Page 177 - (DK) The Classical Music Book - Big Ideas Simply Explained

ROMANTIC 1810–1920 175

See also: The Magic Flute 134–137 ■ The Barber of Seville 148 ■ Der Freischütz 149 ■ Tosca 194–197 ■
The Wreckers 232–239 ■ Peter Grimes 288–293

daughter, unwittingly brings about censors, so the opera was set in the
her undoing; Il trovatore tells the 1700s for the premiere. La traviata
melodramatic tale of the beautiful was nonetheless unique as it boldly
Leonora who is caught between confronted society’s hypocritical
two men and a gypsy woman’s treatment of women.
vengeance; and in La traviata (“The Although some of La traviata’s To copy the truth can
fallen woman”), a courtesan named most famous numbers—especially be a good thing, but to
Violetta sacrifices her love and, the brindisi drinking song in Act invent the truth is better,
ultimately, herself, for the sake of One—feature crowd scenes, La much better.
the patriarchal society that seeks traviata is an opera remarkable for Giuseppe Verdi
to control her. These three operas its moments of intimacy. Verdi
confirmed Verdi’s break away from draws us into the world of his
what he described as his galley heroine, and this groundbreaking
years: time spent producing works focus on a female protagonist paved
to order for the “opera industry.” the way for others, such as the
gypsy heroine of Georges Bizet’s
Bending the rules Carmen (1875)—a character from written for the opening of the new
Verdi managed to manipulate and French opera, who is similarly opera house in Cairo in 1871, marked
subvert operatic conventions to drawn from the literary world (from a break for Verdi, who was unhappy
achieve a synthesis of tradition and a story by Prosper Mérimée) and with the importation of French and
innovation. With La traviata, he similarly exposed the hypocrisy German opera to Italy. Verdi began
took a subject drawn from a well- of 19th-century sexual mores. to focus on other aspects of his
known novel, La Dame aux camélias life and composed little after the
(The Lady of the Camellias) by Final masterpieces Missa da Requiem of 1874, written
Alexandre Dumas, and, in a step Verdi’s many subsequent works in memory of the nationalist poet,
unprecedented then, set the saw the composer tackle the Alessandro Manzoni, until his
drama at the time of composition. different conventions of grand final two pieces, which were both
Ultimately, the portrayal of a fallen opéra in such masterpieces as based on works by his beloved
woman in modern society was Don Carlos, composed for the Paris Shakespeare: Otello (1887) and
rejected as too risqué by the Italian opera in 1867. However, Aida, Falstaff (1893). ■

Giuseppe Verdi Verdi was born in Busseto, become the most successful
northern Italy, in 1813. His father, opera composer of his day, and
an innkeeper of modest social from the 1850s his music was
standing, encouraged his son’s embraced by the nationalist
early education, and a wealthy Risorgimento movement.
merchant in the town, Antonio In 1859, Verdi married the
Barezzi, paid for the young Verdi operatic soprano Giuseppina
to study in Milan. Strepponi, staying with her until
In 1836, Verdi married Barezzi’s her death in 1897. Verdi himself
daughter, but both she and their died four years later, in 1901.
two young children died four
years later. In spite of this tragedy, Other key works
Verdi’s career began to take off.
His breakthrough came with 1842 Nabucco
Nabucco in 1841. Over the 1867 Don Carlos
following decade, he produced 1874 Missa da Requiem
13 operas. The 1850s saw him 1887 Otello

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