Giuseppe Verdi

(1813-1901)

Operas and Messa da Requiem

Materials for hire

W hen in 1839 Oberto Conte di San Bonifacio, the debut opera by a twenty-six-
year-old from Busseto, held the stage of La Scala for fourteen performances, Giovanni
Ricordi wasted no time in acquiring the work. And when in February 1893 the almost
eighty-year-old Verdi presented his last masterpiece, Falstaff, at La Scala, Giulio
Ricordi (Giovanni’s grandson) was delighted to have been the architect of the artistic
partnership between the grand old man of Italian music and the brilliant librettist
Arrigo Boito, to have persuaded Verdi to resume work as an opera composer. In the
course of the over half-century of career between those two dates, Verdi maintained a
close working relationship with Casa Ricordi, his principal publisher. The publisher’s
commitment, constant during the composer’s career, is still continuing today with the
monumental copublication (with The University of Chicago Press) of the opera omnia
in critical edition.
Today the Ricordi catalogue makes available the performance materials of 27 operas
by Verdi, including a reworking (Le Trouvère), the reconstruction of the first version
of Macbeth, and the complete edition of Don Carlos / Don Carlo, which provides the
opportunity to perform all the different versions. The Messa da Requiem is also
available, in critical edition.
For generations Verdi’s operas have represented the basic repertoire of every opera
house. For the centenary of the composer’s death in 2001, theaters all over the world
are already preparing celebrations and opera seasons to honor one of the best loved
composers of all time. Casa Ricordi, “Verdi’s publisher” for almost 160 years, is
pleased to be the point of reference for any kind of Verdian project.

Index
Aida 16 Luisa Miller 8
Alzira 6 Macbeth 25, 27
Aroldo 17 I masnadieri 28
Attila 17 Messa da Requiem 14
Un ballo in maschera 18 Nabucodonosor 4
La battaglia di Legnano 19 Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio 28
Il corsaro 7 Otello 29
Don Carlos / Don Carlo 19 Rigoletto 10
I due Foscari 21 Simon Boccanegra 31
Ernani 5 Stiffelio 9
Falstaff 22 La traviata 12
La forza del destino 23 Le Trouvère 32
Un giorno di regno (Il finto Stanislao) 24 Il trovatore 11
Giovanna d’Arco 24 Les Vêpres Siciliennes 33
I Lombardi alla prima Crociata 25 I vespri siciliani 34

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 The Works of Giuseppe Verdi
in critical edition
a copublication of The University of Chicago Press and RICORDI

C ontemporary performing materials of Verdi’s works were often realized under

pressing deadlines in order to have a functional text rapidly ready for performance.
Thus they were conditioned by an empirical publishing technique which corresponded
to then-current expectations of theaters and groups which produced and circulated
Verdi’s works. Yet even the scores printed in the early 20th century often reproduced
an accumulation of arbitrary additions and revisions.
Considering these editions to be absolutely insufficient to meet present-day demands
for accuracy in matters of musical philology and performing practice, Casa Ricordi, in
joint publication with The University of Chicago Press, has undertaken to publish the
works in critical edition, making use of all the available sources, from autographs to
sketches, from early manuscript copies to the various editions produced during
Verdi’s lifetime, and contemporary orchestral parts.
The edition not only aims to reconstitute a text which is as faithful as possible to the
definitive state of the work, but also makes it possible – with the aid of a substantial
critical apparatus – to reconstruct the genesis of the text moment by moment and to
clarify the gaps, the ambiguities and the contradictions of the autograph, providing
interpreters and scholars with the means to follow the processes by which Verdi’s
compositional ideas and dramatic vision took shape. In this way it is possible to
reconstruct the original structure of a composition, follow the modifications made by
Verdi himself at a later date and expunge spurious elements which derive from errors
or which have been arbitrarily introduced into the text. The editions also include, as an
appendix, any unpublished pieces written at an earlier stage by the composer and then
replaced or modified in the definitive version, as well as pieces added later on. The
new critical edition thus also offers new instruments for re-interpreting Verdi’s operas
in the light of the advances of the most recent musical research.

Titles available: Nabucco, Ernani, Alzira, Il corsaro, Luisa Miller, Stiffelio,

Rigoletto, La traviata, Il trovatore, Messa da Requiem.
In preparation: I masnadieri

Editorial Board
Philip Gossett (general editor) - Julian Budden
Martin Chusid - Francesco Degrada
Gabriele Dotto - Ursula Günther
Giorgio Pestelli - Pierluigi Petrobelli

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Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Nabucodonosor
Dramma lirico in four parts
Critical edition by Roger Parker
ABIGAILLE, s NABUCODONOSOR, br ZACCARIA ,
b Fenena, ms Ismaele, t Anna, s Abdallo, t
The High Priest of Baal, b
Chorus: women and men
Picc, 2 Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, CorA, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3
Trbn, Cimb / 2 Hrp / Timp, Dr, Trg, BD / Strings
Banda
Scenes: 7 changes and 5 settings
Jerusalem, 587 BC: inside the temple of Solomon
(I); Babylon: apartments in the royal palace, a
hall in the palace (II); the Hanging Gardens,
banks of the Euphrates (III); apartments in the
palace, the Hanging Gardens (IV)
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 9 March
1842
Librettist: Temistocle Solera
For Nabucodonosor, the title used by Verdi in the
autograph but abbreviated by him to Nabucco,
the editor has reconstructed the musical text on
the basis of painstaking study of the autograph, a
document full of changes going from the
correction of errors to the rethinking of whole
passages. The reconstruction of a large part of the
previous versions, two of which are reproduced
in the Appendix, makes a valuable contribution to
the study of Verdi’s creative processes.
But the critical edition tackles another aspect
which is fascinating for interpreters of this
repertoire: the practice of vocal ornamentation in
a period of transition between the glorious bel
canto tradition and the establishment of modern
musical theater. As the editor observes, at the
time of Nabucco the custom of ornamenting the
vocal parts was an almost exclusive prerogative
of women, such that Verdi very rarely wrote
florid parts for the male voices. The parts of
Abigaille and Fenena offer an interesting example
of how Verdi conceived ornamentation: in the
former case he bound the ornamental aspect
indissolubly to the imperiously dynamic character
of the part, leaving little room for the performer
to make any contribution; in the case of Fenena
he himself provided an ornamented version of her
“Preghiera”, reproduced in the Appendix of this
edition. Other valuable items, also in the
Appendix, are the autograph choral arrangements
of the two choruses “Va pensiero” and “Immenso
Jeovha”.
4
Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase.
Series I, vol. 3.
Synopsis
PART I. Nabucco, King of Assyria, has attacked the
Israelites who, gathered in the temple of Solomon, pray for
the salvation of Israel. The High Priest encourages them to
have faith in their God, and says that he has a valuable
hostage, Fenena, the daughter of Nabucco. Ismaele
arrives, the nephew of the King of Jerusalem, to whom
Zaccaria entrusts Fenena when he learns that Nabucco is
making a furious entry into the city. Ismaele and Fenena,
in love with each other, attempt to flee, but Abigaille – a
slave believed to be Nabucco’s first daughter – bursts into
the temple at the head of a Banda of Babylonian warriors
disguised as Israelites. Abigaille, who unrequitedly loves
Ismaele, accuses him of betraying his country but offers to
save him if he will return her love. Nabucco now enters
the temple but is confronted by Zaccaria, who threatens to
kill Fenena if he profanes the sanctuary. As the High
Priest is about to stab her, Ismaele disarms him: Fenena
throws herself into the arms of Nabucco, who orders the
destruction of the temple in revenge. PART II. Having
returned to Babylon, Abigaille learns from a document
taken from Nabucco that she is a slave, and for this reason
he has appointed Fenena regent in his absence. Furious
with Nabucco and Fenena, who has been converted to the
God of Israel, she attempts to wrest the crown from her
but the King arrives and, snatching the crown from
Abigaille and repudiating both the God of Babylon and the
God of the Israelites, proclaims himself God. He is
immediately struck down by a thunderbolt, and
dementedly invokes Fenena’s aid while Abigaille picks up
the crown. PART III. Abigaille, having seized the throne,
orders the death of all the Israelites. Nabucco enters in
ragged clothing, claiming back the throne which Abigaille
says she has occupied for the good of Baal, as he is
deranged. She forces him to sign the Israelites’ death-
warrant, but when Nabucco realizes that he has thus
condemned Fenena he wants to retract. Abigaille is
obdurate and has him led off to prison. On the banks of the
Euphrates the Israelites, in chains, lament their fate. PART
IV. From prison Nabucco sees Fenena being dragged to
her death and desperately begs forgiveness from the God
of the Israelites. Restored to sanity, he escapes with a
Banda of faithful soldiers and saves his daughter. The idol
of Baal falls and shatters, and Nabucco extols the glory of
Jehovah. Abigaille has taken poison but, on the point of
death, she begs Fenena’s forgiveness and blesses her love
for Ismaele, imploring God’s mercy. Nabucco is hailed by
Zaccaria as the king of kings.
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Ernani
Dramma lirico in four acts
Critical edition by Claudio Gallico
E LVIRA, s ERNANI, t DON CARLO, br
Giovanna, s Riccardo, t Don Ruy Gomez de
Silva * , b Jago, b
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, BCl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3
Trbn, Cimb / Hrp / Timp, Dr, BD / Strings
Banda
off stage: Hn, 6 Tpt, BD
Scenes: 5 changes and 5 settings
1519: mountains of Aragon, Elvira’s richly
appointed apartment in Silva’s castle (I);
a magnificent hall in Silva’s castle (II);
subterranean vaults containing the tomb of
Charlemagne at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle) (III);
a terrace in the palace of Don Giovanni of
Aragon in Saragossa (IV)
Premiere: Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 9 March 1844
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
The critical edition of Ernani, in addition to
offering the text of the score carefully revised in
accordance with Verdi’s autograph and numerous
secondary sources, makes use of the recent
discovery of some documents which are
fundamental to the reconstruction of this opera’s
rather eventful history. Among these is Verdi’s
autograph copy of the complete libretto of
Ernani, used during composition, which – as well
as being an important element in the
reconstruction of the genesis of the opera – has
made it possible to include, in the preface to the
critical edition, the most complete series of stage
directions from any source, and to clarify some
equivocal points in the score.
The Appendix contains, in addition to several
sketches and fragments, Silva’s cabaletta “Infin
che un brando vindice” which can be inserted
into the Act I finale, originally written by Verdi
for the bass Ignazio Marini for some
performances of Oberto and then inserted by him
into performances of Ernani at La Scala in
September 1844, and an aria with chorus for
Ernani which could replace the concluding part of
the Act II finale, composed by Verdi at Rossini’s
request for the revival of the opera in Parma in
December 1844.
Of great interest to modern performers is the
Historical Introduction to the score, which
* Silva is a comprimario bass part which becomes a principal part when
the cabaletta “Infin che un brando vindice” in the Act I finale is added;
the cabaletta is in the Appendix of the edition.
Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase.
Series I, vol. 5.
includes a section devoted to performance
practices based on the study of documents and
records in La Fenice’s archive, addressed to
anyone who is concerned with 19th-century
Italian theater.
Synopsis
ACT I. The bandit Ernani, whose disguise conceals Don
Giovanni of Aragon, has become an outlaw and is leading
a revolt against Don Carlo, King of Spain, to exact
revenge for the wrongs he has suffered. He comes to the
castle of the Silvas to see his beloved Elvira, the niece and
betrothed of Don Ruy Gomez de Silva, but is preceded by
King Carlo, who is also in love with Elvira and has arrived
at the castle in disguise. These three are surprised by Silva:
the sovereign’s identity is revealed and Silva pays homage
to him, while Carlo magnanimously allows Ernani to
escape. ACT II. Preparations are being made in the castle
for the wedding between Silva and Elvira when Ernani
arrives: the revolt against the King has failed, and he takes
refuge in the castle disguised as a pilgrim. Silva tells him
that he is about to marry Elvira, at which the dismayed
Ernani reveals his identity and offers his head to his rival
as a wedding present. Meanwhile Carlo, in pursuit of
Ernani, comes to the castle demanding the bandit, but
Silva, who has surprised Ernani with Elvira a short time
before, wishes to take his own revenge and therefore
refuses to hand over Ernani and helps him to hide. Carlo
leaves the castle, inviting Elvira to follow him. In
desperation, Ernani tells Silva of the King’s love for Elvira
and exhorts him to take revenge, thus taking revenge
himself as well. Ernani, giving Silva a hunting-horn,
makes a pact with him: when Silva wants Ernani to die, he
will sound the horn three times and Ernani will take his
own life. ACT III. The conspirators, including Silva and
led by Ernani, are gathered in the vaults at Aachen when
three cannon shots celebrate the election of Carlo as
Emperor. Carlo emerges from hiding and orders the death
of the rebels, but he yields to Elvira’s pleas, sparing all
their lives and consenting to the marriage of Ernani and
Elvira. Silva plans his revenge. ACT IV. In the palace of
Don Giovanni of Aragon in Saragossa, while wedding
celebrations are taking place, three blasts of the fatal horn
are heard and Ernani, after trying in vain to move the
inexorable Silva, honors the pact and kills himself. Elvira
falls fainting on his lifeless body.
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Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Alzira
Tragedia lirica in three acts
Critical edition by Stefano Castelvecchi
with the collaboration of Jonathan Cheskin
ALZIRA, s Z AMORO, t GUSMANO, br
Alvaro, b Zuma, ms Ovando, t Otumbo, t
Ataliba, b
Chorus: women and men
Picc, 2 Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Cimb / Timp, Dr, Trg, BD / Hrp / Strings
Banda
off stage: BD
Scenes: 6 changes and 6 settings
Peru, mid-16th century: a vast plain irrigated by
the river Rima (I); main square of Lima, Ataliba’s
apartments in the Governor’s palace (II); inside
the fortifications of Lima, a desolate cave, a great
hall in the Governor’s residence (III)
Premiere: Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 12 August
1845
Librettist: Salvadore Cammarano
Like all Verdi’s operas from the 1840s, Alzira
must be regarded as a work that is to some extent
“experimental”, an opera of violent musical
contrasts. Pieces closely tied to the meaning of
the words which foreshadow the great season of
Verdi’s maturity vie with closed numbers in
traditional forms, for the most part cabalettas,
charged with driving rhythmic energy. No
orchestral score of Alzira was ever published. The
rare editions which circulated in the period after
the Second World War were based on sources
that were distant from the autograph and were
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Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase.
Series I, vol. 8.
vitiated by musical and textual imprecisions and
errors, now rectified in the critical edition. This
new edition, based on Verdi’s autograph score in
the archives of Casa Ricordi and on important
secondary sources, makes a reliable score of this
opera available for the first time.
Synopsis
ACT I. A group of Incas led by the American warrior
Otumbo drag Alvaro, Governor of Peru, in chains,
condemned to death. The Peruvian tribal leader Zamoro,
who was believed to be dead, suddenly arrives and orders
the members of his tribe to release the prisoner. Having
imparted this lesson in civilized behavior, Zamoro gives
vent to his hatred of the tyrant Gusmano, Alvaro’s son –
who has both his beloved Alzira and her father in his
power – and sings a battle hymn. ACT II. Gusmano,
taking command of the Spanish troops, negotiates a false
peace with the Incas, asking Ataliba for the hand of
Alzira, formerly Zamoro’s lover, in exchange. As
Alzira’s heart is not yet free, Ataliba advises Gusmano
not to hurry the wedding, but the tyrant is not
accustomed to waiting and Alzira must decide to marry
him or there will be more bloodshed. Suddenly Alzira
finds Zamoro before her: they embrace, then Gusmano
bursts in and discovers them, ordering his rival’s arrest
and execution. The Incas march to demand the release of
Zamoro, and Gusmano, urged by Alvaro who has not
forgotten Zamoro’s generous deed, frees the prisoner.
ACT III. The Spanish are celebrating their victory over
the Incas, and Zamoro is imprisoned once again. In
exchange for his release, Alzira promises Gusmano that
she will marry him. Zamoro manages to escape due to
Otumbo’s help, but he is utterly desolate because he
cannot endure the idea of living apart from Alzira. He
thus decides to leave for Lima to exact his revenge. As
Alzira, in despair, is about to place her hand in
Gusmano’s, Zamoro comes forward and stabs his rival.
Dying, Gusmano gives the two lovers his blessing.
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Il corsaro
Melodramma tragico in three acts
Critical edition by G. Elisabeth Hudson
GULNARA, s CORRADO, t SEID, br Medora, s
A Eunuch, t A Slave, t Selimo, t Giovanni, b
(Anselmo, a Corsair, silent)
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Cimb / Timp, Trg, Cyms, BD, Cannon, Thunder
and Lightning / Hrp / Strings
Scenes: 7 changes and 6 settings
Beginning of the 19th century: the corsairs’
island in the Aegean, Medora’s rooms (I); a room
in Seid’s harem, a pavilion on the shores of the
harbor of Coron (II); Seid’s apartments, inside a
tower, a beach on the island (as in Act I) (III)
Premiere: Trieste, Teatro Grande, 25 October
1848
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
The full score of Il corsaro was never printed
either during Verdi’s lifetime or when the work
was revived after the Second World War. The
performing tradition of Il corsaro was thus based
on some manuscript copies prepared without the
composer’s direct control and without respecting
his intentions. The critical edition is above all an
instrument for performers who wish to work with
a reliable text that is faithful to the autograph.
Even a little-known opera such as Il corsaro has
Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase in
late 1998.
Series I, vol. 13.
undergone a subtle process of change and
adaptation to the tastes of the years when it has
been performed. The purpose of the critical
edition is not to stop this process, but to attest and
document its point of departure: in the notes and
in the instructions which Verdi set down on paper
when he composed the opera.
Synopsis
ACT I. Corrado, captain of the corsairs, is tired of his life
of exile and decides to attack the Turkish city of Coron.
His young beloved Medora is in despair over their
imminent separation, having a foreboding that grief will
break her heart. ACT II. Seid, Pasha of Coron, has learned
of the corsairs’ plan, but pays no heed and celebrates his
forthcoming victory in his palace. A eunuch enters to
oblige Gulnara, Seid’s favorite slave who secretly hates
him, to attend the Pasha’s banquet. Meanwhile Corrado,
disguised as a dervish, asks to be brought before the
Pasha: once admitted, he reveals his identity and calls his
men to battle. The conflict is resolved in the Turks’ favor,
and Corrado is condemned to death. ACT III. Gulnara, in
love with Corrado, tries to induce Seid to release him.
From Gulnara’s insistence the Pasha understands that she
loves the prisoner, and he erupts into invective against her.
Going to Corrado in prison, Gulnara offers to obtain his
freedom by killing the Pasha, but the corsair refuses out of
honor. So Gulnara kills Seid on her own initiative, then
invites Corrado to save her. They escape together but on
reaching the island they find Medora close to death. Out of
fear of never seeing her beloved again she has taken
poison. Gulnara reveals her own love to Corrado, but
when Medora dies the corsair, frantic in his despair,
throws himself into the sea from a cliff.
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Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi

