"progresses, the reprise of the tune in the following scenes contributes to Rigoletto's confusion as he realizes from the sound of the Duke's lively voice coming from the tavern (offstage), that the body in the sack over which he had grimly triumphed, was not that of the Duke after all: Rigoletto had paid Sparafucile, an assassin, to kill the Duke, but Sparafucile had deceived Rigoletto by indiscriminately killing Gilda, Rigoletto's beloved daughter, instead. The aria is in the key of B major with a time signature of 3/8 and a tempo mark of ""allegretto"". The vocal range extends from F"
"sold-out La Fenice as the first part of a double bill with Giacomo Panizza's ballet ""Faust"". Gaetano Mares conducted, and the sets were designed and executed by Giuseppe Bertoja and Francesco Bagnara. The opening night was a complete triumph, especially the ""scena drammatica"" and the Duke's cynical aria, ""La donna è mobile"", which was sung in the streets the next morning (Verdi had maximised the aria's impact by only revealing it to the cast and orchestra a few hours before the premiere, and forbidding them to sing, whistle or even think of the melody outside of the theatre). Many years"
"Duke of Mantua's arias, particularly ""La donna è mobile"" and ""Questa o quella"", have long been showcases for the tenor voice and appear on numerous recital discs. Amongst Enrico Caruso's earliest recordings are both these arias, recorded with piano accompaniment in 1902 and again in 1908 with orchestra. Luciano Pavarotti, who has recorded the arias for several recital discs, also sings the role of the Duke on three complete studio recordings of the opera: Decca (1972) conducted by Richard Bonynge; Decca (1989) conducted by Riccardo Chailly and Deutsche Grammophon (1993) conducted by James Levine. ""Rigoletto"" has been a popular subject"
"so well deceiv’d at any [other Opera]."" Probably the most famous song from the opera is Ernesto's aria, ""Per la gloria d’adorarvi,"" which remains to this day a popular selection for concert and recital performance. Other notable pieces include ""Dolce sogno, deh le porta"" and ""Volgendo, a me lo sguardo"" for Gualtiero. These three arias were very popular and were reprinted, for example in Richard Neale’s ""A Pocket Companion for Gentlemen and Ladies"" (London, 1724) and in ""The British Musical Miscellany"" (London, 1735). Place: Near Palermo in Sicily. King Gualtiero has married Griselda, a peasant woman and his longtime mistress,"
"on the Operabase list of the most-performed operas worldwide in the five seasons between 2008 and 2013. There are a large number of recordings. It contains the popular tenor aria ""Una furtiva lagrima"", a ""romanza"" that has a considerable performance history in the concert hall. Donizetti insisted on a number of changes from the original Scribe libretto. The best known of these was the insertion of ""Una furtiva lagrima"" and the duet between Adina and Nemorino in the first act, ""Chiedi all'aura lusinghiera"". The melody to the duet ""Io son ricco e tu sei bella"" in act 2, scene 1"
"when the role was taken over by Adriana Ferrarese in the 1789 revival. The replacement arias, ""Un moto di gioia"" (replacing ""Venite, inginocchiatevi"" in act 2) and ""Al desio di chi t'adora"" (replacing ""Deh vieni, non tardar"" in act 4), in which the two clarinets are replaced with basset horns, are normally not used in modern performances. A notable exception was a series of performances at the Metropolitan Opera in 1998 with Cecilia Bartoli as Susanna. Lorenzo Da Ponte wrote a preface to the first published version of the libretto, in which he boldly claimed that he and Mozart had"
"attributed to Andrea Cicognini. The most immediate forerunner (premiering in 1787, a few months before Mozart's ""Don Giovanni"") was the opera ""Don Giovanni, o sia Il convitato di pietra"" composed by Giuseppe Gazzaniga to a libretto by Giovanni Bertati. In Gazzaniga's opera, the aria in which Don Giovanni's servant, Pasquariello, describes his master's catalogue of lovers to Donna Elvira begins: Kierkegaard discusses the aria in the section ""The Immediate Stages of the Erotic, or Musical Erotic"" of his ""Either/Or."" He conjectures that the number 1003, the number of Spanish women seduced by Don Giovanni, might be a last remnant of"
