Essentials of Music

COMPOSERS

GIUSEPPE VERDI

Born: October 9/10, 1813. Roncole, Italy
Died: June 27, 1901. Milan, Italy

In his own words...

"For dramatic effectiveness, it seems to me that the best material I have yet put to music is Rigoletto. It has the most powerful situations, it has variety, vitality, pathos; all the dramatic developments result from the frivolous, licentious character of the Duke. Hence Rigoletto's fears, Gilda's passions, etc., which give rise to many dramatic situations, including the scene of the quartet, which so far as effect is concerned, will always be one of the finest our theater can boost."

Italian operatic composer. He was the leading figure of Italian music in the nineteenth century and made important contributions to the development of opera.

In the third part of Nabucco, Verdi's first operatic success, the chorus of Hebrew slaves sings of their homeland: "Go, my thoughts on golden wings..." For an Italian in 1842, the predicament of the Israelites in Egypt was a clear reference to Italian suffering under Austrian domination, and this chorus became a rallying cry for the Risorgiamento -- the struggle for a unified and independent Italy. Its composer, Giuseppe Verdi, became a national hero (and eventually an honorary senator). Even today, the first notes of this moving chorus can bring a crowd to its feet singing, and Verdi is claimed as "Italy's Composer."

Verdi was born in the small village of Roncole in the province of Parma. His family -- moderately well-off landholders, despite Verdi's continued references to childhood poverty -- recognized and encouraged his talents early on, and he received a good basic education in the nearby town of Busseto. He studied in Milan, and returned to Busseto to take the position of musical director for the town. Although his success at operatic composition soon took him all over Europe, he loved nothing better than to return to his small farm outside of the town.

Verdi is best known for the operas from his middle years, Rigoletto, Il trovatore and La traviata, and his three final works, Aida, Otello and Falstaff. In these works, as in all his operas, Verdi attempted to balance the art of bel canto, which he had inherited from Gaetano Donizetti and Vincenzo Bellini, with the demands of the drama. Because of this, his works present characters that are vocally exciting and at the same time emotionally engaging. Verdi's orchestra and chorus also played a vital role. No composer has so dominated the Italian stage as Verdi did, and his works are still a mainstay of the operatic repertoire throughout the world.

Musical Examples:

"Dies irae" from Requiem

"Rex traemendae majestatis" from Requiem

"Caro nome" from Rigoletto

Works:

28 operas, including Macbeth (1847), Rigoletto (1851), Il trovatore (The Troubadour, 1853), La traviata (The Lost One, 1853), Un ballo in maschera (A Masked Ball, 1859), La forza del destino (The Force of Destiny, 1862), Don Carlos (1867), Aida (1871), Otello (1887) and Falstaff (1893)
Vocal music, including a Requiem Mass (1874)

Romantic Era

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