Risorgimento!
| Risorgimento! | |
|---|---|
| Opera by Lorenzo Ferrero | |
 The final scene | |
| Librettist | Dario Oliveri |
| Language | Italian |
| Premiere | 26 March 2011 |
Risorgimento! is an opera in one act by Lorenzo Ferrero set to an Italian-language libretto by Dario Oliveri, based on a scenario by the composer. It was completed in 2010 and first performed at the Teatro Comunale Modena on 26 March 2011.
Overview
The opera was commissioned by the
The characters of the opera, according to the composer, engage in a debate about not only the Risorgimento but also the opera itself and its chances of success.[2] They are, at least in part, the same as the interpreters of that first Nabucco (then titled Nabucodonosor), which was staged at La Scala on 9 March 1842.[3]
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere cast, 26 March 2011 (Conductor: Michele Mariotti) |
|---|---|---|
| Bartolomeo Merelli, impresario | baritone | Alessandro Luongo |
| Giuseppina Strepponi, opera singer | lyric soprano | Valentina Corradetti |
| Giovannina Bellinzaghi, opera singer | mezzo-soprano | Annunziata Vestri |
| Luigi Barbiano di Belgioioso, Milanese patrician | tenor | Leonardo Cortellazzi |
| Maestro sostituto, rehearsal pianist | bass | Alessandro Spina |
| Giuseppe Verdi, composer | spoken role | Umberto Bortolani |
| Offstage chorus, dancer, silent figures. | ||
Synopsis
- Place: La Scala, Milan.
- Time: February 1842.
In a room inside the theatre the
Merelli and the pianist return and are joined by Luigi Barbiano, Conte di Belgioioso, who brings the approval of the libretto. An excited political discussion follows between the Maestro sostituto and the count, who ends up by being offended and walks off, slamming the door. Merelli and Strepponi follow him. The pianist regrets letting himself get carried away and restarts rehearsing with Bellinzaghi. Fenena's prayer, too, dissolves itself in a dream, which anticipates the triumphal debut of the opera and re-elaborates various images of the Risorgimento. At the end of the dream, Giuseppe Verdi appears, aged and now Senator of the Kingdom. In his monologue he interweaves the nostalgia for the past with his preoccupation for the uncertain future.
References
- ^ "Teatro Comunale Modena 2010/2011 opera season".
- ^ "Universal Music Publishing Classical presentation". Archived from the original on 2013-02-05.
- ^ Gavazzeni, Giovanni, ed. (2011). Lorenzo Ferrero: Risorgimento! Luigi Dallapiccola: Il prigioniero. Bologna: Edizioni Pendragon, p. 32.
Further reading
- Pugliaro, Giorgio, ed. (2011). Opera 2011. Annuario EDT-CIDIM dell'opera lirica in Italia. Torino: EDT Srl. ISBN 978-88-6040-795-5
External links
- Rai 3 documentary, part 1 on YouTube, part 2on YouTube
- Risorgimento! recording of the premiere in Bologna, April 5, 2011 on YouTube
- Casa Ricordi Catalogue
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