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CD1 CD2 1 Overture ...... 7:43 1 Messa da Dies irae ...... 2:20 2 La forza del destino Pace, pace, mio Dio . . . . . 5:28 2 Messa da Requiem mirum ...... 1:53 3 La forza del destino Solenne in quest’ora . . . . 3:30 3 Messa da Requiem Ingemisco ...... 3:35 4 Va pensiero, sull’ali dorate ...... 4:40 4 Libiamo, ne’ lieti calici ...... 2:56 5 Surta è la notte...Ernani, involami . . . . . 6:38 5 La Traviata È strano! È strano! ...... 4:30 6 Patria oppressa! ...... 5:50 6 La Traviata Sempre libera ...... 3:38 7 Quando le sere al placido ...... 5:06 7 La Traviata Lunge da lei...De’ miei bollenti 8 Questa o quella ...... 1:37 spiriti ...... 3:44 9 Rigoletto Pari siamo! ...... 3:25 8 La Traviata Di Provenza il mar ...... 4:00 0 Rigoletto Gualtier Maldè ...... 0:43 9 È lui! Desso l’!...Dio, che ! Rigoletto Caro nome ...... 5:46 nell’alma infondere ...... 7:25 @ Rigoletto Cortigiani, vil razza dannata ...... 4:16 0 Se quel guerrier io fossi... . . 4:27 # Rigoletto La donna è mobile ...... 2:56 ! Aida Ritorno vincitor...I sacri nomi di padre, $ Vedi le fosche notturne ...... 2:51 d’amante ...... 6:26 % Il Trovatore Il balen del suo sorriso ...... 3:24 @ Aida Gloria all’Egitto ...... 3:20 ^ Il Trovatore Ah, sì, ben mio, coll’essere ...... 2:53 # Aida Marcia ...... 1:35 & Il Trovatore ...... 3:14 $ Aida Ballet Music ...... 4:49 * Il Trovatore D’amor sull’ali rosee ...... 3:48 % Fuoco di gioia ...... 2:41 ( Di’ tu se fedele ...... 3:04 ^ Otello Mia madre aveva una povera ancella... Total Timing ...... 77:44 Piangea cantando (Willow Song)...Ave Maria 14:21 & Ehi! Paggio!...L’Onore! Ladri!...... 4:16 Total Timing ...... 76:40

FOR FULL LIST OF VERDI RECORDINGS WITH ARTIST DETAILS AND FOR A GLOSSARY OF MUSICAL TERMS PLEASE GO TO WWW.NAXOS.COM 552121-22bk VBO Verdi 10/2/06 7:04 PM Page 2

GIUSEPPE VERDI (1813-1901) FALSTAFF Première: at the Teatro alla Scala on 9 February 1893 HIS LIFE Falstaff, Verdi’s last and only comic , is based on Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. On the gala night, encores were given and the applause continued for over twenty minutes after curtain-fall. By this time, aged Verdi dominated the world of from his first considerable success in 1842 with Nabucco until his final almost eighty, Verdi must have realised that Falstaff would be his last work. Shakespearean , Otello, staged at , Milan, in 1887, and Falstaff, mounted at the same opera-house Ehi! Paggio!... L’onore! Ladri! (CD 2, track 17) in 1893. His career coincided with the rise of Italian nationalism and the unification of the country, causes with In ‘Ehi! paggio!…L’onore! Ladri!’, Falstaff sends messages with his page, while verbally abusing his two which he was openly associated. henchmen, Bardolph and Pistol. HIS MUSIC To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: LA FORZA DEL DESTINO Falstaff (Complete) ...... 8.660050-51 Première: St. Petersburg, Russia, on 10 November 1862 Falstaff (Highlights) ...... 8.555846 The opera deals with the workings of fate, as Alvaro is accidentally instrumental in the death of the father of his Falstaff (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558158 beloved Leonora and therefore suffers the vengeance of her brother Carlo, who finally kills his sister as he himself lies dying. Interested in further selections from Verdi’s operas? Other Naxos recordings on offer: Overture (CD 1, track 1) Overtures: From the striking three-note unison that begins the overture we are swept through a medley of the opera’s most Verdi: Overtures, Vol. 1 ...... 8.553018 memorable tunes, most famously, a dominating string melody that becomes a recurring theme. Verdi: Overtures, Vol. 2 ...... 8.553089 Pace, pace, mio Dio (CD 1, track 2) Verdi: Overtures / Preludes / Ballet Music ...... 8.554077 In ‘Pace, pace, mio Dio’ (Peace, grant me peace, O God), Leonora prays outside her cell for a peace that she has Choruses: never known, complaining that the bread left for her, out of charity, only prolongs her misery. Verdi: Opera Choruses ...... 8.550241 Solenne in quest’ora (CD 1, track 3) Italian Opera Choruses ...... 8.553963 The duet between Carlos and Alvaro, ‘Solenne in quest’ora’, occurs in Act III, when Alvaro is wounded in battle Arias, Duets and more: and asks Carlos to carry out his last wishes and destroy papers he has with him, papers that would reveal his Arias ...... 8.557109 identity. Arias ...... 8.557269 Famous Tenor Arias ...... 8.550497 NABUCCO Great Operatic Arias for ...... 8.555922 Première: Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 9 March 1842 Nessun Dorma and Other Favourite Italian Arias ...... 8.554065 Nebuchadnezzar captures the Israelites and takes them into servitude. Nebuchadnezzar’s eventual madness is Duets and Arias from Italian Operas ...... 8.550684 relieved when he prays to the god of Israel. Pearl Fishers and Other Famous Operatic Duets ...... 8.555797 Va pensiero, sull’ali dorate (CD 1, track 4) The Best of Opera, Vol. 1 ...... 8.553166 ‘Va, pensiero, sull’ali dorate’ (Fly, my thoughts, on golden wings) is sung by the chorus of Hebrew slaves, toiling in exile and slavery by the waters of Babylon. ERNANI Première: at the Teatro on 9 March 1844 Based on the stage success Hérnani by , Ernani is Verdi’s first opera set in Spain. It presents sharp contrasts between day and night, love and duty, personal ethics and religion, young and old.