"highlighting of changing moods and relationships is exemplified in Act III of ""Rigoletto"", where Duke's flippant song ""La donna è mobile"" is followed immediately by the quartet ""Bella figlia dell'amore"", contrasting the rapacious Duke and his inamorata with the (concealed) indignant Rigoletto and his grieving daughter. Taruskin asserts this is ""the most famous ensemble Verdi ever composed."" Chusid notes Strepponi's description of the operas of the 1860s and 1870s as being ""modern"" whereas Verdi described the pre-1849 works as ""the cavatina operas"", as further indication that ""Verdi became increasingly dissatisfied with the older, familiar conventions of his predecessors that he"
"Aurora (opera) Aurora is an opera in three acts by the Argentine composer Héctor Panizza (also known as Ettore Panizza) set to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Hector Quesada. Composed in 1907, ""Aurora"" became the second national opera of Argentina, after Felipe Boero's more popular ""El Matrero"". Although its plot is set in Argentina, ""Aurora"" is Italian in style. Panizza's score shows a strong influence of Giordano and Mascagni. ""Aurora"" was the first Argentine opera to be commissioned for the inaugural season of the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, where it premiered on 5 September 1908. The main"
"Marching In"" and the tune of Handel's ""Hallelujah"" chorus. Many football crowd chants/songs are to the tune of ""La donna è mobile"" from Giuseppe Verdi's opera ""Rigoletto"", for example the chant by Derby County fans in honour of Fabrizio Ravanelli of ""We've got Fabrizio, you've got fuck allio"". Italian tifosi employ various operatic arie, especially those by Giuseppe Verdi, for chants. Italian Torino fans sing their signature chant ""Toro alè"" to the tune of French anthem ""La Marsellaise"". Some chants are based on spirituals. ""We shall not be moved"" and ""He's Got the Whole World in His Hands"" are both"
"of ""Lucrezia Borgia""; the aria of the seventh scene, to the """"Madamina"""" of ""Don Giovanni""; the chorus of scene eight to the """"Guerra, Guerra"""" of ""Norma""; the duet of scene nine to the """"O sole piu ratto"""" of ""Lucia di Lammermoor""; the """"Cavatina"""" of scene ten to the """"Meco all'altar"""" of ""Norma""; the chorus of the same scene to the """"Bando, Bando"""" of ""Lucrezia Borgia"", and the trio which follows, to the """"Guai se tu sfoggi"""" of the same opera; the piece concludes with the aria to """"Vieni!"""", from Donizetti's ""La favorite"". It was first performed in a benefit concert"
"included Giacinto Andrea Cicognini, Antonio Cesti, Antonio Abati, and Lorenzo Lippi. In 1653, on the recommendation of Rosa's patron Cardinal Giancarlo de' Medici, Apolloni was appointed court poet to Ferdinand Charles, Archduke of Austria at Innsbruck. There he produced the libretti for three works by Antonio Cesti: the operas ""L'Argia"" (1655) and ""La Dori"" (1657) and the courtly entertainment ""Mars und Adonis"" (1655). Both ""L'Argia"" and ""Mars und Adonis"" were performed during the week-long celebrations in November 1655 welcoming Queen Christina of Sweden on her journey to Rome. For Cesti's opera ""Orontea"", performed in Innsbruck in 1656, Apolloni revised the"
"of Europe. Handel found a new prima donna, Anna Strada, for his 1729 season. One of Handel's librettists, Paolo Rolli, wrote in a letter (the original is in Italian) that Handel said that Strada ""sings better than the two who have left us, because one of them (Faustina) never pleased him at all and he would like to forget the other (Cuzzoni). The aria for Alessandro in the opera, No.3 in the score, """" Non lo dirò col labbro"""", with an English text as ""Silent Worship"", is featured in the 1996 film adaptation of Jane Austen's novel ""Emma"". Although Somervell's"
