Verdi and the Opera: Everything you need to know

7/21/2019 Verdi and the Opera: Everything you need to know

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Verdi andthe Opera

Giuseppe Verdi and the ItalianOpera



What is Opera?

• Shortened word for opera in musica

• An opera is generally referred to as “a stage presentation orwork that combines music, costumes, and scenery to relaya story.

• ost operas are sung, with no spoken lines.



Diferent singing styles orOpera:

• Comic Opera

• also known as light opera, this type of opera often tackleslight, not so delicate sub!ect matter where the ending oftenhas a happy resolution. Other forms of this opera are opera

buffa and operetta, to name a few.

• "ialogue is often spoken and not sung in a comic opera.An e#ample of this opera is La serva padrona $%he aidas istress& by Gio'anni (attista )ergolesi.




• Serious Opera

• opera seria in Italian

• Also referred to as *eopolitan opera mainly due to the

'olume of composers who were from *aples whocontributed to this type of opera.

• Stories re'ol'es around heroes and myths, emphasis is alsogi'en to the solo 'oice and bel canto style. Bel canto isItalian for “beautiful singing+

• #ample is -inaldo by George rideric /andel




• Opera Semiseria

• %his type of opera has a serious story but has a happyending. %his is why some loosely define it as acombination of the elements of both comic and serious

opera.

• #ample is 0a ga11a ladra $%he %hie'ing agpie& byGioachino -ossini




• Grand Opera

• -efers to the type of Opera which emerged in )aris duringthe 23th century. It4s an opera of a larger scale, from theflamboyant costumes to the choruses5 it also include ballet.

An e#ample of this type is Robert le Diable by Giacomoeyerbeer.

• irst known grand opera was 0a fa'ola d4Orfeo $%he ableof Orpheus that was premiered on 2678.




• Opera Verisimo

• 9realism4 in Italian

• merged during the late 23th :entury

• :haracter are based on e'eryday people you may meet inreal life and the plot is often melodramatic.

• #ample is Pagliacci by -uggero 0eonca'allo.



Other acts or Italian Opera

• ost operas are written in rench, German and Italian.

• uridice by ;acopo )eri is known as the earliest operathat4s been preser'ed.

• -ossini, (ellini and "oni1etti were the leading composerof the bel canto opera style during the first half of thenineteenth century.



Famous Composers o theItalian Opera

• Gioachino Antonio Rossini $283< = 2>6>&

• <3 ebruary 283<

• %he Italian o1art

• ?rote @3 operas as well as sacred music, chambermusic, songs and some instrumental and piano pieces

• /e had been the most popular opera composer inhistory.

• (estknown opera include the Italian comedies II barbiere di Si'iglia and 0a :enerentola, the renchlanguage epics oise et )haraon and Guillaume %ell.




• Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo FrancescoBellini(181 ! 18"#$

• known for his long = flowing melodic lines

•

*amed as 9the Swan of :atania4• II pirata recei'ed much early recognition than that to

"oni1etti4s thirty opera.

• I Capuleti edi Montecchi, La Connambula and his

last masterpiece, I puritani gained (ellini hissignificant career.




• %omenico Gaetano &aria %onizetti(1'' ! 18)8$

• *o'ember <3, 2838

• 0eading composer of the bel canto opera style

• (orn in (ergamo in 0ombardy

• ?rote 87 operas

• *otable successB Coraida di Granata and Anna (olena

•

:omedies such as 04elisir d4amore and "on )asDuale• "ied April 2>E>



Giuseppe Verdi (!" # $%&

• October 27th 2>2@

• Italian -omantic composer and the greatestcomposer of Italian opera

•Italy4s shining star

• :arlo Giuseppe Verdi and 0uigia Fttini

• After he died, he was mourned as a national

hero• Verdi dominated the Italian opera scene after

the eras of (ellini, "oni1etti and -ossini.



'ourney • %he contract was the start to his illustrious

career in opera.

• /is second opera, Fn giorno di regno, wasconsidered as a comedy. )remiered on Sept. ,

2>E7.• *abucco, on arch 2>E<, made Verdi famous.

• -emarried to Giuseppina Strepponi



Well)no*n Verdi Opera(!+, # !,%&

• acbeth $2>E8& = a re'ised 'ersion ofShakespeare4s acbeth

• -igoletto $2>2& = first performed at 0a

enice %heatre in Venice• 0a %ra'iata $2>@& = %he ?oman who Strayed

• Aida %he irst $2>82& = :hristmas 'e, 2>82at the Hhedi'al Opera /ouse in :airo, gypt.

• /is work Aida, is considered as a grand opera because it was sung.



Well)no*n Verdi Opera(!+, # !,%&

• -eDuiem $2>8E& first performed in thechurch of San arco in ilan on << ay2>8E

•

Otello $2>>8& = inspiration was Shakespeare• alstoff $2>3@& = final work5 hailed as a work

of genius

• Verdi worked on re'ising a couple of hisearlier scores , which became new 'ersions of0a fro1a del destino, "on :arlos and Simon(occanegra.



Contri-utions

• (y 2><3=@7, Verdi had established himself as a leader ofthe )hilharmonic

• Verdi began in 2>3 to take an acti'e interest in Italian

politics• 2>3E = published a song for earthDuake 'ictims in Sicily

• 2>3 = planning, building and endowing a resthome forretired musicians in ilan, and also built a hospital

• his librettos, penetrate the soul and profoundly affect thehuman psyche. Operas were not written to be mar'eled fortheir technical prowess or how well they stuck to the rules$though it certainly helps if the opera possesses suchDualities&.



Contri-utions

• SPREZZATURA

• The Italians have a word for the sense ofdazzling beauty produced by eortless

mastery: "sprezzatura." Perhaps no culturalform associated with Italy is as steeped in thelove of sprezzatura as opera a genre theItalians invented. !nd no artist woring inopera has embodied the ideal of sprezzatura as

magni#cently as that gru self$described"farmer" from the Po %alley and composer of&' operas (iuseppe %erdi )*'*+,*-*/.



“In music, like in lo'e, we must besincere+ = Giuseppe Verdi

Verdi and the Opera: Everything you need to know

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