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{{short description|1711 opera by George Frideric Handel}}
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[[File:Handel, Lascia ch’io pianga autograph score, 1711.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Almirena's recitative, and few bars of "Lascia ch'io pianga", from Handel's 1711 autograph score]]'''''Rinaldo''''' ([[Händel-Werke-Verzeichnis|HWV]] 7) is an opera by [[George Frideric Handel]], composed in 1711, and was the first [[Italian opera|Italian-language opera]] written specifically for the London stage. The [[libretto]] was prepared by [[Giacomo Rossi]] from a scenario provided by [[Aaron Hill (writer)|Aaron Hill]], and the work was first performed at [[His Majesty's Theatre, London|the Queen's Theatre]] in London's [[Haymarket, London|Haymarket]] on 24 February 1711. The story of love, war and redemption, set at the time of the [[First Crusade]], is loosely based on [[Torquato Tasso]]'s epic poem ''[[Jerusalem Delivered|Gerusalemme liberata]]'' ("Jerusalem Delivered"), and its staging involved many original and vivid effects. It was a great success with the public, despite negative reactions from literary critics hostile to the contemporary trend towards Italian entertainment in English theatres.

Handel composed ''Rinaldo'' quickly, borrowing and adapting music from operas and other works that he had composed during a long stay in Italy in the years 1706–10, during which he established a considerable reputation. In the years following the premiere, he made numerous amendments to the score. ''Rinaldo'' is regarded by critics as one of Handel's greatest operas. Of its individual numbers, the soprano aria "[[Lascia ch'io pianga]]" has become a particular favourite, and is a popular concert piece.

Handel went on to dominate opera in England for several decades. ''Rinaldo'' was revived in London regularly up to 1717, and in a revised version in 1731; of all Handel's operas, ''Rinaldo'' was the most frequently performed during his lifetime. After 1731, however, the opera was not staged for more than 200 years. Renewed interest in [[baroque opera]] during the 20th century led to the first modern professional production in Handel's birthplace, [[Halle (Saale)|Halle]], Germany, in 1954. The opera was mounted sporadically over the following thirty years; after a successful run at New York's [[Metropolitan Opera]] in 1984, performances and recordings of the work have become more frequent worldwide. ''Rinaldo'' was the first Handel opera to have found its way to the Metropolitan.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/17/arts/music/review-handel-operamission-rinaldo.html|date=16 June 2016|title=Review: Handel's ''Rinaldo'', with Period Brass in Good Repair|author=[[James R. Oestreich]]|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|access-date=3 November 2023}}</ref> The opera's [[tercentenary]] in 2011 brought a modernized production at the [[Glyndebourne Festival Opera|Glyndebourne Festival]].

==Background==
Handel began to compose operas at the [[Oper am Gänsemarkt]] in Hamburg, where he spent the years 1703 to 1706; his principal influences were [[Johann Mattheson]] and [[Reinhard Keiser]].<ref>Grout and Weigel, pp. 184–185</ref><ref name="Grout, p. 157">Grout, p. 157</ref> At that time, German opera as a genre was still not clearly defined; in Hamburg the term ''[[Singspiel]]'' ("song-play") rather than opera described music dramas that combined elements of French and Italian opera, often with passages of spoken German dialogue. The music was, in the words of historian [[Donald Jay Grout]], "tinged with the serious, heavy formality of Lutheran Germany".<ref>Grout, pp. 112–114 and pp. 116–120</ref> The first of Handel's early works in the German style was ''[[Almira]]'', a considerable success when it was premiered on 8 January 1705.<ref>Dean and Knapp, pp. 64–65</ref> Over the next three years Handel composed three more operas in the German style, but all of these are now lost. However, fragments of the music from these works have been identified in later operas.<ref>Dean and Knapp, pp. 69–77</ref>

[[File:Georg Friedrich Händel as a young man.jpg|thumb|left|Handel, c. 1710]]
In autumn 1706 Handel went to Italy. He stayed for long periods in Florence, Rome, Naples and Venice, making frequent visits to the opera houses and concert halls. He obtained introductions to leading musicians, among them [[Arcangelo Corelli]], [[Alessandro Scarlatti|Alessandro]] and [[Domenico Scarlatti]], and [[Agostino Steffani]],<ref name=Boyden>Boyden et al., p. 56</ref> and met numerous singers and performers. From these acquaintances Handel learned the essential characteristics of Italian music, in particular (according to [[Winton Dean|Dean]] and [[J. Merrill Knapp|Knapp]]) "fluency in the treatment of Italian verse, accurate declamation and flexible harmonic rhythm in recitative, ... drawing the necessary distinction between vocal and instrumental material and, above all, the release of [his] wonderful melodic gift".<ref>Dean and Knapp, p. 84</ref> Handel's first Italian opera, ''[[Rodrigo (opera)|Rodrigo]]'', showed an incomplete grasp of Italian style, with much of Keiser's Hamburg influence still evident; it was not a success when premiered in Florence, in late November or early December 1707.<ref name=Boyden /> He followed this by a lengthy visit to Rome, where opera performances were then forbidden by papal decree,<ref>Dean, p. 86</ref> and honed his skills through the composition of [[cantata]]s and [[oratorio]]s. In Rome, Handel met Cardinal [[Vincenzo Grimani]], a diplomat and spare-time librettist;<ref>Lang, p. 91</ref> the result of this meeting was a collaboration which produced Handel's second Italian opera, ''[[Agrippina (opera)|Agrippina]]''. After this work's triumphant premiere at the [[Teatro San Giovanni Grisostomo]] in Venice, on 26 December 1709, Handel became, says biographer [[Paul Henry Lang|P. H. Lang]], "world famous and the idol of a spoiled and knowledgeable audience".<ref>Lang, p. 106</ref>
[[File:George I Elector of Hanover.jpg|thumb|upright|Georg Ludwig, Elector of Hanover and later George I of Great Britain, appointed Handel to the Hanover court in 1710.]]
This sudden recognition led to eager competition for Handel's services.<ref name= D&K181/> Among those most keen to employ him was [[George I of Great Britain|Prince Georg Ludwig]], the [[Electorate of Hanover|Elector of Hanover]] and future King George I of Great Britain. In June 1710 Handel accepted the appointment of [[Kapellmeister]] to Georg's Hanover court, under terms that gave him considerable scope to pursue his own interests. On the basis of this freedom, in late 1710 Handel left Hanover for London, possibly in response to an earlier invitation from members of the English nobility.<ref>Lang, p. 110</ref> By 1711, informed London audiences had become familiar with the nature of Italian opera through the numerous [[pastiche]]s and adaptations that had been staged. The former [[Royal Academy of Music]] Principal, [[Curtis Price]], writes that the popularity of these pieces was the result of a deliberate strategy aimed<!--Source says "a concerted attempt to manipulate taste", but does specify by whom. Further discussion if necessary on talkpage, please---> at the suppression of English opera.<ref>Price, p. 121</ref> Handel's music was relatively unknown in England, though his reputation from ''Agrippina'' was considerable elsewhere. A short "Italian Dialogue" he had written in honour of [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain|Queen Anne]]'s birthday was well received when performed at [[St James's Palace]] on 6 February 1711.<ref name=HandelOMO/>