Score and Critical Commentary available for sale.

Luisa Miller Series I, vol. 15.

Melodramma tragico in three acts
Critical edition by Jeffrey Kallberg
LUISA , s RODOLFO, t MILLER , br Federica, A
Count Walter, b Wurm, b Laura, ms A Peasant, t
Chorus: women and men
Picc, 2 Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Cimb / Hrp / Timp, BD, Bell, Clock (of the
castle) / Org / Strings
off stage: 4 Hn
Scenes: 7 changes and 5 settings.
The Tyrol, early 17th century: a pleasant village,
a hall in Count Walter’s castle, inside Miller’s
house (I); inside Miller’s house, Walter’s
apartments in the castle, the castle gardens (II);
Miller’s house (III).
Premiere: Naples, Teatro San Carlo, 8 December
1849
Librettist: Salvadore Cammarano
“A short drama with plenty of interest, plenty of
action, and a huge amount of passion [...]” was
what Verdi wanted from Salvadore Cammarano,
and after various works had been sifted the
choice fell on Schiller’s play Kabale und Liebe,
which became Luisa Miller. The opera enjoyed
great success, to such an extent that a
contemporary critic, Abramo Basevi, claimed that
this work inaugurated Verdi’s “second manner”.
The preparation of the libretto, documented by a
dense correspondence between Verdi and
Cammarano, is an extremely interesting chapter
in the study of Verdi’s dramaturgy and is
discussed in detail in the Historical Introduction
to the critical edition. The contents of the
autograph, in addition to being faithfully
reproduced in the edition, are reconstructed from
the smallest details to the recovery, where
possible, of original versions, which are given in
the Appendix: the original version of Luisa’s
cantabile “Tu puniscimi, o Signore” and the
alteration to the instrumental parts of the chorus
“Quale un sorriso d’amica sorte”.
the truth to her, without receiving the understanding he
hoped for. Meanwhile Miller reveals Carlo’s true identity
to his daughter, adding that he is betrothed to another
woman. Rodolfo enters and, hearing Miller’s words,
swears that he truly loves Luisa and declares her his wife.
Miller doubts whether Rodolfo will be able to prevail over
his father, but the young man tells him that he can have
power over him by threatening to reveal a secret, namely
that he acquired his title and inheritance by murdering his
cousin. The Count arrives, accuses Luisa and her father of
deception, and orders their arrest. Rodolfo instructs his
father to free Luisa. ACT II. Left alone after the arrest of
her father, Luisa receives a visit from Wurm who, telling
her that Miller’s execution is imminent, proposes a deal:
her father’s freedom in exchange for a letter in which she
declares she loves him and that she has deceived Rodolfo
in the hope of personal gain. Luisa, after an indignant
refusal, is forced to follow Wurm to the castle to repeat
her confession before the Count and Duchess Federica.
Having seen the letter Rodolfo decides to challenge Wurm
to a duel, but the steward fires his pistol in the air, causing
the Count to come rushing to the scene; he suggests to
Rodolfo that he take revenge for Luisa’s trickery by
marrying Federica. ACT III. Luisa is rejoined at home by
her father, who is free at last. She wants to kill herself, but
her father dissuades her. Sounds of the wedding
celebrations for Rodolfo and Federica can be heard.
Rodolfo arrives and secretly pours poison into a cup. He
asks Luisa if the letter to Wurm was written by her and,
after the girl’s admission, drinks the poisoned water from
the cup which he then offers to Luisa. When Rodolfo tells
her that they are both about to die, Luisa confesses the
truth and expires, attended by her beloved and her father.
Rodolfo sees Wurm appear on the threshold: he runs him
through with his sword, then falls lifeless.

Synopsis
ACT I. Luisa Miller loves, and is loved by, Carlo, a young
man whose disguise conceals Rodolfo, the son of Count
Walter. But the Count’s steward Wurm wants to marry
Luisa, and when the old soldier Miller, the girl’s father,
says that he will not go against his daughter’s wishes,
Wurm reveals Carlo’s true identity to him. Wurm also
reveals Rodolfo’s secret love to the Count, who intends his
son to marry his rich and noble cousin Federica. When
Federica arrives to be introduced to Rodolfo, he confesses

