from Act I of the Italian opera
Serse by George Frideric Handel
Libretto: Nicola Minato
Role: Serse, the King of Persia, brother of Arsamene
Voice Part: countertenor Fach: countertenor
Setting: a garden in King Serse's palace, Persia
Synopsis: Serse has promised his general, Ariodate, that his daughter, Romilda, will marry a member of the royal family. He assumes that it will be he that will marry Romilda and sings of his devotion and love to her.