Program notes
La forza del destino, Overture
The score of La forza del destino (1862) is decidedly grand-scale, befitting a plot that unfolds across a vast panorama in mid-18th century Spain and Italy. This work’s majesty is evident in the overture, long a favorite in concert programs. Along with unique vigor and power, it emphasizes two themes associated with the heroine, Leonora: her soaring plea to the Almighty for pity; and a more buoyant melody, sung after Padre Guardiano, father superior of the Hornachuelos monastery, informs the desperate Leonora that he can provide her with a refuge from the world.
Ernani, “Mercè, diletti amici…Come rugiada al cespite…O tu che l’alma”;“Surta è la notte…Ernani, involami…Tutto sprezzo che d’Ernani”
Based on a drama by Victor Hugo, Ernani (1844) offers larger-than-life personalities, brought to life in glorious music. The opera is firmly rooted in the bel canto tradition, while at the same time boasting a rhythmic energy that was Verdi’s alone
The title character is a nobleman, deprived of his lands and now forced to live as a bandit. He begins the opera with an elegant cavatina, in which he thinks ardently of his beloved Elvira. In an exhilarating cabaletta, he asks his cohorts to assist him in abducting her.
Verdi gave his soprano an exceptionally rewarding entrance scene. Elvira first sings an elaborate cavatina, in which she hopes that Ernani will free her from the embraces of Silva, her uncle,who’s soon to marry her. When Silva’s wedding presents are offered to her, she ignores them and, in sparkling song, declares that she loves only Ernani.
Simon Boccanegra, “O inferno…Sento avvampar nell’anima”
When Simon Boccanegra premiered in Venice in 1857, it was essentially still a work in progress. Verdi gave himself nearly a quarter-century to consider what could be done to improve the opera. His work with a new collaborator, librettist Arrigo Boito (a notable composer himself), transformed Boccanegra, which triumphed in its revised version at Milan’s La Scala in 1881.
Simon Boccanegra, the Doge of Genoa, has an enemy in the hotheaded aristocrat Gabriele Adorno. Gabriele, in love with Amelia Grimaldi, is unaware that she’s Boccanegra’s long-lost daughter. When Paolo Albiani, the Doge’s favored courtier, hints to Gabriele that Amelia is Boccanegra’s mistress, Verdi gives Gabriele a superb monologue that initially blazes with fury. In its second half, he sadly laments that if Amelia’s virtue has been defiled, he can never see her again.
Otello, “Già nella notte densa”
Verdi’s lifelong devotion to Shakespeare led him to the Bard’s Othello, which he adapted for a work that received an ecstatic response in its 1887 Milan premiere. One of opera’s greatest adaptations from spoken theater, Otello is a miracle of musical and dramatic economy, while combining intimacy and grandeur in equal proportions.
Otello, governor of Cyprus, has promoted the officer Cassio over the ensign Iago. In a drunken brawl instigated by the jealous Iago, Cassio wounds Montano, the former governor. After Otello restores calm, demotes Cassio, and sends the Cypriot townspeople on their way, he enjoys a moment alone with his wife, Desdemona. They tenderly recall their courtship and kiss under the stars.
Aida, “Pur ti riveggo … Là tra foreste vergini”
For all its immense musical and theatrical scale, Aida (1871) is at the same time a work of surprising intimacy, with frequently only two or three people onstage. They communicate with an intensity that can rivet the listener in this romantic tragedy set in ancient Egypt.
Princess Amneris is soon to marry Radamès, captain of the guard, but he loves Amneris’s slave, Aida. On the banks of the Nile, when Aida meets secretly with Radamès, she’s furious with him until he persuades her that he loves her alone. She then suggests that they could escape Egypt and enjoy a blissful new life “in the virgin forests, fragrant with sweet flowers.”
La traviata, Act 1 prelude
Initially a failure, La traviata (1853) soon took off in popularity, and will no doubt keep its place in the standard repertoire forever as the epitome of romantic opera. Verdi sets the stage memorably in the opening prelude, highlighted by the deeply soulful melody sung by the heroine, Violetta, in Act 2, when she begs her lover, “Love me, Alfredo—love me as much as I love you!”
La forza del destino, “La vita è inferno al infelice…O tu che in seno agli angeli”
In a tragic accident, Alvaro fatally shoots Leonora’s father. They flee Seville together, but are eventually separated. Alvaro becomes an officer in the army, but in his fervent, deeply moving monologue, he sadly laments his situation, and—assuming Leonora to be dead—begs her to look down from heaven and pity him.
Don Carlos, “Toi qui sus les néant”
Like many other Verdi operas, Don Carlos (1867) memorably illuminates the private emotions of very public personalities. Loosely based on Schiller’s play of the same name, the opera presents Spain’s King Philip II, his young wife Élisabeth (whom he has married for political reasons), and his son Carlos (who secretly loves Élisabeth), each a desperately conflicted figure. Every episode probes deeply into these characters’ psychology, with Verdi working at a peak of musical and dramaturgical maturity.
The opera’s unforgettably moving final aria is sung by Élisabeth, who has come to the cloister of St. Just for a last meeting with Carlos. She knows that he must leave Spain and serve the oppressed people of Flanders, and that when he departs, she will have nothing left to live for. Élisabeth calls on the spirit of Philip’s father, King Carlos V, asking him to carry her tears to God.
Un ballo in maschera, Act 1 prelude; “Teco io sto”
Captivatingly tuneful, Un ballo in maschera (1859) is also an intriguing mix of romance and political plotting. Its greatest strength is the protagonist, King Gustav III of Sweden, the most thoroughly appealing of all Verdi’s tenor heroes. The work’s brief prelude presents the lyrical theme of Gustav’s lovesick opening aria (along with the motive of the conspirators who plot to assassinate him).
The love duet in which Gustav joins the heroine, Amelia, provides ten minutes of passionately expressive music giving both singers ample opportunity for vocal glory.
Gustav secretly loves Amelia, wife of his secretary, Renato. Amelia visits the fortune teller, Ulrica, desperate to find some way to forget her forbidden feelings for Gustav. (She doesn’t realize that he’s eavesdropping on their conversation!). Ulrica advises her to find a particular magic herb. When searching for it at night in a desolate spot outside the city, Amelia is stunned when Gustav appears. He gradually breaks down her defenses and she finally confesses her love.
Photos: Kyle Flubacker