"Alonso e Cora Alonso e Cora (""Alonso and Cora"") is an ""opera seria"" in three acts by Francesco Bianchi. The libretto was by Giuseppe Foppa, after Ferdinando Moretti's ""Idalide, o sia La vergine del sole"", as used by Giuseppe Sarti in Milan in 1783. The original source of this text was in turn Jean François Marmontel's ""Les Incas, ou La destruction de l'empire du Pérou"" (1777). The opera was notable for its spectacular effects which included sea scenes and a volcanic eruption, and its opulent music which involved concertato choruses, ensembles (including one quintet), and a ballet contributing to the"
"La traviata La traviata (, ""The Fallen Woman"") is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ""La Dame aux Camélias"" (1852), a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas ""fils"". The opera was originally titled ""Violetta"", after the main character. It was first performed on 6 March 1853 at the La Fenice opera house in Venice. Piave and Verdi wanted to follow Dumas in giving the opera a contemporary setting, but the authorities at La Fenice insisted that it be set in the past, ""c."
"is introduced in the second part of Rinuccio's aria ""Avete torto"". The theme is briefly played on clarinet and violin as Lauretta enters with Schicchi, before its full expression in ""O mio babbino caro"". Budden dismisses the view that Lauretta's aria, at the midpoint of the opera, was a concession to popular taste; rather, ""its position at the turning point of the action is precisely calculated to provide a welcome moment of lyrical repose"". Andrew Davis, in his book on Puccini's late style, notes that Lauretta's aria, and the two interruptions by the young lovers (""Addio, speranza bella"") as Schicchi"
"her music changes as she develops through the drama, from the hectic, almost hysterical coloratura of the first act, to the more dramatic passages of the second, and the spiritual quality of her music as she departs life in Act Three. Notes Cited sources Other sources La traviata La traviata (, ""The Fallen Woman"") is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ""La Dame aux Camélias"" (1852), a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas ""fils"". The opera was originally titled ""Violetta"", after the main"
"Maria Giovanna Gasparini as Cleopatra VII and castrato Paolo Bedeschi as Julius Caesar. Cesare e Cleopatra Cesare e Cleopatra is a dramma per musica in three acts by composer Carl Heinrich Graun. The opera uses an Italian-language libretto by Giovan Gualberto Bottarelli. It was commissioned by Frederick II of Prussia for the opening of the newly built ""Königliches Opernhaus"" (Royal Opera House) in Berlin, and was notably the inaugural performance of the newly formed Berlin State Opera. Although construction of the opera house was not entirely complete, the opera premiered in the new theatre using a German language translation on"
"beautiful and worthy for the cordial hospitality which France offers him in all her theatres, subsidized or not."" Despite its bumpy start, the opera soon became hugely popular at the Opéra-Comique. During its first 80 years, it reached its 500th performance at the theatre in 1871 and its 1,000th in 1908. The opera was first performed in Italy at La Scala, Milan, on 3 October 1840, in Italian with recitatives by Donizetti replacing the spoken dialogue. It was thought ""worthless"" and received only six performances. It was not until 1928 when Toti Dal Monte sang Marie that the opera began"
"the Casa Ricordi archives in Milan. This may be the score which Donizetti presented to Rubini, who presumably passed it through the hands of Giovanni Ricordi to Merelli. The sparkling overture includes a theme which is quite similar to that of Don Profondo's aria Medaglie Incomparabili from ""Il viaggio a Reims"" by Rossini. The opera premiered on 10 September 1839 at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, where it received twelve performances. There were seventeen further performances in 1845 at the Teatro Regio (Turin) and ten in 1846 at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples, but it was not staged"