In London, by means which are not documented, Handel secured a commission to write an Italian opera for [[His Majesty's Theatre, London|the Queen's Theatre]] in the [[Haymarket, London|Haymarket]] (it became the "King's Theatre" after King George I's accession in 1714).<ref>Lang, pp. 117–118</ref> This theatre, designed and built by Sir [[John Vanbrugh]], had become London's main opera house; its manager, Aaron Hill, intended to mount the first Italian opera written specifically for London and had engaged an all-Italian company for the 1710–11 opera season.<ref name=HandelOMO>{{cite dictionary|title=Handel, George Frideric: 4. Hanover, Düsseldorf and London|first=Anthony|last=Hicks|author-link=Anthony Hicks|url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/|dictionary=[[Oxford Music Online]]|access-date=30 January 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309025722/http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/|archive-date=9 March 2017}}{{subscription required}}</ref> Hill employed an Italian poet and language teacher, Giacomo Rossi, to write a libretto based on a scenario that Hill prepared himself.<ref name=RossiOMO>{{cite dictionary|author-link=Winton Dean|last=Dean|first=Winton|title=Rossi, Giacomo|url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/|dictionary=[[Oxford Music Online]]|access-date=30 January 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309025722/http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/|archive-date=9 March 2017}}{{subscription required}}</ref> As his subject Hill chose [[Jerusalem Delivered|''Gerusalemme liberata'']], an epic of the [[First Crusade]] by the 16th-century Italian poet [[Torquato Tasso]]; the opera was called ''Rinaldo'', after its main protagonist.<ref name=HandelOMO /> Hill was determined to exploit to the full the opportunities for lavish spectacle afforded by the theatre's machinery; his aim, according to Dean and Knapp, was "to combine the virtuosity of Italian singing with the extravagance of the 17th century masque".<ref name= D&K171/>

==Roles==
{| class="wikitable"
|+ {{sronly|Roles, voice types, notes, premiere cast, references}}
!width= "300"|Role<br>(in singing order)
!Width= "100"|[[Voice type]]<br> (1711)<ref name=D&K181>Dean and Knapp, p. 181</ref>
!Width= "350"|Notes
!Width= "200"|Premiere cast, 24&nbsp;February&nbsp;1711<br />Conductor:<ref>It is suggested by Robert Hume in a biographical sketch of [[Aaron Hill (writer)|Aaron Hill]] that Handel conducted the orchestra. See {{cite Grove|last= Hume|first=Robert D.|title=Hill, Aaron|id=O002860|year=1992}}{{subscription required}}</ref>
!Width= "50"|Ref.
|-
| [[Godfrey of Bouillon|Goffredo]]: ''leader of the First Crusade. 1096–99''
| [[contralto]] ([[en travesti]])
| [[Tenor]] after 1731 revision
|[[Francesca Vanini-Boschi]]
|<ref name=D&N>Dean and Knapp, pp. 180–181</ref>
|-
| [[Renaud de Montauban#Rinaldo of Jerusalem Delivered|Rinaldo]]: ''a nobleman of the House of Este''
| alto [[castrato]]
| Written in soprano clef, now sung by a contralto, [[mezzo-soprano]] or countertenor
|[[Nicolò Grimaldi]] ("Nicolini")
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
| Almirena: ''daughter of Goffredo''
| [[soprano]]
|
|[[Isabella Girardeau]]
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
| [[Eustace III, Count of Boulogne|Eustazio]]: ''brother to Goffredo''
| alto castrato
| This part was eliminated before the 1717 revival, and is often omitted from modern productions
|[[Valentino Urbani]] ("Valentini")
|<ref name=D&N /><ref name=D&K184 />
|-
| A herald
| tenor
| [[Bass (voice type)|Bass]] in 1731 revival
|"Lawrence"
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
| Argante: ''[[Saracen]] king of Jerusalem''
| [[Bass (voice type)|bass]]
| Contralto in 1731 revival, now usually bass
|[[Giuseppe Maria Boschi|Giuseppe Boschi]]
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
| [[Armida]]: ''Queen of Damascus, Argante's mistress''
| soprano
| Contralto in 1731 revival, now usually soprano
|[[Elisabetta Pilotti-Schiavonetti]]
|<ref name=D&N /><ref>Dean and Knapp, p. 168</ref>
|-
|Two mermaids
| sopranos
|
|Not recorded
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
| A woman
| soprano
|In some productions the woman's lines are sung by a mermaid
| Not recorded
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
|A Christian magician
| alto castrato
| Bass from 1731 revival
|Giuseppe Cassani
|<ref name=D&N />
|-
|Mermaids, spirits, fairies, officers, guards, attendants
|Non-singing parts
|
|
|
|}

==Synopsis==
*'''Place''': in and around the city of [[Jerusalem]] during the First Crusade
*'''Time''': 1099

===Act 1===

The Crusader army under Goffredo is laying siege to Jerusalem, where the Saracen king Argante is confined with his troops. With Goffredo are his brother Eustazio, his daughter Almirena, and the knight Rinaldo. As Goffredo sings of the coming victory, Rinaldo declares his love for Almirena, and Goffredo confirms that she will be Rinaldo's bride when Jerusalem falls. Almirena urges Rinaldo to fight boldly and assure victory. As she departs, a herald announces the approach of Argante from the city. Eustazio surmises that the king fears defeat; this seems to be confirmed when Argante, after a grandiose entrance, requests a three-day truce to which Goffredo graciously assents. After Goffredo leaves, Argante ponders his love for Armida, the Queen of Damascus who is also a powerful sorceress, and considers the help her powers might bring him. As he muses, Armida arrives from the sky in a fiery chariot. She has divined that the Saracens' only chance of victory lies in vanquishing Rinaldo, and has the power, she claims, to achieve this.

