Glass
Satyagraha (1980)
- Dunvagen Music Publishers Inc (World)
Commissioned by the City of Rotterdam
Opera in three acts.
Libretto (Sanskrit) by the composer and Constance DeJong, adapted from the Bhagavad-Gita.
- 3.3.3+bcl.2/0.0.0.0/eorg/str
- SATB (large chorus)
- 2 Sopranos, 2 Mezzo Sopranos, 2 Tenors, Baritone, 2 Basses
- 3 hr
- the composer and Constance DeJong, adapted from the Bhagavad-Gita
- English, Sanskrit
Programme Note
CAST
M. K. Gandhi - tenor
Miss Schlesen, Gandhi's secretary - soprano
Kasturbai, Gandhi's wife - alto
Mr. Kallenbach, European co-worker - baritone
Parsi Rustomji, Indian co-worker - bass
Mrs. Naidoo, Indian co-worker - soprano
Mrs. Alexander, European friend - alto
Lord Krishna, mythological character from the Bhagavad-Gita - bass
Prince Arjuna, mythological character from the Bhagavad-Gita - baritone
Non-singing parts:
Count Leo Tolstoy, historical figure, Act I
Rabindranath Tagore, historical figure, Act II
Martin Luther King. Jr., historical figure, Act III
Large chorus
SYNOPSIS
The second in Glass' trilogy about men who changed the world, Satyagraha's sub-text is politics. The opera is semi-narrative in form and deals with Mahatma Gandhi's early years in South Africa and his development of non-violent protest into a political tool. (Satyagraha is a Sanskrit word meaning 'truth force'). The first two acts each contain three scenes; the last is one continuous scene. Each act is dominated by a single historic figure (non-singing role) overlooking the action from above: the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore in Act I, the Russian author Leo Tolstoy in act II, the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., in Act III.
M. K. Gandhi - tenor
Miss Schlesen, Gandhi's secretary - soprano
Kasturbai, Gandhi's wife - alto
Mr. Kallenbach, European co-worker - baritone
Parsi Rustomji, Indian co-worker - bass
Mrs. Naidoo, Indian co-worker - soprano
Mrs. Alexander, European friend - alto
Lord Krishna, mythological character from the Bhagavad-Gita - bass
Prince Arjuna, mythological character from the Bhagavad-Gita - baritone
Non-singing parts:
Count Leo Tolstoy, historical figure, Act I
Rabindranath Tagore, historical figure, Act II
Martin Luther King. Jr., historical figure, Act III
Large chorus
SYNOPSIS
The second in Glass' trilogy about men who changed the world, Satyagraha's sub-text is politics. The opera is semi-narrative in form and deals with Mahatma Gandhi's early years in South Africa and his development of non-violent protest into a political tool. (Satyagraha is a Sanskrit word meaning 'truth force'). The first two acts each contain three scenes; the last is one continuous scene. Each act is dominated by a single historic figure (non-singing role) overlooking the action from above: the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore in Act I, the Russian author Leo Tolstoy in act II, the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., in Act III.
Media
Satyagraha (Highlights): Act II, Tagore, Scene 1 - Confrontation and Rescue (1896)
Satyagraha (Highlights): Act I, Tolstoy, Scene 1 - The Kuru Field of Justice
Satyagraha (Highlights): Act III, King - Part 3
Satyagraha: Act II: Confrontation and Rescue
Satyagraha: Act I: The Kuru Field of Justice
Satyagraha: Act III: Newcastle March
Satyagraha: Act II: Indian Opinion
Satyagraha: Act I: Tolstoy Farm
Satyagraha: Act III: ?
Satyagraha: Act III: Evening Song
Satyagraha: Act II: Protest
Satyagraha: Act I: The Vow