8
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Stiffelio
Dramma in three acts
Critical edition by Kathleen K. Hansell
L INA, s STIFFELIO, t STANKAR, br Raffaele, t
Jorg, b Dorotea, ms Federico di Frengel, t
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob (2nd also CorA), 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn,
2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Dr, BD / Org /
Strings
Scenes: 5 changes and 5 settings
Germany, the beginning of the 19th century: a
hall on the ground floor of Count Stankar’s
castle, a reception hall in the castle (I); an ancient
graveyard (II); an antechamber with doors
leading to various apartments, the interior of a
Gothic church (III)
Premiere: Trieste, Teatro Grande, 16 November
1850
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
For over a hundred years, from 1857 until 1968,
Stiffelio disappeared from the operatic repertoire.
This oblivion was due to the difficulties created
by the censors and by the prevailing moral code
for a drama based on religion, sexuality, morals
and ethics. In the face of these difficulties Verdi
decided to rework Stiffelio, and used a large part
of its music in the score of Aroldo. He
consequently prevented his publisher Ricordi
from hiring or selling material from Stiffelio. This
does not mean that Verdi did not believe in the
opera, as is attested by the fact that four years after
its premiere he wrote to a friend: “Among my
operas which are not performed, some I abandon
because the subjects are wrong, but there are two
that I would not like to be forgotten – Stiffelio and
La battaglia di Legnano”. Since the composer
used large sections – including three complete
numbers – of the autograph of Stiffelio into that of
Aroldo, it was long thought that the autograph of
Stiffelio was lost. Revivals of the work were
therefore based on manuscript copies, some more
reliable than others, until 1991, when a detailed
examination of the Aroldo autograph led to the
identification of the Stiffelio sections that remained
intact within it. There remained the problem of the
sections not used in the reworking. They were
identified among the composers’ papers kept at
Sant’Agata and put at the disposal of scholars by
Verdi’s heirs. Due to this patient job of
reconstruction, Stiffelio is now available in critical
edition.
Synopsis
ACT I. Stiffelio, alias Rodolfo Müller, the leader of the
Ahasuerian sect who in the past has had to flee from
religious persecution, has returned to the castle of his
father-in-law, Stankar. During the celebration organized in
his honor he recounts an incident he has been told about
by a boatman, who was on the river at dawn and saw a
young man, after a conversation with a woman, throw
himself into the water from a window of the castle,
dropping some papers as he did so. Stiffelio shows the
papers to those present and, imagining that they constitute
proof of guilt, consigns them to the flames. Lina, his wife,
and Raffaele, recognizing themselves as the lovers, are
alarmed. Stiffelio is troubled by Lina’s behavior, and her
father, Stankar, is also suspicious. His suspicion becomes
certainty when he discovers Lina writing a letter of
confession to Stiffelio. Stankar tells Lina to destroy it in
order not to grieve Stiffelio. Another letter, written by
Raffaele – which has come into the hands of Federico,
Lina’s cousin who is believed to be her lover, and has
been intercepted by Stiffelio – is destroyed by Stankar.
Stiffelio vents his fury while Stankar secretly challenges
Raffaele to a duel in the cemetery. ACT II. Having come
to the cemetery at night, Lina implores divine forgiveness
on her mother’s tomb. Raffaele arrives and declares his
love but Lina, repentant, asks him to give back her
wedding ring. They are surprised by Stankar, who fights
with Raffaele. Stiffelio rushes to separate them and grasps
Raffaele’s hand in friendship. Stankar reproaches Raffaele
for shaking the hand of the man he has betrayed. Stiffelio
wants to take revenge, but the elderly minister Jorg
reminds him of his evangelical mission. Stiffelio faints.
ACT III. Raffaele has fled. Stankar, in despair because his
honor has not been satisfied, contemplates suicide. Jorg
arrives and announces that he has persuaded Raffaele to
face Stiffelio. Having ascertained Raffaele’s cowardliness,
and after Lina has confessed to him her love and her
weakness as a woman left on her own, of which Raffaele
has taken advantage, Stiffelio wants to take revenge but
discovers that Raffaele has already been killed by Stankar.
He is led by Jorg to the church; he passes through the
congregation, among whom he sees Lina and, opening the
Bible at the story of the woman taken in adultery, forgives
his wife. Amid a surge of emotion from the congregation,
Lina falls at his feet.
9
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Rigoletto
Melodramma in three acts
Critical edition by Martin Chusid
GILDA, s THE DUKE OF MANTUA, t RIGOLETTO ,
br Maddalena, a Sparafucile, b Giovanna, ms
Countess Ceprano, ms Page of the Duchess, t *
Borsa Matteo, t Count Monterone, br Marullo,
br Count Ceprano, b Court Usher, b
Chorus: men
2 Fl (2nd also Picc), 2 Ob (2 nd also CorA), 2 Cl, 2
Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, BD, Bell /
Strings
Banda
off stage: BD; on stage: String Orch
Scenes: 4 changes and 4 settings
Mantua, the 16th century: a magnificent hall in
the ducal palace; the end of a blind alley (I); a
drawing room in the ducal palace (II); divided
stage: a half ruined two-story house, and a
deserted bank of the River Mincio (III)
Premiere: Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 11 March
1851
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
Rigoletto, composed in the period following the
general European uprisings of 1848-49, was
considered by censors to be a particularly suspect
subject, due to its political and moral
implications. An examination of the autograph
score has revealed, for instance, that a key phrase,
necessary to depicting the libertine character of
the Duke, was altered: in the Scena e Canzone of
Act III, the Duke’s original request to
Sparafucile, “Tua sorella e del vino” (“bring me
some wine and your sister”) was censored to
“Una stanza e del vino” (“some wine and a
room”). But there are other aspects, equally and
perhaps even more substantial, which the critical
edition has restored to their original form, such as
the original shape of the vocal lines, which have
been cleared of spurious changes and additions
accrued over the decades. Verdi’s concept for the
vocal parts appears, in this new light, to reflect
far more closely the original dramatic idea of the
work. Among the various changes made to the
vocal parts, the most remarkable are to be found
in Gilda’s aria “Caro nome”, which had
undergone alterations over the years according to
changing tastes but which did not reflect Verdi’s
original text.
*
At the premiere of Rigoletto this part was sung by a
woman.
10
Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase.
Series I, vol. 17.
Synopsis
ACT I. The Duke of Mantua courts Countess Ceprano, but
he is also attracted by a girl he sees every Sunday when he
goes to church in disguise. Rigoletto, the hunchbacked
court jester, provokes Count Ceprano and Count
Monterone, whose daughter the Duke has seduced.
Monterone curses Rigoletto. The jester, going home
through the dark night, is thinking in dismay about the
curse when he is approached by Sparafucile, a
professional assassin who offers him his services. On
reaching his house, Rigoletto urges Giovanna to take care
of Gilda, his daughter, but it is Giovanna who allows the
Duke to enter the house disguised as a student called
Gualtier Maldé, with whom Gilda is in love without
knowing who he is. Meanwhile a group of courtiers who
want to abduct the girl, believing her to be Rigoletto’s
lover, is surprised by the arrival of the jester, who is
tricked by the courtiers and blindfolded while Gilda is
carried off. Having realized what has happened, Rigoletto
remembers Monterone’s curse and faints. ACT II. The
Duke is perturbed because, returning to Rigoletto’s house
at night, he did not find Gilda. He promises revenge but
thinks above all of the girl’s sorrow. The courtiers arrive
and announce that they have abducted Rigoletto’s lover
and brought her to the palace: the Duke hurries to her
exultantly. Meanwhile Rigoletto appears, looking for his
daughter. Gilda runs to him and tells him how she came to
know the Duke, and that she has been deceived and
abused by him. Rigoletto comforts her, but when he sees
Monterone being taken to prison he decides to take
revenge for both the old Count and himself, while Gilda
begs for mercy for the Duke. ACT III. In a tavern on the
bank of the River Mincio, Maddalena, Sparafucile’s sister,
has attracted the disguised Duke and he is courting her.
Gilda arrives, accompanied by Rigoletto: he wants her to
see for herself that the Duke is unfaithful to her. While
Maddalena laughs at the advances of her wooer, Gilda
remembers the flattering words the Duke addressed to her;
Rigoletto exhorts her to forget, and instructs her to leave
for Verona dressed as a man. When she has gone, he
promises Sparafucile ten scudi when the Duke’s corpse is
handed over to him in a sack. Maddalena persuades her
brother to spare the young man’s life: Sparafucile will kill
the first traveler who seeks hospitality at the tavern. But
the first traveller is Gilda, who has listened to their
conversation without being seen, and decides to die for the
Duke by going into the tavern. She is stabbed and her
body, in the throes of death, is put into a sack by
Sparafucile and handed over to Rigoletto. Rigoletto hears
the Duke’s voice singing in the distance: seized by an
alarming presentiment, he opens the sack and finds Gilda
who, dying, invokes forgiveness for herself and her
seducer.
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi

Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase.

Il trovatore Series I, vol. 18 A.

Dramma in four parts. immediate interest to interpreters are the sections

Critical edition by David Lawton of the Introduction devoted to performance
practices, which consider metronome markings –
L EONORA, s AZUCENA, ms MANRICO, t COUNT with particular reference to their function within
DE LUNA, br F ERRANDO, b Ines, s Ruiz, t Verdi’s dramaturgy – as well as vocal style and
A Messenger, t An Old Gypsy, b ornamentation.
Chorus: women and men
Synopsis
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
ACT I. Ferrando narrates to Count de Luna’s retainers the
Cimb / Timp, Trg, BD, Hammers on anvils, Bell / story of a gypsy who was condemned to the stake for
Hrp / Strings witchcraft, whose daughter took revenge by snatching one
off stage: 2 Hn, Dr, Org of the Count’s two sons from his cradle and burning him.
In the palace gardens Leonora, a lady-in-waiting to the
Scenes: 8 changes and 8 settings
Princess of Aragon, waits in vain to meet the unknown
Biscay and Aragon, early 15th century: a hall in knight who comes at night to sing verses accompanied by
the Aliaferia palace, the palace gardens (I); a a lute below her window. Seeing the light burning in
ruined hovel, the cloister of a convent (II); a Leonora’s room, Count de Luna, the son of the count of
military encampment, a room adjoining the the same name whose baby was stolen, longs to see her
chapel at Castellor (III); a wing of the Aliaferia because he is in love with her, but at that moment the
palace, a grim prison (IV) Troubadour arrives. Overcome with fury, the Count
demands to know his rival’s name. He declares that he is
Premiere: Rome, Teatro Apollo, 19 January Manrico, a follower of the heretic Urgel. Leonora faints
1853 and the two men go off to fight a duel. ACT II. On a
Librettist: Salvadore Cammarano mountain in Biscay the gypsy Azucena tells Manrico
about how her mother, condemned to the stake, asked her
before she died to avenge her. Azucena therefore abducted
None of Verdi’s other operas, with the exception a son of Count de Luna, but due to a tragic error she threw
of Ernani, enjoyed such a huge and immediate her own son into the flames instead. Manrico is perturbed:
success as Il trovatore. As was his habit with the is he not then Azucena’s son? The gypsy reassures him by
operas that were dear to him, he was very reminding him of how she has always been a loving
protective towards it; he exercised tight control (continued)
over revivals, denying his consent to
performances when the interpreters were not up
to standard and above all refusing to make
alterations requested by singers. This state of
affairs means that, at the current stage of
research, no alternative performance materials are
available. All the changes which Verdi
introduced can be deduced from study of the
autograph, on which the critical edition is based.
Some of these revisions, made after the score had
been completed, are of particular interest in that
they have never appeared in print before this
edition, even though they clearly represent
Verdi’s final decision. The passages which
underwent substantial changes are reproduced in
the Appendix, which also contains an
orchestration for wind instruments of the organ
part which accompanies Manrico’s third-act aria:
this is bound into the autograph, although it is not
in Verdi’s hand, and was probably used at the
opera’s premiere to obviate objections from the
Roman censors to the presence of the organ in the
theater. It may be of use to theaters which do not
have an appropriate organ. A complete and
exhaustive Historical Introduction and a Critical
Commentary complement the musical text. Of