The scene changes to a garden, with fountains and birds, where Rinaldo and Almirena are celebrating their love. They are interrupted as Armida appears, and wrests Almirena from Rinaldo's embrace. Rinaldo draws his sword to defend his lover, but a black cloud descends to envelop Armida and Almirena, and they are borne away. Rinaldo mourns the loss of his loved one. When Goffredo and Eustazio arrive they comfort Rinaldo, and propose they visit a Christian magician who may have the power to save Almirena. Rinaldo, left alone, prays for strength.

===Act 2===

[[File:Rinaldo and armida 1629.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Armida falls in love with Rinaldo. 1616 painting by [[Nicolas Poussin]].]]
A sea shore. As Goffredo, Eustazio and Rinaldo near the magician's lair, a beautiful woman calls from her boat, promising Rinaldo that she can take him to Almirena. Two mermaids sing of love's delights, and urge Rinaldo to go in the boat. He hesitates, unsure what to do, and his companions attempt to restrain him. Angry at the abduction of his loved one, Rinaldo enters the boat, which immediately sails off. Goffredo and Eustazio are shocked at Rinaldo's impulsiveness and believe that he has deserted their cause.

In Armida's palace garden, Almirena mourns her captivity. Argante joins her and, overcome by her beauty, confesses that he now loves her. He promises that as proof of his feelings he will defy Armida's wrath and secure Almirena's freedom. Meanwhile, Rinaldo is brought before the triumphant Armida. As he demands that Almirena be set free, Armida finds herself drawn to his noble spirit, and declares her love. When he angrily rejects her she uses her powers to assume Almirena's form, but Rinaldo suspects trickery, and departs. Armida, resuming her own appearance, is furious at her rejection yet retains feelings of tender love. She decides on another attempt to ensnare Rinaldo, and transforms herself back into Almirena's shape, but then encounters Argante. Believing her to be Almirena, Argante repeats his earlier promises of love and freedom. Swiftly resuming her own form, Armida denounces his infidelity and vows vengeance. Argante defiantly confirms his love for Almirena and declares that he no longer needs Armida's help. She departs in a fury.

===Act 3===

A mountainside, at the magician's cavern. Goffredo and Eustazio are told by the Magician that Almirena is being held captive in Armida's palace at the mountain-top. Ignoring the magician's warning that they will need special powers, the pair set off for the palace but are quickly driven back by Armida's monsters. The magician then gives them magic wands that transcend Armida's power, and they set off again. This time they overcome the monsters, but as they reach the gates of the palace it disappears, leaving them clinging to a rock in the midst of a stormy sea. They climb the rock and descend out of sight.

In the palace garden Armida prepares to kill Almirena. Rinaldo draws his sword, but Armida is protected from his wrath by spirits. Suddenly Goffredo and Eustazio arrive, but as they touch the garden with their wands it disappears, leaving them all on an empty plain with the city of Jerusalem visible in the distance. Armida, after a last attempt to kill Almirena, also disappears as Rinaldo strikes her with his sword. The remaining four celebrate their reunion, while Goffredo announces that the attack on Jerusalem will begin the next day.

In the city, Argante and Armida, in danger from a common enemy, become reconciled and prepare their troops for battle. Goffredo's army advances, and battle finally commences. After a struggle for supremacy, Jerusalem falls to Goffredo; Argante is overcome and captured by Rinaldo, while Armida is taken by Eustazio. Rinaldo and Almirena celebrate their love and forthcoming marriage. Armida, accepting her defeat, breaks the wand which is the source of her evil power and together with Argante embraces Christianity. Goffredo expresses his forgiveness to his beaten foes and sets them free, before victors and vanquished join in a chorus of reconciliation.

===Revisions, 1717 and 1731===

The opera was frequently revised, most particularly in 1717 and in 1731; modern performances are usually a conflation of the versions available. Up to and including 1717, these changes had no significant effect on the plot. In the 1731 version, however, in act 2 Armida imitates Almirena's voice rather than assuming her appearance, and Argante declares his love to Almirena's portrait rather than to her face. In act 3 the marches and the battle scene are cut; Armida and Argante remain unrepentant and vanish in a chariot drawn by dragons before the conclusion.<ref name=RinaldoOMO />

==Compositional history==
[[File:Handel, Rinaldo libretto,.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Pages from the 1711 libretto; Italian on the left, [[Aaron Hill (writer)|Aaron Hill]]'s text on the right]]
In a letter dedicating the new opera to Queen Anne, Hill wrote of his choice of story: "I could not chuse a finer Subject than the celebrated story of Rinaldo and Armida". He had, however, exercised "a Poet's Privilege", to render Tasso's work suitable for the stage. This "privilege" moved the opera's story a long way from Tasso's original. Hill invented a new heroine, Almirena, to provide the main love interest with the hero Rinaldo, and the relationship between Rinaldo and Armida scarcely figures in the opera. Likewise, the affair between Argante and Armida is Hill's creation, as are the conversions to Christianity, the latter possibly a [[wikt:sop|sop]] to English susceptibilities.<ref name=D&K171 /> Rossi was required to turn the elaborate scenario into verses, a relatively light task which, he said, was "the delivery of a few evenings".<ref name=RossiOMO /> Nevertheless, Rossi complained that Handel hardly gave him time to write: "To my great wonder I saw an entire Opera set to music by that surprising genius, with the greatest degree of perfection, in two weeks".<ref name=D&K171 /> Price argues that Rossi's role was beyond that of a mere versifier, quoting Hill's words of praise for Rossi in the preface to the libretto, which suggest that Rossi was the senior partner in the birth of the libretto. Price also points to the likely influences on the structure of ''Rinaldo'' from two British [[semi-opera]]s—[[George Granville, 1st Baron Lansdowne|George Granville]]'s ''The British Enchanters'', and [[Henry Purcell|Purcell]]'s ''[[King Arthur (opera)|King Arthur]]''. The transformations of characters to others' shapes, Price contends, is likely derived from [[John Dryden]]'s play ''[[Amphitryon (Dryden play)|Amphitryon]]''.<ref>Price, p. 125</ref>

Handel's speed of composition was assisted by his inclusion of arias and other numbers from his earlier Italian works, among them "Bel piacere" and "Basta che sol" from ''Agrippina'', "Sibillar gli angui" from the dramatic cantata ''[[Aci, Galatea e Polifemo]]'', and the mermaids' song "Il vostro maggio" from the cantata ''Arresta il passo''.<ref name=D&K171 /> Almirena's aria "[[Lascia ch'io pianga]]" had appeared in the oratorio ''[[The Triumph of Time and Truth|Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno]]''.<ref name=RinaldoOMO /> The suitability of some of these insertions has been questioned by later commentators; Dean and Knapp cite Argante's "Sibillar gli angui", with its references to the hissing snakes of [[Alecto]] and the howls of [[Scylla]], as "ludicrously inappropriate" to accompany the king's grand act 1 entrance. Many other numbers—Dean and Knapp estimate two-thirds of the arias—were adapted and partly recomposed from earlier sources.<ref name=D&K171>Dean and Knapp, pp. 171–174</ref>

