Composed: 1724
Premiered: 1724, London
Duration: 6 minutes

When Handel's Giulio Cesare premiered in London in 1724, it was considered a resounding success, earning a run of 13 performances at a time when six of a new work was thought of as a hit. The opera made for great entertainment as one of the first of its kind at the time, combining a plot based on history and not mythology. The story told of love between Julius Caesar and Cleopatra, the latter role performed by the renowned soprano Francesca Cuzzoni, with whom Handel worked regularly. This aria, "Da Tempeste," uses the imagery of a ship being tossed around at sea to illustrate the emotions she feels after learning of Caesar's apparent death.