11
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
(Il trovatore)
mother to him and how she nursed him after a battle with
Count de Luna. Manrico recalls that in his duel with the
Count, although he had wounded him, he could not bring
himself to strike the mortal blow; Azucena makes him
swear that, if he should ever fight the Count again, he will
not be restrained by mercy. A messenger arrives: Leonora,
thinking that Manrico is dead, is about to enter a convent.
Manrico throws himself in the path of the Count, who is
about to abduct Leonora; having repulsed his rival,
Manrico takes Leonora away with him. ACT III. The
Count is besieging Castellor, which is defended by
Manrico. Azucena is found wandering near the camp:
Ferrando recognizes her as the gypsy who burned Count
de Luna’s brother. She is tortured and invokes the aid of
her son Manrico, which makes the Count even more
ferocious. Meanwhile in Castellor Manrico and Leonora
are about to be married, when Ruiz brings the news that
the Count has already lit the pyre on which Azucena is to
be burned. Manrico rushes to save his mother. ACT IV.
Leonora comes at night to the wing of the palace where
the Count has imprisoned Manrico. She hears the voice of
her beloved, invoking death and sending her his final
greeting, and the Miserere of a chorus of monks. Leonora
offers herself to the Count in exchange for Manrico’s life.
Meanwhile, in the prison with Manrico, Azucena
alternates between delirium and sleep. Leonora arrives and
tells Manrico that he is free; but when he discovers the
price he inveighs against her, repenting of his words when
she reveals that she has taken poison. The Count finds
Leonora on the point of death, and orders Manrico’s
execution. As soon as this has been carried out Azucena
reveals to the Count that Manrico was his brother,
abducted by her as a baby.
12
La traviata
Melodramma in three acts
Critical edition by Fabrizio Della Seta
VIOLETTA VALERY, s ALFREDO GERMONT, t
GIORGIO GERMONT, br Flora Bervoix, ms
Gastone, t Baron Douphol, br Annina, s
Giuseppe, t Marchese d’Obigny, b Doctor
Grenvil, b Servant, b Commissioner, b
Chorus: women and men
2 Fl (2nd also Picc), 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2
Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Trg, BD / Hrp / Strings
Banda
off stage: 2 Picc, 4 Cl, 2 Hn, 2 Trbn, Cast, Tamb;
on stage: Dr, Pikes
Scenes: 4 changes and 4 settings
In and around Paris, about 1850: a salon in
Violetta’s house (I); a country house near Paris, a
salon in Flora’s town house (II); Violetta’s
bedroom (III)
Premiere: Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 6 March
1853
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
It is well known that the premiere of La traviata
was a fiasco. Convinced of the opera’s value,
Verdi decided to brave the Venetian public again
in May of the following year at the Teatro San
Benedetto, and for the occasion he made some
alterations to the score. This is how the composer
commented on the favorable outcome of this
revival, with a subtle implication regarding the
reliability of the critics: “Everything that was in
the opera at the Fenice is now in it at the S.
Benedetto. Then it was a fiasco: now it has
created a furore. Draw your own conclusions!!”.
In fact changes were made between the two
versions, including some that are fairly
substantial. To document these alterations, the
critical edition contains a voluminous appendix
concerning the numbers which were changed
between the ’53 and ’54 versions: in Act II the
Violetta-Germont scene and duet, Violetta’s
scene, Germont’s aria and the finale; in Act III
the Violetta-Alfredo duet and the finale. In
addition to revising the entire score in accordance
with the autograph and a complete examination
of the sketches, which had never before been
studied in depth, the critical edition deals – in the
Historical Introduction – with the problem of the
cuts and additions made to the musical text from
the 19th century up to the present day: some
19th-century sources bear witness to an
interpretative tradition which entailed the cutting
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
of many passages, including memorable phrases
for the protagonists. But 19th-century tradition
was not limited to cuts; it also included additions,
such as a danced divertissement inserted into the
Act II finale after the chorus of Spanish matadors.
In modern times the practice of insertions has
been completely abandoned in favor of its
opposite: the performing tradition of our century
continues to embrace various types of cut in spite
of the recent tendency towards complete
performances. This aspect, of immediate interest
especially to interpreters and scholars, is
discussed and examined in depth by the editor,
who sets the problem in its context by starting
from carefully considered observations about the
history of the reception of the sections that have
traditionally been amputated, and a study of their
structural functions.
Synopsis
ACT I. A party at Violetta Valery’s house: among
pleasure-seeking aristocrats and obliging ladies there is a
new guest, Alfredo Germont, who has been brought by his
friend Gastone to meet the hostess with whom he is
secretly in love. When told of the passion Alfredo has for
her, she calls for a toast to distract attention. The party
then proceeds with dancing, but a fit of coughing prevents
Violetta from taking part, and Alfredo helps her. He offers
her his love which she, amused, declines to accept, telling
him to avoid her as she can only offer him friendship.
After the party Violetta is left alone and is disturbed when
she thinks of Alfredo’s words, asking herself whether a
Score and Critical Commentary available for sale.
Series I, vol. 19.
true love has entered her life, but rejecting the idea in the
name of her freedom as an independent pleasure-seeker.
ACT II. Alfredo is enjoying the serenity of love with
Violetta in a house in the country. Annina, Violetta’s
servant, comes back from Paris, having been sent by her
mistress to sell her remaining possessions to finance her
new life, now that she receives no gifts from protectors.
On finding out about this, Alfredo rushes to Paris to make
amends. Violetta comes in, unaware of what has
happened: she receives an invitation from Flora to a party
and reflects on how distant her past life is from the one she
leads now. But this happy atmosphere is shattered by the
arrival of Alfredo’s father, Giorgio Germont, who asks her
to break off her relationship with his son because their
sinful cohabitation brings such shame on his family that it
risks compromising the imminent marriage of Alfredo’s
sister. Violetta yields to Germont’s insistent pleas: she will
find a way to end the relationship but entreats him, when
she is dead, to reveal the truth to her beloved. While she is
writing the lying letter to Alfredo, he surprises her:
Violetta diverts his attention and, in torment, begs him
desperately to love her. She then flees to Paris, instructing
a commissioner to deliver the letter. Having read it, and
having seen on the table Flora’s invitation to the party,
Alfredo decides to go there to take revenge for the insult.
When he sees Violetta arrive with Baron Douphol, and
after she has told him she loves the Baron, Alfredo calls
everyone together and publicly denounces her behaviour,
contemptuously throwing a purse of money at her feet.
Violetta faints; Germont unexpectedly enters and
condemns his son’s behavior. ACT III. Violetta is in bed
suffering from consumption; she is helped by Annina and
the doctor. A letter arrives from Giorgio Germont, telling
her that Alfredo has gone abroad and that, having been
informed by his father of the true course of events, he is
now returning to ask his beloved’s forgiveness. Violetta’s
condition worsens until the arrival of Alfredo, with whom
she is immediately reconciled. But this is not enough to
make Violetta recover: after Germont has also arrived to
offer comfort, she dies.
13
Critical Edition of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi
Messa da Requiem
FOR THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE DEATH OF
MANZONI, 22 MAY 1874
Critical edition by David Rosen
Soloists: s, ms, t, b
Chorus: women and men
Picc (Fl), 2 Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 4 Bn / 4 Hn, 4 Tpt, 3
Trbn, Oph / Timp, BD / Strings
“in the distance”: 4 Tpt
Premiere: Milan, Church of San Marco, 22 May
1874
The critical edition of the Messa da Requiem is of
particular importance: it is the only full score,
after the manuscript copy prepared by the
publisher while Verdi was alive, to be based
primarily on the autograph. The first sources, in
fact, left unacceptable inconsistencies unresolved
and failed to seek solutions to the most
complicated problems, a situation which led to
the passing on, from edition to edition, of a series
of errors and misunderstandings which only the
critical edition has undertaken to rectify and
clarify. It is also true that, in the case of the
Requiem, Verdi himself checked the manuscript
copy prepared by Ricordi, the first edition of the
vocal score and the printed performance
materials. Given this state of affairs, it is
legitimate to ask whether the autograph should be
considered more authoritative than these
subsequent sources. The editor has tackled the
problem analytically and concluded that the
autograph remains the primary source and carries
14
Score and Critical Commentary available for purchase.
Series III, vol. 1.
absolute authority.
Two versions of the “Liber scriptus” are given
in the critical edition: the one which appears in
the autograph, which is a fugue for four-part
chorus and orchestra, composed for the first
performance in 1874, reproduced in the
Appendix, and the substitute version, a piece for
solo mezzo-soprano, written by Verdi the
following year for a performance of the Requiem
in London in May 1875. Since Verdi intended
this replacement to be definitive – he was not
completely satisfied with the 1874 version, and
moreover the mezzo-soprano was the only voice
of the quartet without a solo – the critical edition
deviates in this case from the first version by
giving the 1875 version in the main text, while
providing the opportunity to perform the 1874
version, which was excluded from all the editions
produced after the introduction of this change.
Another part of the Requiem which appears in
two versions is the “Libera me”. In the summer of
1869 Verdi composed a “Libera me” as the
concluding number of a composite mass to
commemorate the first anniversary of the death of
Gioachino Rossini. The performance of this mass,
whose composition had been promoted by Verdi
together with Ricordi, never took place. Verdi
gave the autograph of the “Libera me” to Ricordi
– an autograph to which he referred constantly
during preparation of the corresponding piece for
the Messa da Requiem. The modified version for
the 1874 performance is given in the main text of
the critical edition, and the original 1869 version
in the Appendix.
Other editions available
for hire

15
Other editions available for hire
Aida
Melodramma in four acts
AIDA, s AMNERIS, ms RADAMES, t A MONASRO,
br R AMFIS, b A Messenger, t The King, b
3 Fl (2nd also Picc), 2 Ob, CorA, 2 Cl, BCl, 2 Bn /
4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Trg, Cyms,
Tam-t, BD / 2 Hrp / Strings
Banda
on or off stage: 2 Hrp, 3 Egyptian Tpt in A flat, 3
Egyptian Tpt in B, 4 Tpt in C, 4 Trbn, BD
Chorus: women and men
Ballet
Scenes: 6 changes and 6 settings
A hall in the King’s palace in Memphis, inside
the temple of Vulcan in Memphis (I); a room in
Amneris’s apartments, one of the city gates of
Thebes (II); the banks of the Nile (III); a hall in
the King’s palace, scene divided on two levels:
the upper level represents the interior of the
temple of Vulcan, the lower level a vault (IV)
Premiere: Cairo, Opera House, 24 December 1871
Librettist: Antonio Ghislanzoni
16
Synopsis
The action takes place in Memphis and Thebes during the
reign of the Pharaohs. The Ethiopians, led by their king
Amonasro, are at war with Egypt. Radamès, the captain of
the royal guards, is chosen as commander of the Egyptian
army: he hopes to conquer Ethiopia and thus give a
homeland to Aida, the young Ethiopian slave with whom
he is in love, the daughter of Amonasro. When Amneris,
the Pharaoh’s daughter who is in love with Radamès,
discovers that Aida returns his love, she utters dark threats
to her rival. Radamès enters Thebes at the head of the
victorious army with a large number of Ethiopian
prisoners, among whom is Amonasro. As his reward for
victory, he requests the liberation of all the prisoners. The
King grants the request, but decides to keep Amonasro and
Aida as hostages, and offers Radamès the hand of his
daughter Amneris. Amonasro, having discovered the love
between his daughter and Radamès, insists that she find
out from him which route the Egyptians will follow so that
the Ethiopians can be waiting to fall on their enemy.
Amneris witnesses Radamès’ involuntary betrayal: as he
hands himself over to the Priests, Amonasro and Aida
manage to escape. Amonasro is later killed in the chase,
Aida vanishes. Radamès, imprisoned, refuses to defend
himself and is condemned to be buried alive. When he is
enclosed in his tomb he finds Aida, who has stolen into the
vault to die in his arms: they serenely face death together.
Other editions available for hire
Aroldo
Dramma lirico in four acts
MINA, s AROLDO, t EGBERTO, br Godvino, t
Briano, b profondo Elena, ms Enrico, t Jorg,
silent
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob (2nd also CorA), 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn,
2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Dr, Cyms, BD / Org
/ Strings
Banda
on stage: Bell
Scenes: 5 changes and 5 settings
a drawing room in Egberto’s home, a suite of
rooms illuminated for a grand celebration (I); the
old graveyard of a castle in Kent (II); an
antechamber in Egberto’s home (III); a deep
valley in Scotland – the shore of Loch Lomond is
seen in the background (IV)
Premiere: Rimini, Teatro Nuovo, 16 August
1857
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
Synopsis
This opera is a reworking of Stiffelio, whose plot it largely
preserves but not its contemporary setting and its searing
subject. The action takes place around 1200 in a castle in
Kent (Acts I, II and III) and on the banks of Loch Lomond
in Scotland (Act IV). Aroldo, a Saxon knight, returns from
a crusade and embraces his wife Mina, the daughter of
Egberto, a vassal of Kent. Mina is deeply distressed:
during her husband’s absence she has betrayed him with
Godvino, an adventurer knight. When Aroldo discovers
what has happened he repudiates Mina, who begs in vain
for his forgiveness. Meanwhile Egberto has challenged
Godvino to a duel and killed him. Aroldo retreats from the
world and lives with his friend Briano in pious solitude in
a modest dwelling near the shore of a Scottish loch. When
a storm on the loch throws ashore a boat carrying Egberto
and Mina, she renews her request for forgiveness, and
Aroldo grants it.
Attila
Dramma lirico in a prologue and three acts
ODABELLA, s FORESTO , t EZIO, br ATTILA, b
Uldino, t Leone, b
Chorus: women and men
2 Fl (2nd also Picc), 2 Ob (2 nd also CorA), 2 Cl, 2
Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Dr,
Cyms, BD, Bell / Hrp / Strings
off stage: 3 Tpt
Scenes: 8 changes and 6 settings
The piazza of Aquileia, the Rio-Alto in the
Adriatic lagoons (Prologue); near Rome: a wood
near Attila’s camp, Attila’s tent, Attila’s camp (I);
Ezio’s camp, Attila’s camp as in Act I (II); a
wood as in Act I (III)
Premiere: Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 17 March
1846
Librettist: Temistocle Solera
Synopsis
The action is set in the middle of the 5th century. Led by
Attila, the Huns invade Italy and put Aquileia to the fire
and the sword. Among the survivors is Odabella, daughter
of the lord of the city and leader of a Band of female
warriors. She is loved by Foresto who, with a group of
fugitives, has retreated to the islands of the Adriatic
lagoon promising revenge. The Roman general Ezio
proposes to Attila that they divide the whole empire
between them, but Attila refuses. Ezio promises renewed
war against the eternal enemy. The Huns march on Rome
but are stopped before the walls of the city by Bishop
Leone. Ezio is in his camp: recalled to Rome, he will have
to renounce the fight against Attila. Some Huns arrive
with a message: the enemy king sets aside hostilities and
invites him to his wedding with Odabella. Ezio, together
with Foresto, nevertheless hatch a plot in an attempt to kill
Attila; it fails. Foresto is disheartened about the imminent
wedding: he is convinced that Odabella has fallen in love
with the barbarian. She has, on the contrary, only agreed
to marry Attila in order to avenge her father, who was
killed by the Hunnish leader. Odabella suddenly leaves the
wedding procession and when Attila, alone, comes after
his betrothed, she stabs him, while the Romans fall on the
unarmed Huns.
Also available:
Romanza Floresto (t), “Sventurato! Alla mia vita
sol conforto”
Revised from the autograph by Philip Gossett
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Other editions available for hire

Un ballo in maschera

Melodramma in three acts

AMELIA, s OSCAR, light s ULRICA, A

RICCARDO, t RENATO, br Samuel, b Tom, b
A Judge, t Amelia’s Servant, t Silvano, b
Chorus: women and men
2 Fl (2nd also Picc), 2 Ob (2 nd also CorA), 2 Cl, 2
Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Cyms,
BD / Hrp / Strings
Banda
off stage: Bell, Small Orch
Scenes: 5 changes and 5 settings
In and around Boston: a hall in the Governor’s
house, the fortune-teller’s dwelling (I); a lonely
field on the outskirts of Boston (II); a study in
Renato’s house, the Count’s sumptuous study, a
vast and richly decorated ballroom (III)
Premiere: Rome, Teatro Apollo, 17 February
1859
Librettist: Antonio Somma

Synopsis
The story is set in Boston at the end of the 17th century.
Riccardo, Governor of Boston, has decided to hold a
masked ball. Among those who have been invited is
Amelia, the wife of Renato, the Governor’s secretary and
friend, with whom Riccardo is secretly in love, not
without feelings of remorse. When he goes to the fortune-
teller Ulrica, Riccardo overhears Amelia’s confidences:
she has come to the woman to ask for a potion that will
release her from her overwhelming passion for a man who
is not her husband. After Amelia has left, Ulrica predicts
that Riccardo will be killed by the first person who shakes
his hand. Everyone draws back, but Renato enters and,
unaware of what has been said, warmly shakes his hand.
Riccardo follows Amelia and forces her to admit that she
loves him. Renato arrives in search of his friend. When he
discovers that the veiled woman is his own wife, he is so
furious that he will not forgive her presumed betrayal.
Then however he is moved to pity: it is really Riccardo
who is guilty, and it is he who must be punished. Renato
therefore hatches a plot to assassinate the Governor.
Having come to the ball although a letter from an
unknown woman has warned him of a threat to his life,
Riccardo meets Amelia who, masked as well, begs him to
leave; he refuses to obey until she reveals who she is.
Riccardo is about to go when Renato stabs him. As his
strength ebbs Riccardo swears to him that Amelia is
innocent, forgives everyone, and dies.