In the years between the 1711 premiere and the 1717 revival, Handel made various adjustments to the score and the vocal parts, often to accommodate the requirements of new singers. Details of these changes are difficult to establish since the performing librettos and scores for these years no longer exist. For 1717, more significant revisions were made; the role of Eustazio was merged with that of Goffredo, and Argante's part was rewritten to accommodate an alto voice. Thus in this revival all the principal parts were sung in high voice ranges.<ref name=D&K184>Dean and Knapp, pp. 184–185</ref> Handel's revisions for the 1731 revival were even more radical, since they not only affected individual musical numbers but involved alterations in the plot. The production was advertised "With New Scenes and Cloathes", but many of the changes involved reducing or eliminating the pyrotechnics and special effects that had characterised the original production. The only significant new music in the 1731 production is a long accompanied recitative for Rinaldo, though other numbers are changed or cut. Goffredo becomes a tenor, Armida a contralto, the Herald and the Magician become basses. Dean and Knapp summarise the 1731 revisions as "a striking illustration of the seeming vandalism with which Handel could treat his works in revival".<ref name=D&K189 />

==Performance history and reception==

===Early performances===
The 19th-century music critic [[George Hogarth]] wrote of ''Rinaldo'' that "[t]he romantic interest of the subject, the charms of the music, and the splendour of the spectacle, made it an object of general attraction".<ref name=Hogarth>Hogarth, p. 272</ref> Its premiere at the Queen's Theatre on 24 February 1711, possibly under Handel's direction, was a triumphant success. A further 12 performances were immediately scheduled; at the end of the run, popular demand was such that two more were added.<ref name=D&K182 /> Notwithstanding this enthusiasm, the financial strains of such a grand production led to legal actions against Hill from unpaid craftsmen. Nine days after the premiere the [[Lord Chamberlain|Lord Chamberlain's Office]] revoked the impresario's licence.<ref name="AAM">{{cite web|url= http://www.aam.co.uk/features/9901.htm|title= Handel's ''Rinaldo'' – Character descriptions translated from the Italian version of the libretto|access-date= 8 November 2008|last= Hicks|first= Anthony|author-link=Anthony Hicks|publisher=[[Academy of Ancient Music]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080930221050/http://www.aam.co.uk/features/9901.htm <!--Added by H3llBot-->|archive-date= 30 September 2008}}</ref> Under Hill's successors the opera was played at the theatre in most seasons until 1716–17, by which time it had totalled 47 performances, far more than any other opera at the Queen's.<ref>Dean and Knapp, p. 156</ref>

The public's general enthusiasm for the opera was not shared by the writers [[Joseph Addison]] and [[Richard Steele]], who used the pages of their new journal, ''[[The Spectator (1711)|The Spectator]]'', to pour scorn and ridicule on the work.<ref name=Schonberg>{{cite news|author-link= Harold C. Schonberg|last= Schonberg|first= Harold C.|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1975/09/28/105342642.pdf|title= Opera in English? No, Thanks|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date= 26 September 1975|page=133}}{{subscription required}}</ref> Addison may have been motivated by his own failure, a few years previously, to establish a school of English opera with ''Rosamund'', on which he had collaborated with the composer Thomas Clayton.<ref name=Lang120>Lang, pp. 120–121</ref> It was absurd, he wrote, that theatre audiences should be exposed to entire evenings of entertainment in a foreign tongue: "We no longer understand the language of our own stage".<ref name=Schonberg /> Addison did, however, praise the singing of [[Nicolò Grimaldi]], the celebrated alto castrato known as "Nicolini", in the title role. Steele compared the production unfavourably to a [[Punch and Judy]] show, particularly criticising certain bungled scene changes and the poor quality of effects such as thunder and lightning.<ref name= D&K182>Dean and Knapp, pp. 182–183</ref> Hogarth made light of such comments: "Notwithstanding the influence which the ''Spectator'' influenced over the taste and manners of the age, its attacks ... seem to have had little effect in turning people from the entertainment".<ref name=Hogarth />

[[File:London Kings Theatre Haymarket.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|The [[His Majesty's Theatre, London|opera house in the Haymarket]] – first known as the Queen's Theatre and then later as the King's Theatre – where many of Handel's works, including ''Rinaldo'', were first performed]]
Some sources have suggested that the opera was performed in [[Dublin]] in March or April 1711,<ref>Lang, p. 120</ref><ref>See, for example, Anna Menichetti in the liner notes to [[Nuova Era (record label)|Nuova Era]] recording 6813/14, 1992</ref> though according to Dean and Knapp there is no record of such an occasion.<ref name=D&K182 /> In November 1715 a version mainly in German was performed in Hamburg. This production, based on a translation by the playwright Barthold Feind, proved to be very popular and was revived in the city on numerous occasions during the 1720s. A pastiche of the opera, with additional numbers by [[Leonardo Leo]], was presented by Leo at the Royal Court in [[Naples]] in 1718, with Nicolini singing his original role.<ref name=D&K189>Dean and Knapp, pp. 186–191</ref>

After 1716–17, ''Rinaldo'' was not seen on the London stage until 1731, when it was revived in its revised form at the King's Theatre. During these years Handel's industry was such that he was producing a new opera for this theatre every nine months.<ref>Steen, p. 47</ref> The 1731 production of ''Rinaldo'' received six performances, bringing the London total for the work to 53 in Handel's lifetime, the most for any of his operas.<ref name=D&K182 /> After 1731 Handel had fewer stage successes, and performances of his operas became rarer. Changes in taste and style combined, as Grout concludes, to "thrust [the operas] into ill-deserved oblivion",<ref name="Grout, p. 157" /> as a result of which ''Rinaldo'' was not staged anywhere for two hundred years.<ref name=RinaldoOMO />

