Giuseppe Verdi conducting the Paris Opera premiere of his opera, Aida, at the Palais Garnier on March 22, 1880 As I prepared for this week’s selection I was shocked that we hadn’t yet covered Il Trovatore by Giuseppe Verdi. The only trace of the opera I could find on Opera Daily was from
Wow! Give me an opera in Spain set against a backdrop of war, religion and class conflict. Add a count, a noble woman, a troubadour, star-crossed lovers, gypsies, a curse, revenge, mistaken identities, and a tragic dénouement and I'm all in. From what I've read, so was the audience when this opera (based on the 1836 play "El trovador" by Antonio García Gutiérrez) premiered in 1853 at Rome's Teatro Apollo. I look forward to experiencing the musical, thematic, and emotional complexity of this masterpiece, as have so many others through the ages (https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/works/59496--verdi-il-trovatore/browse).
So, where do I fall along the fault lines of appreciation for the artists featured in this week's reading? No one can argue with the great Leontyne Price's technical virtuosity, who I enjoyed listening to as a child (https://michiganopera.org/celebration-of-leontyne-prices-94th-birthday/). Nevertheless, Sondra Radvanovsky and Montserrat Caballé won the week for me. I love the agility, lyricism and beauty of their soprano voices. I feel that they connect me to their own emotions as artists, as well as to those suggested by the character portrayed.
Non-singer and non-musician question: I'm curious . . .what direction from the composer (a written or verbal instruction from Verdi?) prompts the singers to trill and/or escalate their voices along a higher and higher scale at certain points in the opera? Is there a term for that, or is this bel canto improvisation that has become a tradition?
P.S. Also, whether by accident or design, and despite its tragic themes, "Il Trovatore" was a fine Mother's Day choice. In this second pandemic year, when so many must approach this day with a sense of grief and loss, I hope all who read this will feel peace🕊, if not joy, this Mother's Day🙏.
Michele, after this first quick reading, I wanted to thank you right away for such an insightful and informative reply. It's one thing to sit in the audience and applaud a finished production. It's an entirely new level of appreciation when you have a sense of how the parts combine to create the whole. It occurred to me that while you've highlighted opera as art/artists weekly, your links to master classes, rehearsals, interviews and the like have subtly schooled us about the craftsmanship involved. Plus, I never tire of anecdotes about Maria Callas, nor of the related artworks you post. You amaze me. Thanks again for your comprehensive answer, and for laying out new paths for exploration.
Happy Mother's Day to you, to your opera-loving Mom, and to your friend and colleague, Heather Johnson!🥂)
Since Giuseppe Verdi's "Il Trovatore" is unexplored opera terrain for me, after reading your introduction, and listening to various interpretations of "D'amor sull' ali rosee...Miserere...Tu vedrai", I went in search of additional insights on the plot (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aPoXJsYfVk&t=48s; https://www.metopera.org/discover/synopses/il-trovatore/).
Wow! Give me an opera in Spain set against a backdrop of war, religion and class conflict. Add a count, a noble woman, a troubadour, star-crossed lovers, gypsies, a curse, revenge, mistaken identities, and a tragic dénouement and I'm all in. From what I've read, so was the audience when this opera (based on the 1836 play "El trovador" by Antonio García Gutiérrez) premiered in 1853 at Rome's Teatro Apollo. I look forward to experiencing the musical, thematic, and emotional complexity of this masterpiece, as have so many others through the ages (https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/works/59496--verdi-il-trovatore/browse).
So, where do I fall along the fault lines of appreciation for the artists featured in this week's reading? No one can argue with the great Leontyne Price's technical virtuosity, who I enjoyed listening to as a child (https://michiganopera.org/celebration-of-leontyne-prices-94th-birthday/). Nevertheless, Sondra Radvanovsky and Montserrat Caballé won the week for me. I love the agility, lyricism and beauty of their soprano voices. I feel that they connect me to their own emotions as artists, as well as to those suggested by the character portrayed.
Non-singer and non-musician question: I'm curious . . .what direction from the composer (a written or verbal instruction from Verdi?) prompts the singers to trill and/or escalate their voices along a higher and higher scale at certain points in the opera? Is there a term for that, or is this bel canto improvisation that has become a tradition?
P.S. Also, whether by accident or design, and despite its tragic themes, "Il Trovatore" was a fine Mother's Day choice. In this second pandemic year, when so many must approach this day with a sense of grief and loss, I hope all who read this will feel peace🕊, if not joy, this Mother's Day🙏.
Michele, after this first quick reading, I wanted to thank you right away for such an insightful and informative reply. It's one thing to sit in the audience and applaud a finished production. It's an entirely new level of appreciation when you have a sense of how the parts combine to create the whole. It occurred to me that while you've highlighted opera as art/artists weekly, your links to master classes, rehearsals, interviews and the like have subtly schooled us about the craftsmanship involved. Plus, I never tire of anecdotes about Maria Callas, nor of the related artworks you post. You amaze me. Thanks again for your comprehensive answer, and for laying out new paths for exploration.
Happy Mother's Day to you, to your opera-loving Mom, and to your friend and colleague, Heather Johnson!🥂)