About the work
Opera in four acts by Augusta Holmès to her own libretto, first performed on 8 February 1895 at the Paris Opera under conductor Paul Taffanel. With it, Holmès became the first female composer to have a stage work performed at that house.
Plot
In 1657, amid fighting between Montenegrins and Ottomans, a sworn brotherhood-in-arms binds the Montenegrin warrior Mirko to Aslar. Although betrothed to Héléna, Mirko falls in love with the captive Turkish courtesan Yamina and flees with her, prompting Héléna to denounce the couple publicly. When Aslar confronts Mirko over his betrayal of their shared oath, Yamina treacherously wounds him; in the end Aslar kills the unrepentant Mirko to save his soul, then takes his own life.
Cultural significance
Despite a cast led by the celebrated soprano Lucienne Bréval as Yamina, the opera found little success at the Paris Opera; critics praised individual numbers such as Yamina's aria but faulted the libretto and orchestration overall. Discouraged by its reception, Holmès never composed another opera.