===Modern revivals===

The first 20th-century production of ''Rinaldo'' which can be specifically verified was a performance in London, in February 1933, by pupils of the Hammersmith Day Continuation School,<ref name=RinaldoOMO /> though Dean and Knapp mention a shortened version, in Czech, at the [[Prague Conservatory]] in 1923.<ref name=D&K189 /> The first modern professional performance was at the [[Halle Opera House]] in June 1954, under [[Horst-Tanu Margraf]], as part of the [[Handel Festival, Halle|Handel Festival]]. On 17 May 1961 the Handel Opera Society, directed by {{ill|Charles Farncombe|es||fr}}, staged the work at London's [[Sadler's Wells Theatre]], a production that was revived four years later.<ref name=RinaldoOMO>{{cite dictionary|author-link=Anthony Hicks|last=Hicks|first=Anthony|title=Rinaldo|url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/|dictionary=[[Oxford Music Online]]|access-date=28 January 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170309025722/http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/public/|archive-date=9 March 2017}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title= Arts Council of Great Britain, Annual Report 1965–66|publisher=[[Arts Council of Great Britain]]|page= 59|year= 1966}}</ref> The first American performance was a concert version at [[Carnegie Hall]] on 27 March 1972, given by the [[Handel Society of New York]], with Stephen Simon conducting and [[Beverly Wolff]] as Rinaldo.<ref>{{cite news|last=Henahan|first=Donal|author-link=Donal Henahan|title=''Rinaldo'' Has Everything a Baroque Opera Needs|url=http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50F10FC3C5A137A93CBAB1788D85F468785F9&scp=1&sq=%22Rinaldo%22+%22handel%22&st=p|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=29 March 1972|page=37|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121106044954/http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F50F10FC3C5A137A93CBAB1788D85F468785F9&scp=1&sq=%22Rinaldo%22+%22handel%22&st=p|archive-date=6 November 2012}}{{subscription required}}</ref> The first staging of the opera in America was at the [[Houston Grand Opera]] under [[Lawrence Foster]], in October 1975, with [[Marilyn Horne]] in the title role, a part with which she would become particularly associated on American stages.

In July 1982 Horne sang the part alongside [[John Alexander (tenor)|John Alexander]]'s Goffredo and [[Samuel Ramey]]'s Argante, in a [[National Arts Centre]] (NAC) production in Ottawa directed by [[Frank Corsaro]]. The performance, with [[Mario Bernardi]] conducting the [[National Arts Centre Orchestra|NAC Orchestra]], was applauded by ''[[Montreal Gazette]]'' critic [[Eric McLean]] for its fine music making and its displays of "architectural and sartorial splendour".<ref>{{cite news|last= McLean|first= Eric|url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=3gsvAAAAIBAJ&pg=1035,1436862&dq=rinaldo+handel&hl=en|title=Festival Opera Gives Fine Account of Handel's ''Rinaldo''|newspaper=[[Montreal Gazette]]|date= 5 July 1982|page=D3}}</ref> Eighteen months later, on 19 January 1984 Bernardi and Corsaro, with Horne, Ramey and [[Benita Valente]] from the Ottawa cast, brought the production to New York for the work's debut at the [[Metropolitan Opera]]. The production was loaned to the Met for its centennial season by the National Arts Centre of Canada "in deep appreciation of the many years during which Canadians have enjoyed opera from the Met – on tour, on radio and in New York".<ref name=Met>{{cite web|title= Metropolitan Opera database|url= http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/frame.htm|publisher= Metropolitan Opera|access-date= 28 January 2011|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120611003537/http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/frame.htm|archive-date= 11 June 2012}}</ref> [[Donal Henahan]] in ''[[The New York Times]]'' praised all the singers in turn, with a special mention for Valente's "plaintive and affecting" rendering of the popular aria "Lascia ch'io pianga". But, says Henahan, "the loudest cheers of the night went at last to the choreographer, Eugene Collins, and an incredibly nimble corps of tumbling warriors".<ref>{{cite news|last=Henahan|first=Donal|author-link=Donal Henahan|title=A Triumph for Handel|url= https://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/20/arts/a-triumph-for-handel.html|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=20 January 1984|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303172738/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/20/arts/a-triumph-for-handel.html|archive-date=3 March 2016}}{{subscription required}}</ref> After ten performances at the Metropolitan Opera House the production was taken in May to [[Washington, D.C.]], and toured in the US before returning to New York in June for several outdoor performances.<ref name=Met />

From the mid-1980s onwards, performances of ''Rinaldo'' became more frequent worldwide. In June 1989 it was staged at [[La Fenice]] in Venice, under [[John Fisher (opera director)|John Fisher]], again with Marilyn Horne. This production was criticised by critic and music scholar [[Stanley Sadie]], in his review of the live recording, for straying too far from the composer's original intentions, particularly in the rearrangement of material and the extent of cuts. Singers were, Sadie says, allowed too much freedom to ornament their vocal lines; some of the [[cadenza]]s were "preposterous".<ref name=Sadie>{{cite magazine
 |author-link  = Stanley Sadie
 |last        = Sadie
 |first       = Stanley
 |title       = Handel: ''Rinaldo''
 |url         = http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive
 |magazine    = [[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]
 |date        = April 1990
 |page        = 126
 |url-status     = live
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20121105033715/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive
 |archive-date = 5 November 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref>
The opera reached Australia in 1999, at the [[Sydney Opera House]] under [[Patrick Summers]],<ref>{{cite journal|title=Rinaldo|journal=[[Opera (British magazine)|Opera]]|date=January 2000|page=55}}</ref> and was performed there again in July–August 2005 under [[Trevor Pinnock]], with [[Michael Chance]] as Rinaldo.<ref name=OB>{{cite web|title=''Rinaldo'': Représentations|url= http://operabaroque.fr/HAENDEL_RINALDO.htm|publisher= Opéra Baroque|access-date= 6 February 2011|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110209192812/http://operabaroque.fr/HAENDEL_RINALDO.htm|archive-date= 9 February 2011}}(in French)</ref> The new century saw a number of performances across Europe, including an appearance at the [[Göttingen International Handel Festival]] in 2004, with [[Nicholas McGegan]] conducting [[Concerto Köln]]. This production was well received by the public, but was criticised by [[Jochen Breiholz]] of ''[[Opera News]]'' for poor staging, indifferent singing and a substandard performance from the orchestra.<ref>{{cite magazine|author-link= Jochen Breiholz|last= Breiholz|first= Jochen|title=''Rinaldo'': Göttingen Internationale Händel-Festspiele|url= http://www.operanews.com/operanews/templates/content.aspx?id=10078&terms=Rinaldo|magazine= [[Opera News]]|volume= 69|date= September 2004|issue= 3|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20111124210950/http://www.operanews.com/operanews/templates/content.aspx?id=10078&terms=Rinaldo|archive-date= 24 November 2011}} {{subscription required}}</ref>