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La battaglia di Legnano
Tragedia lirica in four acts
L IDA, s ARRIGO, t ROLANDO, br Federico
Barbarossa, b Imelda, ms Arrigo’s Squire, t
A Herald, t Marcovaldo, br 1st Consul, b
2nd Consul, b Mayor of Como, b
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Cimb / Timp, Dr, Cyms, BD / Hrp / Org / Strings
Banda
off stage: Bell
Scenes: 7 changes and 7 settings
A part of rebuilt Milan near the city walls, a place
shaded by groups of trees (I); a magnificent room
in the town hall of Como (II); subterranean vaults
in the basilica of Sant’Ambrogio in Milan,
apartments in Rolando’s castle, a room high in
the tower (III); a square in Milan (IV)
Premiere: Rome, Teatro Argentina, 27 January
1849
Librettist: Salvadore Cammarano
Synopsis
The opera, set in Milan and Como in 1176, revolves
around the patriotism of the Lombard and Venetian troops
who are allied for the purpose of driving out Federico
Barbarossa, the German Emperor who has invaded the
country. Lida, betrothed to Arrigo, a warrior from Verona,
believes he is dead and has married the Milanese
commander Rolando, Arrigo’s friend. Lida and Arrigo,
who has been nursed back to health by his mother after
being badly wounded, meet each other many years later,
when a German prisoner observes from their reactions that
they are still in love. The prisoner intercepts a letter which
Lida writes to Arrigo when she fears he is about to die in
battle, and Rolando takes it as proof of betrayal. Arrigo is
imprisoned, but escapes and goes to fight at Legnano with
the warriors of the League. He kills Barbarossa in the
battle, but is mortally wounded and brought back to Milan
while the people of the city are rejoicing over the victory.
With his dying breath he swears by the fatherland that
Lida is innocent, banishing Rolando’s doubt’s about his
wife’s fidelity.
Don Carlos / Don Carlo
Grand-opéra in five acts / Opera in four acts
Complete edition of the various versions in 5 and
4 acts, including previously unpublished
material. Revised from the sources by Ursula
Günther and Luciano Petazzoni. Original French
texts by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle.
Italian translation by Achille de Lauzières and
Angelo Zanardini, with previously unpublished
material edited by Piero Faggioni
ELISABETH DE VALOIS / E LISABETTA DI VALOIS, s
THIBAULT / TEBALDO, s LA PRINCESSE EBOLI /
LA PINCIPESSA EBOLI , ms DON CARLOS / DON
C ARLO, t RODRIGUE / RODRIGO, br PHILIPPE II /
FILIPPO II, b LE GRAND INQUISITEUR / IL
GRANDE INQUISITORE, b UN MOINE / UN FRATE,
b [Une voix d’en haut] / [Una voce dal cielo], s
Le Comte de Lerme / Il Conte di Lerma, t Un
Hérault Royal / Un Araldo reale, t Députés
Flamands / Deputati fiamminghi, b Inquisiteurs /
Inquisitori, b La Comtesse d’Aremberg / La
Contessa d’Aremberg, silent [Une femme en
deuil] / [Una donna in lutto], silent
Chorus: women and men
Ballet
Picc, 3 Fl, 2 Ob, CorA, 2 Cl, 4 Bn, DBn / 4 Hn, 2
Crnt, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Oph / Timp, Trg, Tamb, Cast,
BD, Bell, Cannon / Hrp / Harm / Strings
Banda
Scenes
Version in 5 acts: 9 changes and 8 settings
France, 1560: the Forest of Fontainebleau (I);
Spain: the cloister of the Yuste monastery, a
pleasant spot outside the gates of the Yuste
monastery (II); the Queen’s gardens, an
enchanted cave of mother-of-pearl and coral
(ballet La Pérégrina), a large square in front of
Valladolid Cathedral (III); the King’s study at
Valladolid, Carlos’s prison (IV); the cloister of
the Yuste monastery (V).
Version in 4 acts: 7 changes and 6 settings
Spain, 1560: the cloister of the Yuste monastery,
a pleasant spot outside the gates of the Yuste
monastery (I); the Queen’s gardens, a large
square in front of Valladolid Cathedral (II); the
King’s study at Valladolid, Carlo’s prison (III);
the cloister of the Yuste monastery (IV)
Version in 5 acts
Premiere: Paris, Théâtre de l’Académie
Impériale de Musique, 11 March 1867
(continued)
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Other editions available for hire

(Don Carlos / Don Carlo)

Version in 4 acts - 1872 Italian version

Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 10 January - version in 4 acts revised in 1882-83
1884 - 1886 version in 5 acts without ballet
Librettists: Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle
Synopsis
Version in 4 acts: revision of the French text by ACT I. In the Forest of Fontainebleau a group of
Camille du Locle, Italian translation by Angelo woodcutters complains of the misery caused by winter and
Zanardini based on that of the original version by the war with Spain. Elisabeth de Valois enters, daughter of
Achille de Lauzières King Henry II of France, betrothed to Don Carlos, Infante
of Spain, and promises a quick end to hostilities. Don
Don Carlos was born as a grand-opéra in 5 acts Carlos arrives incognito and gives Elisabeth a portrait of
her betrothed in which she recognizes the man before her.
in French with a ballet, and this is how it was
Don Carlos declares his love and Elisabeth is enraptured,
performed for the first time in 1867, although but the happiness of the betrothed couple is shattered by
some cuts were imposed by the conventions of the announcement that, as a pledge of the end of the
French theater. In 1882-83 Verdi transformed the conflict, the King of France has promised Elisabeth as
original version into an opera in 4 acts without a wife to the King of Spain, Philip II, father of Don Carlos.
ballet, thus eliminating about half of the 1867 But the Count of Lerma announces that Philip II demands
edition. This revised version, although published that his hand in marriage be voluntarily accepted by
Elisabeth. To save her people from further suffering
in French, was performed in Italian right from its
Elisabeth agrees to marry Philip II. ACT II. SCENE I. In
premiere in Milan in 1884. Two years later, in the Yuste monastery a chorus of monks prays at the tomb
1886, a new edition in 5 acts in Italian was of Charles V. Don Carlos, having come here to seek relief
produced by Ricordi which combined the from the love that torments him, meets Rodrigue, Marquis
beginning of the first version (Act I and the of Posa, his close friend. Carlos confides in him but Posa
beginning of Act II) with all the changes in the exhorts him to drown his private grief in that of a whole
shortened version. The two original editions in people, encouraging him to leave Spain and respond to the
need of the Flemish people who are calling for freedom
French (1867 and 1882) were forgotten, while the
from their oppressor. SCENE II. Awaited by Princess
1884 Italian translation and the 1886 expanded Eboli, Elisabeth comes out of the monastery and Rodrigue
Italian version became established in parallel. gives her a note from Carlos, who wants to see her. The
This gave rise to the erroneous belief that the Queen consents, and Carlos begs her to intercede with the
original version of the opera was the Italian King so that he will be permitted him to go to Flanders as
edition in 5 acts.
From 1962 onwards important material relating
to both the music and the libretto was discovered
in the Paris archives and among Verdi’s papers at
Sant’Agata. On the basis of this documentation it
has been possible to reconstruct five of the eight
pieces cut at the premiere. The complete edition
set itself the aim of reconstructing the exact
version on which rehearsals were based in 1866,
which is the only one that corresponds to Verdi’s
original conception. This work was not however
limited to the reinstatement of the passages which
were cut, but encompassed the revision of all the
versions on the basis of the Paris and Milan
originals.
This edition contains all the versions of the
opera for which Verdi’s direct responsibility is
historically documented, namely:
- complete version of the rehearsals in 1866
- version of the dress rehearsal on 24 February
1867
- version of the premiere on 11 March 1867
- version of the second performance on 13 March
1867

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Other editions available for hire

I due Foscari

the air at court is suffocating him. Carlos tries to reawaken Tragedia lirica in three acts
in her the passion of their first meeting but Elisabeth,
deeply distressed, rejects him. Philip enters and remains LUCREZIA CONTARINI, s J ACOPO FOSCARI, t
alone with Rodrigue, who launches into an impassioned
defense of the people of Flanders, exhorting the King to
FRANCESCO FOSCARI, br Jacopo Loredano, b
grant them freedom. Philip is at first annoyed by the Pisana, s Barbarigo, t Officer of the Council of
audacity of Posa’s language, but ends by admiring the Ten, t Servant of the Doge, b
Marquis’s pride and loyalty and decides to confide to him Chorus: women and men
his sorrows and his suspicions about his wife and his son.
ACT III. SCENE I. In the Queen’s gardens festivities are Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
in progress for the coronation of Philip II. Eboli sends Cimb / Timp, BD / Hrp / Strings
Carlos, with whom she is in love, an anonymous note Banda
proposing a nocturnal rendezvous, to which she comes
dressed as Elisabeth. After an impassioned exchange Eboli Scenes: 8 changes and 6 settings
realizes that Carlos thinks he has really been speaking to Venice: a hall in the Doge’s Palace, a hall in the
Elisabeth and promises to take revenge. Rodrigue Foscari Palace, a hall as in the first scene, the
intervenes, then persuades Carlos to entrust some Doge’s private rooms (I); the state prisons, the
compromising documents to him. SCENE II. A group of hall of the Council of Ten (II); the old piazzetta di
heretics who have been condemned by the Inquisition is San Marco, the Doge’s private rooms as in Act I
led to the stake, while the royal cortège for the coronation
(III)
of Philip II comes out of the palace. Suddenly six Flemish
deputies appear, led by Don Carlos, and implore the King Premiere: Rome, Teatro Argentina, 3 November
to save their country. Carlos urges Philip to send him as 1844
governor to Flanders and Brabant. The King treats the
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
deputies as rebels and Carlos draws his sword; Rodrigue
intervenes to disarm the Infante. In recognition the King
creates him Duke. ACT IV. SCENE I. Philip is in his Synopsis
study, and abandons himself to sorrowful reflections on The action takes place in Venice in the year 1457.
his life without love and without joy. The Grand Inquisitor Accused of murder and exiled, Jacopo, son of the elderly
enters, and Philip asks if he would be absolved for Doge Francesco Foscari, is permitted to return to Venice
condemning Carlos to death. The Inquisitor demands the to face a new trial. In the Council of Ten is Jacopo
sacrifice of Rodrigue, whose liberal views he considers Loredano, an implacable enemy of the Foscari family,
heretical. When the Inquisitor has left, Elisabeth enters whom he holds responsible for the poisoning of his father.
and complains that someone at court has stolen her jewel The Doge’s authority and the pleas of the defendant’s
case, which has in fact been taken by Eboli and given to wife, Lucrezia Contarini, count for nothing: Francesco
the King. Philip opens it and finds a portrait of his son. Foscari is forced to act with the greatest severity towards
Elisabeth admits that the portrait belongs to her, and his son, who is condemned to perpetual exile, but dies as
reminds her husband that she was betrothed to Don Carlos. he is leaving. It is discovered – too late – that Jacopo was
She tries in vain to convince the King that it is not a proof innocent and that the true culprit has confessed his crime.
of love and, on being called an adulteress, she faints. Eboli At this point his father is invited by the Council of Ten to
is repentant for what she has done, asks Elisabeth to abdicate, in consideration of his age. Before he has even
forgive her, and retreats to a convent. SCENE II. Rodrigue left the palace the election of the new Doge is announced,
tells the imprisoned Carlos that in order to save him he has and Francesco Foscari, after protesting strenuously, dies of
proclaimed himself responsible for the disturbances in grief.
Flanders, letting the Infante’s incriminating documents be
found in his possession as proof. A henchman of the
Inquisition shoots Rodrigue in the back with an arquebus,
and he dies in his friend’s arms. The King arrives to free
his son, but Carlos blames him for Rodrigue’s death.
Meanwhile the people, in revolt, are calling for the
Infante, but the Grand Inquisitor intervenes, ordering
everyone to kneel before the King, who is protected by
God. ACT V. In the cloister of the Yuste monastery
Elisabeth prays at the tomb of Charles V, invoking his
spirit that it might protect the Infante. Carlos, having come
to say his last farewell before leaving for Flanders, is
surprised by Philip and the Inquisitor, who call the guards
and accuse him of various crimes, while Elisabeth and
Carlos call on heaven to judge them. But the gate of the
tomb opens and, to everyone’s consternation, Charles V
appears in the emperor’s crown and mantle and leads the
Infante into the cloister.

