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John Blow (1649-1708), in his official posts as organist, musician for the virginals, was also expected to supply a great quantity of church music, royal odes and secular choral music of an occasional character to celebrate events at court. Consequently, he wrote very little for the professional stage. A notable exception is his opera 'Venus and Adonis',which he called " A Masque for the Entertainment of the King".
The love story of Venus and Adonis, told by Ovid in Book 10 of the 'Metamorphoses',inspired a great many poets and artists of the Baroque period including Shakespeare. Blow's opera associates the theme of the hunt and its dangers to that of love and the wounds inflicted by Cupid's arrows. At the end of Act II of 'Venus and Adonis' the descending choromaticism of the ostinato ground with which the dance of the Graces concludes, darkens the mood after the playful arias of Cupid, and is like a premonition of the return of the mortally wounded Adonis and the grief of Venus. Blow's harmonic daring was disturbing to many listeners in that era, but not so to the 20th century ear that is more accustomed to hearing works that deviate drasticlly from the rules of strict harmony.
This little opera is really quite a 'gem' and contains some very entertaining scenes. Although the soloists were all of good quality, my interest was captured by the duets, trios and quartets scattered here and there thruout the opera. They were absolutely delightful to hear and very well sung. I especially enjoyed the chorus of the Hunstmen, Shepherds and Adonis. Robin Blaze as Cupid did not impress me at all; because the required voice range was really too high for him, his diction suffered greatly, and as many times as I have listened to this opera, I still have to follow a script when he sings. That, by the way, is not usual for him; his diction is quite good most of the time. The countertenor Christopher Josey (humtsman) was excellent; his voice was strong and clear. It's really quite an enjoyable opera, and Rene Jacobs (who I'm very glad is not singing anymore) pulls it together neatly and nicely.
