Verdi Forum Number 11 Article 3 3-1-1983 Abstracts James Hepokoski Oberlin College David Lawton SUNY Stony Brook Martin Chusid New York University Andrew Hornick New York University John Nádas University of California, Santa Barbara See next page for additional authors Follow this and additional works at: http://scholarship.richmond.edu/vf Part of the Musicology Commons, Music Performance Commons, and the Music Theory Commons Recommended Citation Hepokoski, James; Lawton, David; Chusid, Martin; Hornick, Andrew; Nádas, John; Tomlinson, Gary; Garrison, Leonard; Powers, Harold S.; Harwood, Gregory W.; Beams, Richard B.; Cole, William P.; Cordell, Albert O.; Davis, Marianne; Frye, Loryn E.; King, Ben; Mason, James; McCauley, William E.; and Town, Stephen (1983) "Abstracts," Verdi Forum: No. 11, Article 3. Available at: http://scholarship.richmond.edu/vf/vol1/iss11/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by UR Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Verdi Forum by an authorized administrator of UR Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Abstracts Abstract Abstracts of papers about Giuseppe Verdi and his works, presented at joint meetings of the AIVS and Greater NY Chapter of the American Musicological Society, 1979-81 (Hepokoski, Lawton, Chusid, Hornick, Nádas, Tomlinson, Garrison, Powers), at the 1982 national meeting of the American Musicological Society (Harwood), and at an NEH-sponsored summer seminar at NYU in 1980 (Beams, Cole, Cordell, Davis, Fry, King, Mason, McCauley, Town). Keywords Giuseppe Verdi, opera Authors James Hepokoski, David Lawton, Martin Chusid, Andrew Hornick, John Nádas, Gary Tomlinson, Leonard Garrison, Harold S. Powers, Gregory W. Harwood, Richard B. Beams, William P. Cole, Albert O. Cordell, Marianne Davis, Loryn E. Frye, Ben King, James Mason, William E. McCauley, and Stephen Town This article is available in Verdi Forum: http://scholarship.richmond.edu/vf/vol1/iss11/3 Abstracts AIVS-AMS (1979-1982) The Paris Version of Verdi's Falstaff (1979) James A. Hepokoski, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH Verdi's insistence on revising portions and involve both text and music; two of Falstaff for special productions are modifications of individual notes. after its premiere in Milan (February The five revisions appeared in the first 1893) led him to sanction no less than French edition (March-April 1894) three versions of the opera: the Milan­ but were not reflected in any Italian ese, the Roman (April 1893), and the edition until 1897, when, translated, Parisian (April 1894). For Paris, Verdi they were all incorporated into a new not only authorized the Boito-Solanges Ricordi piano-vocal score. Modern translations into French but also re­ scores almost universally fail to in­ vised five passages of Falstaff a few clude two of the five revisions. months before the production.* The Paris changes raise three funda­ Three of the changes are substantial mental questions: (1) Since Verdi *They are set out in Mr. Hepokoski's of Verdi, 3, in JAMS 35 (Fall 1982), review of Julian Budden: The Operas 581. (Ed.) 21 never entered them into the autograph relationship with the composer, it is score, did he in fact compose them? difficult to maintain that the 1897 Unpublished correspondence and a score violates Verdi's intentions. (3) hitherto unidentified early manuscript How should these revisions affect version- now in private hands-of one modern performances? If historical of the changes leave no doubt that accuracy is a concern of the produc­ they are genuine. (2) Did he approve tion, the five Parisian revisions should of their transference to the 189 7 be performed or omitted as a group. Italian score? Written evidence, un­ The modern, hybrid Falstaff is histori­ fortunately, is lacking, but given the cally unjustifiable. history of the revisions and Ricordi's The Harmonic Language of Aida (1979) David Lawton, S.U.N.Y., Stony Brook, NY The chromatic harmony of Aida led example, linear analysis of the opening some early critics to accusP. Verdi of period reveals that there are three having capitulated to Wagnerian influ­ separate lines embedded within the ence. A closer look at the chromaticism vocal melody, all unfolding at differ­ in Verdi's score reveals that it has little ent rates of speed. The generation of in common with the altered and sym­ unusual chord progressions from a metrical chords with multiple root ref­ counterpoint between a top voice and erences that Wagner used to move easily a bass line that to some extent contra­ and quickly between remote key areas. dicts the harmonic implications of the The structural voices- the vocal part melodic line is characteristic of the and the bass line- in much of Aida are harmonic language of Aida. The fundamentally diatonic at higher chromaticism that these progressions structural levels. Altered tones appear often cause frequently functions as a predominantly in the inner