The story of Iphigenia and Agamemnon is not an easy one to stomach. Eager for war with Troy, the Greek fleet is stranded. In order to appease the goddess Artemis, who is withholding the winds necessary for the fleet to set sail, Agamemnon, the king of the united Greek army, must sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia. To complicate matters, the hero Achilles is in love with Iphigenia and expects to wed her. Faced with the loss of his daughter or the loss of war with Troy, Agamemnon faces a dilemma: should family or country come first? If he sides with family and spares his daughter, the troops will surely revolt; they are bloodthirsty for a conflict which will bring them glory and riches. But Agamemnon cannot bear the thought of loosing Iphigenia. Agamemnon ultimately chooses the good of the nation over his family, but in an unexpected twist Iphigenia gives herself over willingly to the oracle's grisly plan.

Euripides' story has captivated writers for centuries. In 1718, the Venetian poet Apostolo Zeno wrote the most well known libretto, which was set by no fewer than eight composers including Giovanni Porta. But Zeno's telling of the story is not tragic; like Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice (1762) there is a twist late in the third act that resolves the central quandary. Still, Zeno's version includes many elements of an effective drama. There is intrigue as Agamemnon hatches various unsuccessful schemes to save his daughter and defy the oracle; lamentation as the Greek king reconciles himself to the god's inexorable wishes; bitter irony as Iphigenia realizes that the altar she is destined for is not quite the one she envisioned; and high drama as Achilles tries - in his petulant, naive way - to save his lover from the steely blade's irreversible blow. Unlike earlier Venetian operas that Ars Minerva has staged, there is very little room for humor - comic situations are almost nonexistent, and the drama moves us linerarly towards its conclusion.

Giovanni Porta, who set Zeno's words to music, led an exceptional life that brought him into contact with the greatest musicians of his day. Born in Venice in 1677, he studied with the successful opera composer Gasparini, but soon moved to Rome where he lived from 1706-1710. There, he met the great composer and violinist Arcangelo Corelli and enjoyed the patronage of the powerful and wealthy Cardinal Ottoboni. Subsequently, Porta held prestigious posts in Vicenza and Verona. Returning to his native Venice in 1716, he befriended Antonio Vivaldi and composed many operas for the vibrant musical culture there. Called to London in 1720, Porta composed the very first opera staged by the Royal Academy of Music. Handel and Scarlatti composed the second and third operas given by the Academy. In such company, one would think Porta's name would be on the tongues and music stands of many; but he apparently did not achieve much success in London and soon moved back to Venice. There, he cultivated ties to Munich by dedicating a successful opera L'Issipile (1732) to Karl Albrecht, Elector of Bavaria. After unsuccessfully positioning himself for two important Venetian positions, Porta made his way to Munich in 1737, where he lived out the last 18 years of his life composing relatively little.

Munich was a city central to opera, especially the Italian variety. Many great works were heard in the Salvatortheater, which hosted some of Mozart's early operas only a few years after Porta's death. Mozart's early operas only a few years after Porta's death. Mozart's famous Idomeneo had its first performance in Munich's Cuvillies Theater. The city's location as a trading hub ensured good connections to cultural centers in France, Italy and Bohemia. The Emperor Karl Albrecht actively sponsored musical activities until the Austrian army flushed him into exile. Fortunately, the city's subsequent rulers, such as Maximilian III also zealously encouraged musical pursuits. Porta's Iphigenia was first heard in 1738, in a period of relative political calm. In Franz Michael Rudhart's Geschichte der Oper am Hofe zu Munchen (Freising: 1865,) Porta's music is said to be lost; Rudhart probably knew that a great many opera scores by Porta had gone missing, but he was evidently unaware that a copy of Iphigenia was to be Porta's second-to-last work, and one nearly lost to time.

The style of Porta's Iphigenia is firmly located in the new musical language of the eighteenth century. Unlike Venetian operas from the previous century, there is always an absolute and unmistakable division between recitative and aria. Arias are invariably da capo - meaning, their form is ABA. The music dramatically expresses not only the words themselves, but also the stronger emotions behind them. The most dramatic music in Porta's Iphigenia happens in the third and final act.