"Zanni, Moschino"" etc.) are introduced into this 'serious' context. The use of the term ""comedia musicale"" in the printed score might go back to Dante's ""Divine Comedy"" (completed 1320), merely addressing a happy ending story. The opera was first performed at the Palazzo Barberini, Rome on 12 February 1637. The surviving score is a revised version dating from 1639. The impoverished Egisto is in love with the young widow Alvida. She rejects his advances unless he destroys the things dearest to him: a tower he has inherited and his favourite falcon. He does so and Alvida is so impressed by"
"Norma (opera) Norma () is a ""tragedia lirica"" or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after the play ""Norma, ou L'infanticide"" (""Norma, or The Infanticide"") by Alexandre Soumet. It was first produced at La Scala in Milan on 26 December 1831. The opera is regarded as a leading example of the ""bel canto"" genre, and the soprano prayer ""Casta diva"" in Act I is a famous piece. Notable exponents of the title role in the post-war period have been Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland, Montserrat Caballé and, in the 2007 Biondi-Minasi critical edition based on"
"Nina (opera) Nina, o sia La pazza per amore (""Nina, or the Girl Driven Mad by Love"") is an opera, described as a ""commedia in prosa ed in verso per musica"", in two acts by Giovanni Paisiello to an Italian libretto by Giambattista (also ""Giovanni Battista"") Lorenzi after Giuseppe Carpani's translation of Benoît-Joseph Marsollier's ""Nina, ou La folle par amour"", set by Nicolas Dalayrac in 1786. The work is a sentimental comedy with set numbers, recitative and spoken dialog. It is set in Italy in the 18th century. ""Nina"" was first performed in a one act version at the Teatro"
"reported, ""Herr Mozart conducted in person and was welcomed joyously and jubilantly by the numerous gathering."" Mozart also supervised the Vienna premiere of the work, which took place on 7 May 1788. For this production, he wrote two new arias with corresponding recitatives – Don Ottavio's aria """" (K. 540a, composed on 24 April for the tenor Francesco Morella), Elvira's aria """" (K. 540c, composed on 30 April for the soprano Caterina Cavalieri) – and the duet between Leporello and Zerlina """" (K. 540b, composed on 28 April). He also made some cuts in the Finale in order to make"
"La Dori La Dori, overo Lo schiavo reggio (Doris, or The Royal Slave) is a tragi-comic opera in a prologue and three acts composed by Antonio Cesti to a libretto by Giovanni Filippo Apolloni. It was first performed in the court theatre at Innsbruck in 1657. The story is set in Babylon on the shores of the Euphrates and is a convoluted tale of mistaken identities—a female protagonist who disguised as a man eventually regains her lost lover, and a man disguised as a woman who causes another man to fall in love with him. In several respects it resembles"
"Giulietta e Romeo (Zingarelli) Giulietta e Romeo is a dramma per musica by composer Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli with an Italian libretto by Giuseppe Maria Foppa after the 1530 novella of the same name by Luigi da Porto. The opera premiered at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan on 30 January 1796. ""Giulietta e Romeo"" was composed by Zingarelli in only eight days and it is considered by many scholars to be his best work. The opera remained a part of the Italian repertory well into the nineteenth century and the role of Romeo was a favourite vehicle for Maria Malibran"
"melody of the Duke's song ""La donna è mobile"" (""Woman is fickle"") would become a popular hit, Verdi excluded it from orchestral rehearsals for the opera, and rehearsed the tenor separately. For several months Verdi was preoccupied with family matters. These stemmed from the way in which the citizens of Busseto were treating Giuseppina Strepponi, with whom he was living openly in an unmarried relationship. She was shunned in the town and at church, and while Verdi appeared indifferent, she was certainly not. Furthermore, Verdi was concerned about the administration of his newly acquired property at Sant'Agata. A growing estrangement"