[[Zürich Opera]]'s 2008 production, directed by [[Jens-Daniel Herzog]] and conducted by [[William Christie (musician)|William Christie]], threw aside all convention by representing the action in a 21st-century airport lounge and conference centre, with Rinaldo dressed in a double-breasted navy blazer and needing a drink. "Characters go up and down on-stage escalators, and the set spins to show various areas of the lounge and terminal. There is a dissection of a small, white furry animal, a large snake, some allusions to Bond girls and character transformations. The Christians pull guns on the Muslims at a signing ceremony". It was, wrote [[Associated Press]] critic Ronald Blum, "outrageous – and entertaining".<ref>{{cite web|last= Blum|first= Ronald|title= Handel with care: Zurich ''Rinaldo'' set in airport|agency=[[Associated Press]]|url=http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Jun20/0,4670,OperaRinaldo,00.html|website=[[Fox News]]|date= 20 June 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629063023/http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Jun20/0,4670,OperaRinaldo,00.html|archive-date= 29 June 2011}}</ref> A concert version of ''Rinaldo'' was given at the 2009 [[Edinburgh Festival]], by the [[Bach Collegium Japan]] conducted by [[Masaaki Suzuki]], with the Japanese soprano [[Maki Mori (soprano)|Maki Mori]] as Almirena.<ref name=OB />

During the opera's [[tercentenary]] year in 2011, the [[Glyndebourne Festival Opera|Glyndebourne Festival]] mounted a new production directed by [[Robert Carsen]], designed by Gideon Davey, and conducted by [[Ottavio Dantone]] with the [[Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment]] in the pit. The production is set in a school where Rinaldo is a student, initially the victim of bullying, who enters into the world of the Crusades.<ref>{{cite news|last=Christiansen|first=Rupert|author-link=Rupert Christiansen|title=''Rinaldo'', Glyndebourne opera, review|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/opera/8615317/Rinaldo-Glyndebourne-opera-review.html|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|location=London|date=4 July 2011|access-date=15 May 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611193912/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/opera/8615317/Rinaldo-Glyndebourne-opera-review.html|archive-date=11 June 2016}}</ref> The Glyndebourne Festival Opera brought a semi-staged version of this production to the 2011 [[BBC Proms]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Prom 55 (2011): Handel – ''Rinaldo''|date=25 August 2011|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/whats-on/2011/august-25/64|publisher=[[BBC Proms]]|access-date=31 August 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110907023632/http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/whats-on/2011/august-25/64|archive-date=7 September 2011}}</ref>

==Music==
[[File:Nicolini by Ricci 1709.jpg|thumb|upright|Detail from [[Marco Ricci]]'s 1709 painting ''Rehearsal for an Opera''. Ricci was a stage painter at the Queen's Theatre, and this singer is assumed to depict Nicolini, the house's principal alto castrato.]]
The amount of recycled music in ''Rinaldo'' is such that Dean and Knapp call it an "anthology" of the best works from Handel's Italian period.<ref name=D&K171 /> Sadie raises the question of whether the opera's [[dramaturgy]] is affected by the small amount of music written for its particular situations. He also comments on the problems raised for scholars by the extensive revisions to the music that took place during Handel's lifetime, but suggests that the available admixture creates interesting opportunities in the preparation of modern performing versions.<ref name=Sadie /> The initial popular success of ''Rinaldo'' was assisted by the employment of virtuoso singers, in particular Nicolini in the title role.<ref name=D&K181 /> This part has remained in its original pitch, though in his various revisions Handel transposed the music of other leading roles to different voice types. Thus Goffredo had originally been an alto part, but in the 1717 revisions became a tenor; the Magician was transposed from alto castrato to bass, and Armida from soprano to contralto.<ref name=D&K189 />

The music, Lang says, flows "beguilingly" from the spacious overture; the quieter, emotional passages are illustrated evocatively, while in the more spectacular moments Handel's innovative use of brass is exciting and inspiring.<ref name=Lang119>Lang, pp. 119–120</ref> The sudden blast of trumpets which announces the march in act 3 provides, say Dean and Knapp, "an effect of splendour and exhilaration that time has not dimmed".<ref name=D&K179>Dean and Knapp, p. 179</ref> The [[harpsichord]] solos which decorate "Vo' far guerra" in act 2 were originally improvised on the keyboard by Handel during performances, and were extremely popular. They were remembered and written down by [[William Babell]], and published later as separate pieces. Lang believes that in spite of the borrowings, and the hasty manner in which the work was put together, ''Rinaldo'' is one of Handel's great operas.<ref name=Lang119 /> According to Dean and Knapp, no Italian opera heard in London to that point had been supported by such "majestic" orchestral forces.<ref name=D&K179 /> Critic [[Anthony Hicks]] describes the music, overall, as both "varied and excellent".<ref name=RinaldoOMO /> Dean and Knapp's verdict is more equivocal. The music for the war and pageantry scenes, they say, is "brilliantly successful", but in depicting the scenes concerned with magic, Handel misses the mark; they suggest it was not until over 15 years later, with ''[[Admeto]]'' and ''[[Orlando (opera)|Orlando]]'', that he was able to represent the supernatural convincingly in music.<ref name=D&K171 />

The opera begins in the [[Key (music)|key]] of [[F major|F]], and switches to [[G major|G]] at the beginning of the grove scene in act 1. Act 2 starts in [[E minor]] and ends in G. The final act begins and ends in [[B minor]].<ref name=D&N /> According to Hicks the dominant character musically, except in act 3 in which she barely sings, is Armida. Her entry [[cavatina]] "Furie terribili" gives, says Hicks, "an immediate impression of fiery passion", an energy and intensity demonstrated in her act 2 "Ah crudel", and in her later vengeance aria which is the occasion of Handel's harpsichord cadenzas.<ref name=RinaldoOMO /> Armida's act 3 duet with Argante was the last duet with bass part that Handel wrote for 30 years. Of the other set pieces, Dean and Knapp highlight Rinaldo's "Cara sposa" as an example of Handel's growing confidence with aria forms. "Or la tromba" is praised for the brilliance of its orchestration: 4 trumpets, drums, strings & oboes—the only aria Handel ever wrote for this combination. The melody for Almirena's "Lascia ch'io pianga" began its life as an Asian dance in ''Almira'' before appearing as an aria in the oratorio ''Il trionfo''. From this simple tune and plain accompaniment Handel achieves an "intensely moving effect" in this, the best-known of all the arias.<ref>Dean and Knapp, pp. 176–178</ref>