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Other editions available for hire
Falstaff
Commedia lirica in 3 acts
Revised from the autograph by Alberto Zedda
with the collaboration of Fausto Broussard
Mrs. ALICE FORD, s NANNETTA, s Mrs.
QUICKLY, ms FENTON , t Sir JOHN FALSTAFF, br
FORD, br Mrs. Meg Page, ms Dr Cajus, t
Bardolfo, t Pistola, b Innkeeper at the Garter,
silent Robin, silent Ford’s Page, silent
Chorus: women and men
3 Fl (3rd also Picc), 2 Ob, CorA, 2 Cl, BCl, 2 Bn /
4 Hn, 3 Tpt, 3 Trbn, BTrbn / Timp, Trg, Cyms,
BD / Hrp / Strings
off stage: Gtr, Nat Hn crooked in low A flat, Bell
Scenes: 6 changes and 5 settings
Windsor, during the reign of Henry IV of
England: inside the Garter Inn, a garden (I);
inside the Garter Inn as in Act I, a room in Ford’s
house (II); a square, Windsor Park (III)
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 9 February
1893
Librettist: Arrigo Boito
The score of Falstaff poses extremely complex
problems from the philological point of view, in
that Verdi made changes during rehearsals for the
premiere, during the run of performances, while
the score and parts were being engraved, when
the opera was revived at the Teatro Costanzi in
Rome in April 1893 and when it was performed
in Paris in 1894. Many changes are also
suggested in letters to his publisher. Given this
state of affairs, it is in some cases an extremely
complicated task to establish the chronology of
the alterations, and whether the autograph has
priority over the other musical and literary
sources.
This edition starts from the assumption that the
autograph must nonetheless be considered a
fundamental source, in that it represents the
composer’s original ideas, except for those cases
in which Verdi expressed his dissatisfaction with
the original version. The editors’ work has
involved the detailed consultation of the
numerous authentic secondary sources,
integrating the changes made for the Rome
revival.
Synopsis
ACT I. PART I. In the Garter Inn Dr Caius inveighs
against Falstaff and his followers Bardolfo and Pistola,
who have got him drunk and robbed him. After praising
22
his own corpulence, Falstaff announces his plan to court
Alice Ford and Meg Page, the wives of two rich Windsor
gentlemen. To this end he gives two love letters – identical
except for the address – to Bardolfo and Pistola to deliver
to the two women; they refuse as a point of honor, and
Falstaff has to rely on his page as messenger. PART II.
Alice, her daughter Nannetta, Meg and Quickly meet in
the garden outside Ford’s house. They read the two
identical letters sent by Falstaff to Alice and Meg and look
forward to their revenge. Ford, Dr Caius, Nannetta’s
suitor, and Fenton, Nannetta’s lover, enter followed by
Bardolfo and Pistola, who reveal Falstaff’s intentions to
Ford: to seduce his wife and steal his money. While
Fenton and Nannetta exchange tender effusions, Alice
expounds her plan: Quickly will go to the Garter Inn with
messages from Alice and Meg, and Falstaff will be drawn
into a trap. ACT II. PART I. Quickly enters the Garter Inn
to bring Falstaff the message from Alice, who says she is
prepared to meet him in her house when her husband is
out. A certain Signor Fontana – who is none other than
Ford – introduces himself to Falstaff, and confides to him
that he desires Alice. Falstaff confides to Ford that he
already has an appointment with her. Ford is overcome
with jealous rage. PART II. In Ford’s house the women
are organizing the trick on Falstaff. He turns up at Alice’s
house but Ford arrives immediately after him at the head
of a group of men, with the intention of avenging his
wounded honor. Falstaff hides behind a screen and Ford
starts to search the house. The women force Falstaff into
the laundry basket, which they then have tipped out of the
window into the Thames. ACT III. PART I. Outside the
Garter Inn Falstaff, dispirited, reflects on his nasty
adventure. Quickly enters and manages to persuade him to
disguise himself as the Black Huntsman and meet Alice in
the royal park under Herne’s Oak, traditional meeting
place of spirits and fairies. Meanwhile, as Falstaff goes off
with Quickly, Alice, Nannetta, Meg and Ford plan the new
joke. Nannetta is to be the Fairy Queen, the children of
Windsor will be sprites and imps, and all will fall on
Falstaff and beat him until he admits his faults. Ford
meanwhile arranges with Dr Caius that he will marry his
daughter: he will perform the blessing himself. PART II. It
is night. Fenton comes to Windsor Park, and is joined by
Nannetta and then by Alice, who alters the disguises to
thwart Ford’s plans for Dr Caius. At the first stroke of
midnight Falstaff appears, wrapped in a voluminous cloak
and with two enormous horns on his head. He is trying in
vain to embrace Alice when Meg announces the beginning
of the tragedy. The fairies enter, led by Nannetta: Falstaff
lies face down on the ground in order not to meet their
lethal gaze, while the others, in disguise, start to goad him,
beat him, insult him and order him to repent. Bardolfo’s
hood falls back, the trick is exposed, and Falstaff admits
that he has been a fool. Meanwhile the women put a bridal
veil over Bardolfo’s head; Dr Caius takes him by the hand
and leads him before Ford, where they are joined by
Fenton and Nannetta in disguise. Ford blesses the two
couples, but when the veils are removed he discovers to
his dismay that he too has been tricked and has united his
daughter with the suitor he opposed. Women and love
have triumphed.
Other editions available for hire
La forza del destino
(1869 version)
Melodramma in four acts
DONNA LEONORA, s PREZIOSILLA, ms DON
ALVARO, t DON CARLO DI VARGAS , br FRA
MELITONE, br brillante PADRE GUARDIANO, b
Mastro Trabuco, t brillante Curra, ms A
Surgeon, t The Marquis of Calatrava, b An
Alcalde, b
Chorus: women and men
Ballet
2 Fl (also 2 Picc), 2 Ob, 2 Cl (2nd also BCl), 2 Bn
/ 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Dr, BD / 2
Hrp / Org / Strings
off stage: 6 Tpt, 4 Dr
Scenes: 9 changes and 9 settings
Seville: a room decorated with damask (I); the
village of Hornachuelos and its surroundings: the
large kitchen of an inn, a patch of level ground on
the slopes of a steep mountain, the church of Our
Lady of the Angels (II); Italy, near Velletri: a
wood, the quarters of a senior officer of the
Spanish army, a military encampment near
Velletri (III); near Hornachuelos: inside the
monastery of Our Lady of the Angels, a valley
amongst inaccessible rocks (IV)
Premiere: revised second version, Milan, Teatro
alla Scala, 27 February 1869
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave, with additions
by Antonio Ghislanzoni for the revised second
version
Synopsis
The plot is set in Spain and Italy around the middle of the
18th century. Leonora, daughter of the Marquis of
Calatrava, secretly loves Don Alvaro, a man whom the
Marquis considers unworthy of her. Don Alvaro tries to
persuade Leonora to elope with him, but the Marquis
surprises them and threatens them. Don Alvaro throws
down his pistol, which fires and mortally wounds the
Marquis. The Marquis’s son, Don Carlo, wants to avenge
his father by killing his sister and Don Alvaro, and sets out
to hunt them down. Leonora has in the meantime found
refuge in a hermitage near the monastery of Our Lady of
the Angels, under the protection of the Padre Guardiano.
Near Velletri, Don Alvaro and Don Carlo, without
knowing anything about their respective true identities,
become involved in a brawl. Don Alvaro saves Don
Carlo’s life, and they swear eternal friendship. Very soon,
however, Don Carlo discovers his friend’s true identity
and declares his intention of taking revenge, which
happens five years later in a duel fought near the
hermitage where Leonora lives. Don Carlo is fatally
wounded, but before dying he manages to kill Leonora
when she runs to him. Don Alvaro watches helplessly as
his beloved dies, exhorting him to have faith in divine
mercy.
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Other editions available for hire
Un giorno di regno
(later Il finto Stanislao)
Melodramma giocoso in two acts
THE MARCHESA DEL POGGIO, s GIULIETTA DI
KELBAR, ms EDOARDO DI SANVAL, t THE
C AVALIERE DI BELFIORE, br The Count Ivrea, t
Delmonte, b The Baron Kelbar, buffo b Signor
La Rocca, buffo b
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Cimb / Timp, Trg, Dr, BD / Strings
Scenes: 4 changes and 3 settings
Gallery, garden, gallery as before (I); gallery, hall
on the ground floor (II)
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 5 September
1840
Librettist: Felice Romani
Synopsis
The action takes place in France in 1733. In Baron
Kelbar’s castle two weddings are about to take place:
lovely Giulietta, the Baron’s daughter, is to marry the old
and rich La Rocca, and the Marchesa del Poggio will wed
Count Ivrea. The two women, however, love other men:
Giulietta is the lover of Edoardo, La Rocca’s penniless
nephew, and the Marchesa is searching for her beloved,
the Cavaliere Belfiore, a light-hearted aristocrat. Belfiore
is in fact also one of the Baron’s guests, but disguised as
Stanislao, King of Poland. He has been obliged to play this
part by reasons of state, in order to enable the real
sovereign to return to Warsaw unharmed. At the end a
letter from the real Stanislao releases the Cavaliere from
his impersonation, but before he reads it out he uses his
authority as “King for a Day” to command the marriage of
Edoardo and Giulietta. Having revealed all, he claims the
Marchesa as his own. Two weddings take place after all,
but with different husbands from those planned at the start.
24
Giovanna d’Arco
Dramma lirico in a prologue and three acts
GIOVANNA [J OAN OF ARC ] , s CARLO VII, t
GIACOMO, br Delil, t Talbot, b
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob (2nd also CorA), 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn,
2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Dr, Trg or sistro,
BD, Bell, Cannon / Hrp / Harm / Accd / Strings
Banda
Scenes: 6 changes and 6 settings
A great hall in Dom-Rémy, a forest (Prologue); a
remote place scattered with rocks, a garden in the
court of Reims (I); the main square in Reims (II);
inside a fort in the English camp (III)
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 15 February
1845
Librettist: Temistocle Solera
Synopsis
The action takes place in the village of Dom-Rémy, where
Giovanna was born, then in Reims and near Rouen during
the Hundred Years’ War, in 1429. Loosely based on
historical events, the drama has as its protagonist the
shepherdess Giovanna who, urged by a group of angels
who have appeared to her in a dream, persuades the King,
Carlo VII, to put her in command of the French troops,
which she leads to victory against the English. Suspected
of witchcraft by her father Giacomo, she is handed over by
him to the enemy to be burnt at the stake. She implores
God’s help and Giacomo, realizing that he has accused her
unjustly, frees her shortly before the decisive conflict.
Giovanna rushes into the fray, and the French troops led
by her rout the enemy. But the King’s joy is short-lived, as
he is in love with the heroine: Giovanna is wounded in
battle, and before dying she sees the heavens open and the
Virgin Mary coming to meet her.
Other editions available for hire
I Lombardi alla prima
Crociata
Dramma lirico in four acts
GISELDA, s ORONTE, t PAGANO, b Arvino, t
Viclinda, s Sofia, s Prior of the City of Milan, t
Acciano, b Pirro, b profondo
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Cimb / Timp, Trg, Dr, BD / 2 Hrp / Org/ Strings
Banda: Picc, SCl, 2 Cl, 3 Hn, 3 Tpt, 3 Trbn,
Tuba, Dr, BD
Scenes: 11 changes and 11 settings
Milan: piazza di Sant’Ambrogio, a gallery in the
Folco palace (I); Antioch and surroundings: a
room in Acciano’s palace in Antioch, the mouth
of a cave in the mountains, inside the harem (II);
near Jerusalem: the valley of Jehoshaphat,
Arvino’s tent, inside a cave (III); The Holy
Sepulchre: a cave, the Lombard tents near
Rachel’s tomb, Arvino’s tents (IV)
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 11 February
1843
Librettist: Temistocle Solera
Synopsis
The action takes place in the years 1095-97. The brothers
Arvino and Pagano both love Viclinda; she married the
former 18 years previously, and the latter is still intent on
revenge. Having entered Arvino’s house, he kills his father
Folco by mistake instead of his brother. To expiate his
crime Pagano goes to the Holy Land, where Arvino later
arrives with the Lombard Crusaders. Meanwhile Giselda,
the daughter of Arvino and Viclinda, has fallen into the
hands of Acciano, the tyrant of Antioch. She loves, and is
loved by, Acciano’s son Oronte. Several months later a
pious hermit, who is in fact Pagano, helps the Lombard
Crusaders to free Giselda. In the struggle, however,
Acciano and Oronte are both killed, causing Giselda to go
almost mad with grief. The hermit is gravely wounded in
the battle for Jerusalem: he is brought to Arvino’s tent and,
before he dies, he reveals his identity to his brother, and
requests and is granted his forgiveness.
Macbeth
(1847 version)
Melodramma in four parts
Complete edition of the first version of 1847
Revised from the autograph by David Lawton
LADY MACBETH, s MACBETH, br Macduff, t
Banco, b Lady-in-waiting to Lady Macbeth, s
Malcolm, t Doctor, b Servant of Macbeth, b
A Murderer, b A Herald, b Duncano, silent
Fleanzio, silent
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, CorA, 2 Cl (2nd also BCl), 2 Bn / 4
Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, BTrbn / Timp, Cyms, Tam-t,
BD / Hrp / Strings
Banda
off stage: 2 Ob, 6 Cl, 2 Bn, DBn
Scenes: 10 changes and 9 settings
Scotland: a wood, a room in Macbeth’s castle (I);
a room in the castle, a park, a magnificent hall
(II); a dark cavern (III); a deserted place on the
borders of Scotland and England, a room in
Macbeth’s castle as in Act I, another room in the
castle, a vast plain (IV)
Premiere: Florence, Teatro La Pergola, 14
March 1847
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
Macbeth marks a fundamental stage in the
development of Verdi’s musical dramaturgy: the
encounter with Shakespeare enabled the
composer to rise above the operatic routine that
had threatened to channel his invention. This
edition presents the original version of Macbeth,
written in 1847, a version which the editor has
reconstructed by close study of the autograph and
secondary sources. Verdi produced a revised
version of this work, eighteen years after the
premiere in Florence, for a revival at the Théâtre
Lyrique in April 1865. A comparison between the
two versions reveals that the original version is
more consistent in style than the revised one,
which however – as Julian Budden has written –
contains retouches of genius where Verdi has
contrived to re-enter and at the same time widen
his original conception of Shakespearean theater.
It must be added that the first Macbeth occupied
an important position among the Risorgimento
operas, whereas the later version had to wait until
the Verdi revival in this century to take its
rightful place in the Italian repertoire.
The differences between the two versions
essentially concern Acts II, III and IV. In Act II
Lady Macbeth’s cabaletta “Trionfai, securi
(continued)
25
Other editions available for hire
(Macbeth)
alfine” is replaced in the 1865 score by the aria
“La luce langue”; the Finale of Act II is also
modified. In the original version Lady Macbeth
does not appear in Act III, whereas in the revised
one she joins Macbeth for the duet “Ora di morte
e di vendetta” in place of Macbeth’s cabaletta
“Vada in fiamme e in polve cada”. Also in Act
III, the only danced scene in the ’47 version is the
chorus “Ondine e Silfidi”, while in the ’65
version a ballet is added after the witches’ chorus
which opens the act. There are also changes to the
beginning of Act IV, and above all to the finale:
the ’47 version shows the death of Macbeth on
stage, in the adagio “Mal per me che m’affidai”,
replaced for Paris by an orchestral fugue, a
musical translation of the battle, with Macbeth
being killed off stage.
Synopsis
ACT I. In a wood amid thunder and lightning a group of
witches discusses the mischief they have perpetrated.
Macbeth and Banco enter, generals in King Duncano’s
army: by way of prophecy, the witches greet Macbeth as
Thane of Glamis, Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland,
and Banco as the father of kings. They are disturbed,
especially Banco, who is horrified by the veracity of the
26
witches’ predictions when the King’s messengers
announce that Macbeth has been made Thane of Cawdor.
In the castle Lady Macbeth reads the letter in which her
husband tells her of his meeting with the witches, and she
reflects that, in order for the prophecy to come true, King
Duncano will have to be killed. She incites Macbeth to
commit the crime, although he is the victim of terrifying
visions. Duncano, spending the night in the castle as a
guest, is assassinated. In the morning Macduff goes to
wake Duncano and comes back horrified by what he has
found. Everyone rushes to the scene to condemn the act of
treason. ACT II. Since the witches predicted that Banco
would be the father of kings, Macbeth, seeing this as an
obstacle to his own ambitious plan to rise to power,
decides to kill his friend together with his son Fleanzio.
He entrusts the task to a group of murderers who ambush
them while they are going through a wood, but they are
only partially successful: Banco is killed and Fleanzio
manages to escape. Meanwhile in Macbeth’s castle a
banquet is being held, whose festive atmosphere is
interrupted by the arrival of a murderer with blood on his
face. When he recounts what has happened, Macbeth is
alarmed and starts to rave: Banco’s ghost appears before
him, his hair soaked in blood. He speaks wildly to it,
denying his guilt, to the terror of the guests; Lady Macbeth
exhorts him to compose himself, but shortly after the ghost
reappears. Macbeth resolves to go and question the
witches again. ACT III. In a dark cavern the witches are
gathered around a cauldron. Macbeth arrives to question
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them and they call up a series of apparitions. The first tells
Macbeth to beware of Macduff, the second that no man of
woman born will harm him, the third pronounces him
invincible until he sees Birnam Wood moving towards
him. Then eight kings file past, Banco’s offspring who
will rule: Macbeth tries to attack them, then faints.
Witches and aerial spirits revive him and he spurs himself
on to increase his power. ACT IV. On the borders of
Scotland and England the Scottish refugees lament the fate
of their country now that it is at the mercy of a
bloodthirsty tyrant. The victims of Macbeth’s latest
massacre are Macduff’s wife and children. Malcolm and
Macduff prepare the revolt against Macbeth: every soldier
will advance towards the castle with a branch in his hand.
Inside the castle Lady Macbeth, watched over by a doctor
and a lady-in-waiting, reveals her crisis of conscience
every night by reliving the brutal deeds in her sleep and
trying obsessively to wash the blood from her hands. The
enemy troops are attacking Macbeth’s castle when the
Queen’s death is announced. Even this news does not
shake him, but when he learns that Birnam Wood is
moving towards him he shouts that he has been deceived
and, seizing sword and dagger, confronts Macduff
declaring he has no fear of him. Macduff tells him that he
was not born, but untimely ripped from his mother’s
womb. Macbeth is mortally wounded, and dies.
Macbeth
(1865 version)
Melodramma in four parts
LADY MACBETH, s MACBETH, br Macduff, t
Banco, b Lady-in-waiting to Lady Macbeth, s
Malcolm, t A Doctor, b A Servant of
Macbeth, b A Murderer, b A Herald, b
Duncano, silent Fleanzio, silent
Chorus: women and men
Ballet
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, CorA, 2 Cl (2nd also BCl), 2 Bn / 4
Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, BTrbn / Timp, Cyms, Tam-t,
BD / Hrp / Strings
Banda
off stage: 2 Ob, 6 Cl, 2 Bn, DBn
Scenes: 10 changes and 9 settings
Scotland: a wood, a room in Macbeth’s castle (I);
a room in the castle, a park, a magnificent hall
(II); a dark cavern (III); a deserted place on the
borders of Scotland and England, a room in
Macbeth’s castle as in Act I, a room in the castle,
a vast plain (IV)
Premiere: Paris, Théâtre Lyrique, 19 April 1865
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave
Synopsis
See Macbeth, 1847 version
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I masnadieri Oberto, Conte