voices, and local summary of important large­ they often have a unifying or associa­ scale tonal relations. tive function. In "Celeste Aida," for The Don and the Duke: Parallels Between Don Giovanni (1979) and Rigoletto Martin Chusid, New York University Don Giovanni, the opera by Mozart Copenhagen, August 1972, reprinted most frequently performed in Italy Verdi Bollettino 9, 1982) and con­ during Verdi's lifetime and which he tinued with "Gilda's Fall" Qoint meet­ studied with his composition teacher, ing of the American Institute for Verdi Lavigna, offered a model for the Italian Studies and the Greater New York composer's exploration in the drama­ Chapter of the A. M. S., New York tic use of tonality. This paper con­ University, December 1976). The third tinues the author's analysis of key paper in this series offers new views symbolism in Verdi's earliest undis­ on tonal organization in Don Giovanni puted masterpiece which began with and suggests ways in which Verdi both "Rigoletto and Monterone: A Study followed and deviated from his model in Musical Dramaturgy" (Proceedings while composing Rigoletto. of the XI Congress of the I. M. S., 22 Stiffelio into Aroldo, A Study of the Revision (1979) Andrew Hornick, New York University A number of Verdi's operas exist in siderable impact as a result of these more than one version. Well-known alterations. This was clearly evident works such as Don Carlos and Macbeth to Verdi, who undertook a more com­ have been extensively researched to as­ plete reorganization of both the music certain the rationale and the extent of and the libretto. Aro/do (1857) is the musical and textual changes. However, result of these efforts. little attention has been paid in the The paper outlines the musical and literature to the substantial difference textual distinctions between Stiffelio between two lesser-known works,,Stif­ and Aro/do, giving special attention to felio and Aro/do. the relationship between the two types Sti[[elio was first produced in 1850, of revision. In summary, good coordi­ but religious pressure soon forced alter­ nation exists between the revised ations of the_plot, in which the wife of music and libretto, but many of the a minister commits adultery. The dramatic highlights of Stiffelio lose moral lesson of the story loses con- focus in Araldo. New Light on the Pre-1869 Revisions of La forza del destino ( 1980) John Nadas, University of California, Santa Barbara The revision of La f orza de/ destino ters in the AIVS archive bear directly appears to have engaged Verdi's atten­ on Forza. And although many of these tion for five years: from first thoughts were reported briefly in the Institute's late in the summer of 1863- after the Newsletter No. 7 of 1979, much more Madrid production which he directed­ is the fruit of research and filming in until the winter of 1868, just a few Italy from June of 1979 to September months prior to the Milan premiere of 1980: {1) Correspondence in the Sant' the definitive second version. For the Agata collection from the Ricardi firm, student of Verdi, this period signals Leon Escudier, Angelo Mariani, Fran­ an important stage of a richly docu­ cesco Maria Piave (with libretto mate- mented career, including as it does the rials as well), and Giuseppina Strep­ revision of Macbeth and the composi­ poni Verdi's Copialettere (5 volumes, tion of Don Carlos - both for the Paris beginning with letters from 1860); (2) stage and therefore constituting long­ New letters from friends, singers, pub­ distance efforts that generated much lishers, and impresarios in the Sant' correspondence. Just how extensive Agata collection. The most important this documentation is has never been are those from Mauro Corticelli, En­ fully appreciated until the work of the rico and Achille Tamberlick, Bagier, past two decades unearthed an as­ Gaetano Fraschini, Angelo Mariani, tounding amount of surviving cor­ Emile Perrin and Leon Escudier; (3) respondence. Materials from libraries and archives On the surface it would appear that around the world, including the His­ the period between the two Forzas torical Society of Pennsylvania, the (1863-68) has been dealt with fully Berlin Deutsche Staatsbibliothek, the in the scholarly literature. But with Museo Teatrale in Milan, and libraries the assembling of materials from many in Rome, Forli, and Ravenna. The widely scattered sources, fresh insights most significant additions of docu­ are possible. New documents and let- ments from outside Sant'Agata come 23 plays. Hugo's realism involved a join­ Astolfo. Most interestingly, he gives ing of comic and grotesque elements musical expression to the conflicting with the beautiful .and sublime to sides of Lucrezia's ambivalent person­ which tragedy had previously limited ality in the two recurring themes of itself. It involved a profound fidelity the opera. to the inner spirit of the period and Verdi extended and deepened the people on stage.