==Arias and other musical numbers==

===1717 libretto and subsequent amendments===
The main musical numbers from the 1711 libretto are listed, together with changes and replacements from the two major revisions of 1717 and 1731. Minor changes, transpositions, and alterations to recitative sections are not shown. New numbers introduced in 1717 and 1731 are listed separately. Other arias not listed may have been sung in ''Rinaldo'' during the years 1711–17, but in the absence of contemporary evidence from scores or librettos the extent of such changes cannot be accurately ascertained.<ref name=D&K184 /><ref name=D&K189 />
{{col-begin}}
{{col-3}}

====Act 1====
*Sinfonia (overture)
*"Sovra balze scoscesi e pungenti" (Goffredo)
*"Combatti da forte" (Almirena) ''(1731: replaced with "Quel cor che mi donasti")''
*"Ogni indugio d'un amante" (Rinaldo)
*"Sulla ruota di fortuna" (Eustazio) ''(1717: cut; 1731: revived, amended and allocated to Argante)''
*"Sibillar gli angui d'Aletto" (Argante) ''(1717: replaced with "Sorte amor vuol che quest'alma", which was cut in 1731)''
*"No, no, che quest'alma" (Goffredo) ''(1731: replaced with "D'instabile fortuna")''
*"Vieni o cara, a consolarmi" (Argante) ''(1731: replaced with amended "Sulla ruota di fortuna")''
*"Furie terribili!" (Armida)
*"Molto voglio, molto spero" (Armida) ''(1731: replaced with a modified version of "Combatti da forte")''
*"Augelletti, che cantate" (Almirena)
*"Scherzano sul tuo volto" (Duet: Almirena and Rinaldo)
*Sinfonia
*"Cara sposa, amante cara" (Rinaldo)
*"Cor ingrato, ti rammembri" (Rinaldo)
*"Col valor, colla virtù" (Eustazio) ''(1717: cut)''
*Venti, turbini, prestate (Rinaldo)
{{col-break}}

====Act 2====
*"Siam prossimi al porto" (Eustazio) ''(1717: cut; 1731: partly restored, sung by Goffredo)''
*"Il vostro maggio" (Sirene)
*"Il tricerbero umiliato" (Rinaldo)
*"Mio cor, che mi sai dir?" (Goffredo)
*"Lascia ch'io pianga" (Almirena)
*"Basta che sol tu chieda" (Argante) ''(1717: replaced with "Ogni tua bella stilla" and in 1731 with "Per salvarti, idolo mio")''
*"Fermati!/No, crudel!" (Duet, Armida and Rinaldo)
*"Abbrugio, avampo e fremo" (Rinaldo)
*"Dunque i lacci d'un volto" (Accompanied recitative, Armida)
*"Ah! crudel, Il pianto mio" (Armida)
*"Vo' far guerra, e vincer voglio" (Armida)
{{col-break}}

====Act 3====
*Sinfonia
*"Andate, o forti" (Mago) ''(1717: cut; 1731: altered and restored)''
*"Sorge nel petto" (Goffredo) ''(1717: cut)''
*"È un incendio fra due venti" (Rinaldo)
*Marcia (Pagan march) ''(1731: cut)''
*"Al trionfo del nostro furore" ''(Duet, Armida and Argante) (1731: repositioned, and sung by Goffredo and Almirena)''
*"Bel piacere e godere" (Almirena)
*"Di Sion nell'alta sede" (Eustazio) ''(1717: sung by Goffredo; 1731: sung by Argante)''
*Marcia (Christian march) ''(1731: cut)''
*"Or la tromba in suon festante" (Rinaldo) ''(1731: cut)''
*Battaglia (battle) ''(1731: cut)''
*"Solo dal brando" (Goffredo) ''(1731; cut)''
*Vinto è sol della virtù (Coro)
{{col-end}}

===Additions and replacements, 1717===
*Act 1: "Sorte amor vuol che quest'alma" (Argante)
*Act 2: "Vieni, o caro, che senza il suo core" (Almirena)
*Act 2: "Ogni tua bella stilla" (Argante)
*Act 3: "Pregio è sol d'un alma forte" (Argante) ''(1731: cut)''
*Act 3: "Si t'amo" (Almirena)

===Additions and replacements, 1731===
*Act 1: "Quel cor che mi donasti" (Almirena)
*Act 1: "D'instabile fortuna" (Goffredo)
*Act 2: "Arma lo sguardo" (Armida)
*Act 2: "Per salvarti, idolo mio" (Argante)
*Act 3: "Orrori menzogneri" (accompanied recitative, Rinaldo)

==Editions==
No complete autograph score exists; fragments representing about three-quarters of the 1711 score are held by the Royal Music Library (a subdivision of the [[British Library]] in London) and the [[Fitzwilliam Museum]] in Cambridge. The oldest complete score, dating from about 1716, is an error-strewn manuscript that may be a copy from one or more of the performing scores from that period. The manuscript bears numerous notes and corrections in Handel's hand, and was possibly the basis for the substantial revisions which he effected in 1731. It was also used by the copyist John Christopher Smith to produce two performing scores for the 1720s Hamburg performances. Further complete manuscript copies were produced by Smith and others in 1725–28 (the "Malmesbury" score), 1740 ("Lennard") and 1745 ("Granville"). These provide many variations of individual numbers.<ref>Dean and Knapp, pp. 191–194</ref>

During the initial run at the Queen's Theatre the publisher John Walsh printed ''Songs in the Opera of Rinaldo'', in mainly [[Sheet music#Types|short score]] form. Apart from the overture, instrumental numbers were omitted, as were the recitatives. In June 1711 Walsh published a fuller version, which included instrumental parts; he continued to publish versions of individual numbers, with a variety of orchestrations, until the 1730s. In 1717 William Babell issued an arrangement for harpsichord of the overture and seven of the arias. [[Friedrich Chrysander]] published editions of the whole opera in 1874 and in 1894, based on a study of the existing published and manuscript material. In 1993 David Kimbell, for the [[Hallische Händel-Ausgabe]] (HHA), produced a full score of the 1711 version, together with rejected draft material and the additional numbers introduced in revivals up to 1717. HHA has also produced a complete score of the 1731 version.<ref>Dean and Knapp, pp. 197–205</ref>

The libretto was published in London by the Queen's Theatre in February 1711, to coincide with the premiere, with Hill's English translation. Revised versions followed in 1717 and 1731 to reflect the changes introduced in those years; Rossi is believed to have prepared the Italian additions and revisions, with the 1731 English credited to "Mr. Humphreys". Feind's German versions of the libretto were published in Hamburg in 1715, 1723 and 1727.<ref>Dean and Knapp, pp. 194–196</ref>