di San Bonifacio
Melodramma in four parts Dramma in two acts

AMALIA, s CARLO, t FRANCESCO, br L EONORA , s C UNIZA , ms RICCARDO , t

MASSIMILIANO, b Arminio, t Moser, b Rolla, t OBERTO, b Imelda, ms
Chorus: women and men Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, 2 Fl (2nd also Picc), 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2
Cimb / Timp, Cyms, BD / Hrp / Strings Tpt, 3 Trbn, Cimb / Timp, Trg, BD / Strings
Scenes: 9 changes and 8 settings Scenes: 4 changes and 4 settings
A tavern on the border of Saxony, Franconia: a Bassano: delightful countryside, a magnificent
room in the Moors’ castle, a bedroom in the hall in Ezzelino’s palace (I); the Princess’s
castle (I); an enclosure adjoining the castle private apartments, a deserted place near the
chapel, the Bohemian forest (II); a deserted place castle gardens (II)
adjacent to the forest near the castle, inside the
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 17
forest (III); a suite of rooms, the forest as in the
November 1839
final scene of Part III (IV)
Librettist: Temistocle Solera
Premiere: London, Her Majesty’s Theatre, 22
July 1847 Synopsis
Librettist: Andrea Maffei The action takes place in the year 1228. Riccardo, Count
of Salinguerra, has seduced Leonora, the daughter of
Synopsis Oberto, Count of San Bonifacio. He then abandons her for
Cuniza, the sister of Ezzelino da Romano, whom he
The drama is set at the beginning of the 18th century and
intends to marry. Having discovered how Riccardo has
covers about three years. Carlo Moor, son of Count
behaved, Cuniza renounces him and tells him that he must
Massimiliano, is a young man of noble sentiments,
marry Leonora. Although the wedding has already been
although his impetuous temperament has caused him to
decided, Oberto still persists in demanding revenge and
lead a wild life. His younger brother, Francesco, deceitful
challenges the seducer to a duel, in which he himself is
and wicked, induces their father to disinherit Carlo, and
killed. Riccardo, stricken with remorse, leaves Italy for
sends him a mendacious letter telling him that he is
ever after naming Leonora as his heir; she will spend the
forbidden to return home. Carlo swears to take revenge
rest of her life in a convent.
and becomes the leader of a Band of robbers with whom
he spreads terror in the forests of Bohemia. Meanwhile
Francesco not only tries to win the love of Amalia, Carlo’s See also p. 34, Single pieces
betrothed, he also has his father told that Carlo is dead,
and imprisons the old man in a tower to hasten his demise
so that he will be able to usurp his title. Amalia, having
escaped into the forest, suddenly finds herself face to face
with Carlo, who has returned because of his nostalgia for
her and for his ancestral home. The mysterious Arminio
makes his way through the forest to take food secretly to
the old Count. Carlo happens to witness this scene, frees
his father and uncovers the plot. At this point he solemnly
swears with his robbers to avenge the wrongs suffered by
his father. In the concluding turmoil Carlo, overcome with
hysterical fury, stabs his beloved in order not to involve
her in the shame of his life as a bandit, and then heads for
the gallows to pay for his crimes.

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Otello

Dramma lirico in four acts
Revised from the original texts by Alberto Zedda
DESDEMONA, s OTELLO, t JAGO, br Emilia, ms
Cassio, t Roderigo, t Lodovico, b Montano, b
A Herald, b
Chorus: women, men, children
Ballet (Paris version 1894)
3 Fl (3 also Picc), 2 Ob, CorA, 2 Cl, BCl, 4 Bn /
4 Hn, 2 Crnt, 2 Tpt, 3 Trbn, BTrbn / Timp, Cyms,
Tam-t, 2 BD / Hrp, Hrp II (for the dances) /
Strings
on stage: Mand or 2 Hrp, Gtr or 2 Hrp,
Cornamusa or 2 Ob, Tambs (for the dances)
off stage: 2 Pist or Crnt, 6 Crnt, 2 Tpt, 3 Flicorni
(Genis), 3 Trbn, Cannon, Thunder and Lightning,
Org
Scenes: 4 changes and 4 settings
A maritime city on the island of Cyprus, at the
end of the 15th century: outside the castle (I); an
octagonal room on the ground floor of the castle
(II); the great hall of the castle (III); Desdemona’s
bedroom (IV)
Premiere: Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 5 February
1887
Librettist: Arrigo Boito
and articulation, especially for the Strings, which
are modified in the printed editions in a way that
simplifies and inevitably banalizes performance.
In 1894 Otello was performed at the Paris
Opéra, and Verdi yielded to Parisian custom by
writing a ballet for the occasion. While he was
restructuring the third act to insert the dances,
Verdi decided also to revise the following
concertato, whose theatrical effect did not satisfy
him. The new concertato which closes the third
act reworks part of the original thematic material
but it is shorter, simpler and more linear than the
1887 one, which was often cut because of the
difficulties it created for performers. Since Otello
was sung in French for the Paris performances,
the original Italian version of Boito’s text has
never been published until this edition.
Synopsis
ACT I. The crowd is waiting for Otello, the new
commander of the Venetian garrison who is crossing the
sea in a storm, and prays for his safety. Having survived
(continued)

Otello was the first opera by Verdi for which the

full score was published, in 1887. In subsequent
editions changes were introduced, often at the
suggestion of conductors and performers, which
increasingly distanced the printed scores from the
original text of the autograph. This edition, based
on re-examination of the autograph and the
principal authentic sources, offers a text corrected
of errors, misunderstandings, mistaken
interpretations and simplifications of the
autograph score. An example of a
misunderstanding of the text can be found on the
first page of the printed edition, where in the list
of instruments there is the obscure indication
“Piatti squillanti” (“ringing cymbals”), a mistaken
reading of the autograph for “Piatti oscillanti”
(suspended cymbals). Also on the opening page,
Verdi prescribes that the organ should play until
Otello’s opening solo, the celebrated “Esultate!”.
Right from the first edition Verdi’s prescription
was not reproduced in full, with the consequence
that the organ is instructed to play during Otello’s
solo, in contradiction of the composer’s express
wishes. In addition, this edition incorporates a
complete revision of the dynamic and tempo
markings, as well as those relating to phrasing

