[Some Forerunners of Italian Opera by William James Henderson]@TWC D-Link bookSome Forerunners of Italian Opera CHAPTER V 9/16
In this version the division into five acts is noted and there are additional poetic passages of great beauty.
It may be worth a note in passing that in 1558 a version of the "Orfeo" in octave stanzas was published for the use of the common people and that as late as 1860 it continued to be printed from time to time for the use of the Tuscan contadini. [Footnote 15: "Le Stanze, l'Orfeo e le Rime di Messer Angelo Abrogini Poliziano," per Giosue Carducci.
Firenze, 1863.] The main movement of Poliziano's poem is intrusted to the traditional octave stanza, but we find passages of terza rima.
There are also choral passages which suggest the existence of the frottola, the carnival song and the ballata.
The play is introduced by Mercury acting as prologue. This was in accordance with time honored custom which called for an "announcer of the festival." The first scene is between Mopsus, an old shepherd, and Aristaeus, a young one.
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