Undina (sometimes Undine or Ondine) is an opera in three acts by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The work was composed in 1869. The libretto was written by Vladimir Sollogub, and is based on Vasily Zhukovsky's translation of Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué's novella Ondine.

History

The opera was composed during the months of January to July 1869, but Tchaikovsky destroyed the score in 1873, preserving only a few numbers from the opera. The opera has never been performed in its entirety. The only extracts that survive are: At least three of these pieces – the aria, the duet, and the final chorus – were performed at the Moscow premiere at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow on 28 March 1870. Some music from the opera was subsequently re-used in Tchaikovsky's other works:

Roles

Instrumentation

Source

Setting

Time: The 15th century Place: Germany, near the springs of the Danube; Ringstetten Castle (Burg Ringstetten)

Recordings

Vocal and orchestral numbers Features three selections from Undina: act 1: Undine's Song; act 1: Finale; act 3: Duet of Undine and Gulbrand. A CD reissue of the above LP, subsequently re-released by Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab (Petaluma, California) in 1989. It features the same three selections as in the 1975 issue, plus the introduction (Ouverture), with the Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alexander Gauk. Concert performance of all five surviving numbers, including the previously unrecorded "Bridal March", recorded 13 November 2015 at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, with Mikhail Fillipov reciting extracts from Zhukovsky's story.