29
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(Otello)
the storm unharmed, he is enthusiastically welcomed by
the inhabitants of the island, to whom he announces that
he has triumphed over the Muslims. The joyful
atmosphere is not shared by Roderigo, who is in love with
Desdemona, or by Iago, Otello’s ensign, who nurses a
hatred of his master for having promoted Cassio to the
rank of captain which he himself has earned. He thus starts
to plot against Otello, getting Cassio drunk to the point
where he loses control and wounds Montano in a duel. A
brawl follows, fomented by Iago and quelled by Otello.
Having dismissed Cassio from service, Otello retires with
Desdemona. ACT II. Iago proceeds with his plan to
destroy Otello, urging Cassio to ask Desdemona to plead
his cause with her husband. When he meets Otello, who
has seen Cassio conversing with Desdemona in a corner of
the garden, the ensign sows in his mind the seeds of
suspicion that his wife is unfaithful. But seeing her
lovingly welcomed by the inhabitants of the island, Otello
momentarily forgets his dismay. When she intercedes
insistently for Cassio to be restored to the rank of captain,
the Moor’s fury is re-ignited. She drops the handkerchief
given to her by her husband as a token of his love, and
Iago extracts it from his wife Emilia, Desdemona’s
30
companion, with the intention of hiding it in Cassio’s
house. Desdemona asks her husband to forgive her for
upsetting him, but Otello drives her away and then turns
on Iago, accusing him of having damned his soul and
demanding proof of his insinuations. Iago relates to him
that he has heard Cassio uttering loving phrases to
Desdemona in his sleep, and has seen the girl’s
handkerchief in his hand. Otello, wounded to the core of
his being, swears to exact revenge. ACT III. A herald
announces the arrival of the ship bringing the Venetian
ambassadors. Iago tells Otello that he will engage Cassio
in conversation and extract compromising confidences
from him; Otello is to listen from a place of concealment.
Desdemona enters and tries again to defend the disgraced
captain’s cause, but when Otello asks her to show him the
handkerchief, which she says she does not have with her,
her husband’s tone becomes threatening and he flies into
paroxysms of rage, forcing her to leave. His life
devastated, Otello pours out all his bitterness and decides
to kill Desdemona. Iago enters and urges him to hide in
order to overhear the conversation in which he tricks
Cassio into displaying the handkerchief, which he has
found in his house and thinks is a gift from an unknown
admirer. Otello is convinced of an adulterous liaison. The
arrival of the Venetian ships is announced, and the Moor
tells Iago of his decision to kill Desdemona; Jago replies
that he will dispatch Cassio. Lodovico, Montano,
Desdemona and the dignitaries enter: on reading the
message from the Doge recalling him to Venice, Otello
seizes his wife furiously. Thrown to the ground,
Desdemona weeps, consoled by all those present, while
Iago suggests the next moves to Otello and Roderigo. The
Moor loses all self-control and drives everyone out,
cursing Desdemona, and then faints. Iago surveys his
triumph with satisfaction, while hymns in honour of the
Moor resound outside. ACT IV. Desdemona tells Emilia
the sad story of a maid called Barbara, then bids her
goodnight. After she has prayed, she prepares for sleep
with dark foreboding. Otello enters her room and, in spite
of her protestations of innocence, suffocates her before
Emilia, having retraced her steps, raises the alarm. Cassio
comes running, having killed Roderigo in the ambush in
which he himself was supposed to die, followed by
Lodovico, Montano and Iago, who flees when his
machinations are revealed. Otello, after bidding farewell to
life, draws a dagger and stabs himself. He dies kissing
Desdemona.
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Simon Boccanegra
(1881 version)
Melodramma in a prologue and three acts
MARIA BOCCANEGRA (AMELIA GRIMALDI), s
GABRIELE ADORNO, t SIMON BOCCANEGRA, br
JACOPO FIESCO (ANDREA), b Paolo Albiani, b
Pietro, br Amelia’s Maidservant, ms A Captain
of the Crossbowmen, t
Chorus: women and men
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, BCl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Tpt, 3
Trbn, Cimb / Timp, BD / Strings
Banda
off stage: Hrp
Scenes: 5 changes and 5 settings
A square in Genoa (Prologue); the Grimaldi’s
garden outside Genoa, the Council Chamber of
the Doge’s Palace (I); the Doge’s room in the
Ducal Palace in Genoa (II); inside the Ducal
Palace (III)
Premiere: revised second version, Milan, Teatro
alla Scala, 24 March 1881
Librettist: Francesco Maria Piave, with additions
and alterations for the revised second version by
Arrigo Boito
Synopsis
The Prologue takes place in 1339. The corsair Simon
Boccanegra, who has seduced Maria, the daughter of the
powerful nobleman Jacopo Fiesco, is elected Doge due to
the support of the leader of the plebeian party, Paolo
Albiani. Maria dies shortly after. Twenty-five years later
the Doge finds Amelia, the lost daughter he had by Maria,
and intends her to marry the man she loves, the nobleman
Gabriele Adorno. Paolo Albiani, to whom Amelia has
previously been promised, swears to take revenge: he
decides to abduct the young woman and poison the Doge.
He then convinces Gabriele, who is unaware of the true
relationship between Amelia and Simone, that the Doge
enjoys her favors. Gabriele’s desire for revenge is
extinguished when Simone announces that she is his
daughter. Paolo’s intrigues are discovered and he is taken
to the scaffold. Simone, before dying from poison, gives
his blessing to Amelia and Gabriele, whom he nominates
as his successor.
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Le Trouvère

Grand-opéra in four parts. there are numerous changes to the orchestral

Revised by David Lawton texture and the accompanimental formulas.
Should performers wish to incorporate some of
LÉONORE , s AZUCENA, ms MANRIQUE LE these changes into the original Italian version, it
T ROUVÈRE, t L E COMTE DE LUNA, br is interesting to note that there is a hypothetical
F ERNAND , b Inès, s Ruiz, t A Messenger, t historical precedent: in one case Verdi
A Bohémien, br A jailer, silent specifically authorized the possibility of inserting
Chorus: women and men the ballet into Il trovatore.
Ballet
Synopsis
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Crnt, 2 Tpt, 3
Trbn, Oph / Timp, Dr, Trg, Tam-t, BD, Bell / Hrp See Il trovatore
/ Org / Strings
off stage: Hn, Dr, Hammers on anvils, Bell
Scenes: 8 changes and 8 settings
Early 15th century. Aragon: a hall in the Aliaferia
palace, the palace gardens (I); Biscay: steep and
deserted mountainside, a cloister (II); a military
encampment near the walls of Castellor, a hall in
the castle at Castellor (III); a wing of the Aliaferia
palace, a grim prison (IV)
Premiere: Paris, Théâtre de l’Opéra, 12 January
1857
Librettist: Salvadore Cammarano. French
translation by Emiliano Pacini

Verdi personally supervised two productions of Il

trovatore in Paris, in 1854 and 1855, in which the
only changes he made where slight modifications
to Leonora’s part. In 1857, however, he prepared
a French version of the opera in which he made
significant revisions to the score. Although his
autograph score of the revised sections and of the
ballet have not survived, a reconstruction of Le
Trouvère has been possible thanks to manuscript
sources preserved in the Parisian archives.
Verdi’s revisions affect eight of the musical
numbers, as well as the addition of the ballet, a
musical divertissement between numbers 9 and
10 in Act III. The altered pieces are: in Act I, no.
II; in Act 2, nos. 6 and 8; in Act III, nos. 9 and
10; in Act IV, nos. 12, 13, and 14. Among the
more substantial changes are those in Leonora’s
Act 1 cavatina, which is rescored for a deeper
voice than the original; no. 12, wherein Leonora’s
cabaletta “Tu vedrai che amore in terra” were cut,
together with the seven bars of preceding
recitative; and the opera’s finale, no. 14, where
both the dramatic and the musical structure were
radically altered. Most of the changes were
undertaken in an effort to mold the opera more to
Parisian tastes, but they also reflect Verdi’s
maturing style. While the vocal parts are
rhythmically adapted to match the French verse,

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Les Vêpres Siciliennes
Grand-opéra in five acts
Revised from the original sources by Claudio
Toscani
L A D UCHESSE HÉLÈNE, s HENRI, t GUY DE
MONTFORT, br JEAN PROCIDA, b Ninetta, a
Thibault, t Danieli, t Mainfroid, t Robert, br
Le Sire de Béthune, b Le Comte de Vaudemont,
b disembarked; he greets his beloved homeland. He meets
Chorus: women and men
Ballet
Picc, Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Crnt, 2 Tpt, 3
Trbn, Oph / Timp, Dr, BD / Strings
on stage: Cast
Scenes: 6 changes and 6 settings
Palermo, 1282: the main square in Palermo (I);
a pleasant valley near Palermo (II); Guy de
Montfort’s study, a magnificent hall prepared for
a festive ball (III); the courtyard of a fortress
(IV); magnificent gardens of Montfort’s palace in
Palermo (V)
Premiere: Paris, Théâtre de l’Académie
Impériale de Musique, 13 June 1855
Librettists: Augustin Eugène Scribe and Charles
Duveyrier
A “noble, thoughtful and often exciting work” is
how Julian Budden describes Les Vêpres
Siciliennes. Guided by the principal original
sources, this edition offers Verdi’s grand-opéra,
based on an imposing and spectacular subject, in
a critically verified form. Being intended for
practical performance, the edition weds fidelity to
authentic sources to the requirements of modern
performing practice: it provides a text which is
free from errors and inexactitudes and which has
been completed where there were gaps or
ambiguities. The original French edition –
sometimes accused of being excessively long,
although it sustains its length perfectly – has the
advantage, compared with the Italian version, of
much more flexible prosody than the Italian
translation by Eugenio Caimi which appeared in
1855.
Synopsis
Palermo, 1282. ACT I. In the main square in Palermo the
invading French soldiers sing and drink, watched by the
Sicilians. Duchess Hélène, the sister of Frédéric of
Austria who has been killed by the French, enters dressed
in mourning and vows that she will avenge her brother,
encouraging the Sicilians to rebel against the invaders.
The Sicilians seem to be about to start an uprising, but
the arrival of Guy de Montfort, the Governor of Sicily
under Charles d’Anjou, cools their spirits and causes the
crowd to disperse. Henri enters, a young Sicilian faithful
to Frédéric of Austria, who, not recognizing Montfort,
tells Hélène that he was imprisoned and then inexplicably
released by the Governor, against whom he inveighs.
Montfort reveals his identity and, struck by the young
man’s audacity, offers him a commission in the French
army. Henri vehemently rejects the proposal, scorning
Montfort’s advice to keep away from Hélène. ACT II.
The patriot Jean Procida, a Sicilian doctor, has just
Hélène and Henri, with whom he discusses how to
induce the Sicilians to revolt and declares his intention of
acting as an agent provocateur to foment an uprising.
Henri confesses his love to the Duchess and she,
admitting that she loves him in return, exhorts him to
avenge her brother. The people of Palermo are preparing
to celebrate the weddings of twelve young couples, but
the French soldiers intervene, incited by Procida, and
abduct the brides before the Sicilians’ eyes, leaving them
humiliated and angry. It is decided that Montfort and all
his retinue will be killed that very night. ACT III. In his
palace Montfort reflects on the letter from a Sicilian
woman, whom he once forced to be his lover, which
informed him many years later of the birth of a son,
Henri. In the ensuing meeting with Montfort, Henri
learns that he is the son of the man for whom he has
sworn eternal hatred. His greatest despair, however, is
thereby to have lost Hélène for ever. During a ball, into
which the ballet Les quatre saisons is inserted, Henri
encounters Hélène and Procida, who are masked; they
confide to him that Montfort is about to be assassinated.
Henri warns his father of the danger, and saves him by
shielding him when Hélène hurls herself at the Governor,
armed with a dagger. The conspirators curse Henri for his
betrayal. ACT IV. Henri reflects on his destiny in the
courtyard outside the prison where the conspirators are
held. He is waiting to speak to Hélène, and when she
behaves contemptuously and furiously towards him,
considering him a traitor, he explains the reason for his
action. Having heard this, she forgives him and confirms
that she loves him, but both admit the impossibility of
their union. Montfort orders the execution of the
prisoners. Among them is Procida, who is also dismayed
to learn that his friend is the Governor’s son. Henri begs
for mercy for the prisoners, but Montfort says that they
will be freed only if Henri will recognize him by calling
him father in front of everyone. Henri hesitates, but when
the executioner seizes Hélène and is about to proceed he
kneels down in front of Montfort and calls him father.
The Governor pardons all the prisoners, and consents to
the marriage of his son with Hélène, to be celebrated at
vespers that very day. ACT V. In the gardens of
Montfort’s palace Hélène is joined by Procida, who
reveals the plan for an uprising to start at the sound of the
wedding bells. When she attempts to rebel Procida
accuses her of defending Henri and betraying her friends.
Henri arrives: Hélène does not dare to reveal the plot to
him, but she tries to cancel the wedding by claiming to
see the ghost of her brother forbidding it. Montfort does
not believe in her change of heart and joins the couple’s
hands, at which point Procida gives the signal for the
bells and the Sicilians burst onto the scene and fall on
Montfort and the French
33
Other editions available for hire
I vespri siciliani
Opera in five acts
ELENA, s ARRIGO, t GUIDO DI MONFORTE, br
GIOVANNI DA PROCIDA, b Ninetta, a Tebaldo, t
Danieli, light t Manfredo, t Roberto, br Il Sire
di Bethune, b Il Conte Vaudemont, b
Chorus: women and men
Ballet
Fl, Picc, 2 Ob, 2 Cl, 2 Bn / 4 Hn, 2 Crnt, 2 Tpt, 3
Trbn, tuba / Timp, Dr, Trg, Cyms, Tamb, BD,
Bell / Hrp / Strings
on stage: Cast
Premiere (Italian version with the title Giovanna
de Guzman): Milan, Teatro alla Scala, 4 February
1856
Librettists: Augustin Eugène Scribe and Charles
Duveyrier
Italian translation by Eugenio Caimi
Synopsis
See Les Vêpres Siciliennes
34
Single pieces
Verdi removed, or later wrote substitute pieces
for, some numbers in Oberto. A critical edition of
this opera is in the planning stages, but at the
present time the original bridging music which
would permit the insertion of these pieces into the
opera proper has not yet uncovered. As research
continues, Ricordi meantime has made available
for concert performance these free-standing
pieces revised on the autograph.
Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio
Altra Cavatina Cuniza (ms) in Act I, “O fedeli! a
me diletto”
Altro N. 6 Recitativo e Duetto Cuniza (ms) -
Riccardo (t) “Ah Riccardo, a mia ragione”
Altro N. 11 Scena e Duetto Leonora (s) e Cuniza
(ms) “Pria che scenda sull’indegno”
Revised on the autograph by Gabriele Dotto