"Artemisia (opera) Artemisia is an opera (""dramma per musica"") in three acts and a prologue by the Italian composer Francesco Cavalli from a libretto written by Nicolò Minato. It was first performed at the Teatro San Giovanni e San Paolo, Venice on 10 January 1657 and revived in Naples in 1658, Palermo in 1659, Milan in 1663 and Genoa in 1665. The performances included a number of substitution arias, and in the 1656 libretto, next to Erillo's aria ""Chiedete e sperate"", was noted the instruction ""a different aria to be sung every night"". ""Artemisia"" was performed by Helios Early Opera"
"The alterations are not attributable. This opera (and all the rest of Mysliveček's operas) belong to the serious type in Italian language referred to as ""opera seria"". In Mysliveček's day, the opening aria, ""Questa è la bella face,"" the duet that concludes the first act, and the quartet that concludes the second act were famed for their brilliance. ""Romolo ed Ersilia"" was first performed at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples on 13 August 1773 to commemorate the birthday of Maria Carolina, queen of Naples. The music for the production had to be composed hurriedly, since the composer was detained"
"Teresa Ruggeri Teresa Ruggeri (sometimes spelled Ruggieri) was an Italian operatic soprano who had an active career from the 1820s through the 1840s. In 1827 she portrayed the role of Zarele in the world premiere of Giovanni Pacini's ""Gli arabi nelle Gallie"" at La Scala in Milan. She performed in several more world premieres at that house, including Francisca in Gaetano Donizetti's ""Maria Padilla"" (1841), Anna in Giuseppe Verdi's ""Nabucco"" (1842), and Viclinda in Verdi's ""I Lombardi alla prima crociata"" (1843). Other roles she performed at La Scala included Baroness Aspasia in Gioachino Rossini's ""La pietra del paragone"" (1829), Giannetta"
"composed by Gaetano Donizetti, Giovanni Pacini, Saverio Mercadante, Nicola Vaccai, and Pietro Antonio Coppola which took place at La Scala on 17 March 1837. Marietta Brambilla Marietta Brambilla (6 June 1807 – 6 November 1875) was an Italian contralto who sang leading roles in the opera houses of Europe from 1827 until her retirement from the stage in 1848. She is best known today for having created the roles of Maffio Orsini in Donizetti's ""Lucrezia Borgia"" and Pierotto in his ""Linda di Chamounix"", but she also created several other roles in lesser-known works. She was the elder sister of the"
"under the baton of Ettore Panizza. The opera received a total of seven performances at the Met that season, four times in a double bill with Strauss' ""Elektra"" (including the opening night), twice paired with Strauss' ""Salome"", and once with Rimsky-Korsakov's ""Le coq d'or"". The world premiere of the original Amelia al ballo took place, fittingly, in Italy: on 4 April 1938 in the opera house of the Sanremo Municipal Casino. ""Amelia""'s success led to a commission from NBC for an opera specifically composed for radio: ""The Old Maid and the Thief"" of 1939. During the 1950s ""Amelia al ballo"""
"– opera composed for her voice and interpreted in prima assoluta at Teatro dell’Opera of Rome on 27 November 1894; Giuseppe Verdi ""Aida"" (Aida); Giuseppe Verdi ""Un ballo in maschera"" (Amelia); Giuseppe Verdi ""Otello"" (Desdemona); Giuseppe Verdi ""Rigoletto"" (Gilda); Giuseppe Verdi ""Simon Boccanegra"" (Amelia-Maria) – première for Teatro dell’Opera of Rome on 17 May 1892; Giuseppe Verdi ""La Traviata"" (Violetta Valery); Giuseppe Verdi ""Il Trovatore"" (Leonora); Richard Wagner ""Die Meistersinger"" (Eva); Richard Wagner ""Lohengrin"" (Elsa); Richard Wagner ""Tannhäuser"" (Elisabeth) – première for Italy at Teatro alla Scala of Milan on 29 December 1891 and for Teatro Colón of Buenos Aires"