Katowice Culture Nature Festival / The Adventures of a Biblical Hero / Il pomo d’oro / Corti / DiDonato - NOSPR

„Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute” – so begins the biblical story of Jephthah, who freed the people of Israel from the reign of the Ammonites. Before heading into battle, Jephthah vowed to sacrifice the first being that comes to greet him should he return home victorious. The one who greeted him was his only daughter. Jefte “did with her according to his vow that he had made”, but before doing so, he yielded to his only child’s request, which was that she could spend some time in the mountains, where she would weep at her virginity. According to Jewish tradition, Jephthah had to fulfil his vow because he showed hubris in failing to seek advice with jurists, who might have told him that the Torah forbade human sacrifice. However, some rabbis have found that it was not his daughter’s life, but her virginity that was offered as sacrifice – considering this enough of a punishment, as childlessness was considered shameful to Israelites. 

It was the latter interpretation that was adopted by Thomas Morell, whose collaboration with Händel had started with the Judas Maccabaeus libretto. Jephtha proved to be the last oratorio in the composer’s oeuvre. It was premiered on 26th February 1752 at Covent Garden, conducted by Händel himself and performed by his most famous singers. The work made history as an ambiguous symbol of agony: Jephthah’s pain, written down in the sounds, and the suffering of the composer, who was gradually losing sight and wrote “How dark, O Lord, are thy decrees” at the end of the score. Jephthah ruled over Israel for six years. Händel died seven years after the premiere of Jephtha. 

Dorota Kozińska

Concert duration: approximately 160 minutes