==Recordings==
{{main|Rinaldo discography}}
The first full recording of ''Rinaldo'' (an "excerpts" disc had preceded it by two years) was made in 1977 by CBS, with [[Carolyn Watkinson]] in the title role, [[Ileana Cotrubaș]] as Almirena, and [[Jean-Claude Malgoire]] conducting [[La Grande Écurie et la Chambre du Roy]].<ref>{{cite journal|last= Thomas|first= Christopher J|year=1985|title=''Rinaldo'' and ''Rinaldo'' highlights|journal=[[The Opera Quarterly]]|volume= 3|pages=183–188|doi=10.1093/oq/3.3.183|issue= 3}}</ref> The work, recorded in a Paris church, was based on the 1711 score; [[Alan Blyth]] in ''[[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]'' praised the standard of the singing, and despite reservations about the sound quality, called it one of the most enjoyable of available Handel opera recordings.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Blyth|first=Alan|author-link=Alan Blyth|title=Handel:''Rinaldo''|url=http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|magazine=[[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]|date=February 1978|page=125|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105033715/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|archive-date=5 November 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref> There was no further recording of ''Rinaldo'' available until 1990, when John Fisher's heavily cut version from [[La Fenice]] was issued.<ref name=Sadie /> Another decade passed before the appearance of [[Christopher Hogwood]]'s 1999 Decca recording, again based on the original score, with the countertenor [[David Daniels (countertenor)|David Daniels]] as Rinaldo, [[Cecilia Bartoli]] as Almirena and [[Catherine Bott]] in the small part of First Mermaid. ''Gramophone's'' reviewer called this issue "a treat for Handel lovers – a rare recording of one of the composer's richest operas, with a strong and starry cast".<ref>{{cite magazine|title= Handel: ''Rinaldo''|url= http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|magazine= [[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]|date= January 2000|page= 96|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121105033715/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|archive-date= 5 November 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref> Since then several more versions have been made available: [[Harry Bicket]]'s 2001 recording for Arthaus, which was later issued as a [[DVD]];<ref>{{cite magazine|last= Rohan|first= Michael Scott|title= Handel: ''Rinaldo''|url= http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|magazine= [[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]|date= May 2003|page= 85|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121105033715/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|archive-date= 5 November 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Handel: ''Rinaldo''. List of recordings|url= http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/w/59387|publisher= Presto Classical|access-date= 4 February 2011|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100125052311/http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/w/59387|archive-date= 25 January 2010}}</ref> [[René Jacobs]] with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra for [[Harmonia Mundi]] in 2001;<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Sadie|first=Stanley|author-link=Stanley Sadie|title=Handel: ''Rinaldo''|url=http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|magazine=[[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]|date=May 2003|page=78|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121105033715/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|archive-date= 5 November 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref> and a performance by the Aradia Ensemble under Kevin Mallon, recorded in 2004 and issued under the [[Naxos Records|Naxos]] label in 2005.<ref>{{cite magazine|last= Quinn|first= Michael|title= Session Report: The Aradia Ensemble's ''Rinaldo''|url= http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|magazine= [[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]|date= September 2004|page= 11|url-status= live|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121105033715/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/focus/the-new-gramophone-digital-archive|archive-date= 5 November 2012}} {{subscription required}}</ref>

==References==
===Notes===
{{reflist|25em}}

===Sources===
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*{{cite book|author-link= Winton Dean|last= Dean|first= Winton|year= 1980|chapter=George Frideric Handel|title=The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians|title-link=The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians|volume=8|editor=Sadie, Stanley|editor-link=Stanley Sadie|location= London|publisher= Macmillan|pages= 85–138|isbn= 0-333-23111-2 }}
*{{cite book|title= Handel's operas: 1704–1726|last1=Dean|first1=Winton|last2=Knapp|first2=J. Merrill|author-link2=J. Merrill Knapp|year=1995|orig-year=1987|publisher= Oxford University Press|location= Oxford|isbn= 9780198164418|url-access= registration|url= https://archive.org/details/handelsoperas1700000dean}}
*{{cite book|author-link= Donald Jay Grout|last1=Grout|first1=Donald Jay|last2=Weigel|first2=Hermione|year= 1947|title=A Short History of Opera|volume=1|publisher= Columbia University Press|location= New York }}
*{{cite book|last= Grout|first= Donald Jay|title= A Short History of Opera |url= https://archive.org/details/shorthistoryofop0001grou|url-access= registration|edition=One-volume|publisher= Columbia University Press|location= New York|year= 1965}}
*{{cite book|author-link=George Hogarth|last= Hogarth|first= George|title=Memoirs of the Musical Drama|volume=1|publisher=[[Richard Bentley (publisher)|Richard Bentley]]|location= London|year= 1835}}
*{{cite book|author-link= Paul Henry Lang|last= Lang|first= Paul Henry|title=George Frideric Handel|year= 1994|publisher= Dover Publications|location= New York|isbn= 0-486-29227-4}}
*{{cite book|author-link= Curtis Price|last= Price|first= Curtis| chapter=English Traditions in Handel's ''Rinaldo''|editor1=Sadie, Stanley|editor1-link=Stanley Sadie|editor2=Hicks, Anthony|editor2-link=Anthony Hicks|title=Handel: Tercentenary collection|publisher= Macmillan|location= London|year= 1987|isbn= 0-8357-1833-6}}
*{{cite book|last= Steen|first= Michael|title= The Lives and Times of the Great Composers|publisher=[[Icon Books]]|location= London|year= 2009|page=47|isbn= 978-1-84046-679-9}}

==External links==
*[http://www.handelforever.com/composizioni/libretti/pdf/rinaldo.pdf 1711 libretto in Italian], handelforever.com
*{{IMSLP|work=Rinaldo, HWV 7a (Handel, George Frideric)|cname=Chrysander's 1874 version of the 1711 score}}
*{{IMSLP|work=Rinaldo, HWV 7b (Handel, George Frideric)|cname=Chrysander's 1894 version of the 1731 score}}

{{George Frideric Handel|state=collapsed}}
{{Jerusalem Delivered}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rinaldo (Opera)}}
[[Category:Operas by George Frideric Handel]]
[[Category:Italian-language operas]]
[[Category:Opera seria]]
[[Category:1711 operas]]
[[Category:Operas]]
[[Category:Operas based on Jerusalem Delivered]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Godfrey of Bouillon]]
[[Category:Operas set in the 11th century]]