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DON CARLOS Surta è la notte… Ernani, involami (CD 1, track 5) Première : Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 10 January 1884 In ‘Ernani, Ernani, involami’, Elvira feels like a hostage in the castle of her guardian, Don Ruy Gomez da Silva, an The story is set in sixteenth century and Spain, dealing with the rivalry between the Infante Don Carlos and old aristocrat who wants to marry her. She hopes to be kidnapped by the bandit hero Ernani: his mountain cave his father, Philip II of Spain, for the love of Elisabeth de Valois, daughter of the King of France. will be heaven compared with her gilded cage. In the closing she bursts into an outright declaration of love. E lui! Desso! l’Infante!... Dio, che nell’alma infondere (CD 2, track 9) MACBETH Carlos is dismayed at seeing Elisabeth again, and he and his friend Rodrigo swear eternal friendship. Première: Florence at the Teatro della Pergola on 14 March 1847 To hear the full opera, please see: Verdi’s first Shakespearean opera, Macbeth, is an effective transposition of the original play, with the three Don Carlos (Complete) ...... 8.660096-98 witches that provoke Macbeth to his acts of regicide and usurpation represented by a tripartite chorus of witches. Patria oppressa! (CD 1, track 6) AIDA ‘Patria oppressa’ (Oppressed homeland) opens Act IV. Here, those who have been forced to seek refuge in Première: Cairo at the Opera House on 24 December 1871 England from Macbeth’s oppression lament the fate of their country, soon to be freed by the murdered king’s son, Written for the new Cairo Opera House, Aida is set in Egypt, where the Egyptian general Radamès is divided Malcolm. between his loyalty to his country and his love for the captured princess Aida. LUISA MILLER Se quel guerrier io fossi… Celeste Aida (CD 2, track 10) Première: at the Teatro San Carlo on 8 December 1849 Radamès sings the praises of his beloved, the captured princess Aida. Based on Schiller’s 1784 melodrama Kabale und Liebe (), the opera tells of the title character’s Ritorna vincitor... I sacri nomi di padre, d’amante (CD 2, track 11) love for Rodolfo, son of Count Walter, and the machinations of Walter to keep them apart, to conceal the fact that Aida is troubled by the prospect of her lover’s victory over her own people, as he leaves to lead the Egyptian army he has come into his noble title through murder. against the Ethiopians. Quando le sere al placido (CD 1, track 7) Gloria all’Egitto (CD 2, track 12)—Marcia (CD 2, track 13)—Ballet Music (CD 2, track 14) Falsely convinced of Luisa’s faithlessness, Rodolfo sings of his heartbreak in ‘Quando le sere al placido’ (When This triumphal chorus from Act II of the opera marks the return of Radamès, victorious over Aida’s father, the the nights were peaceful). Ethiopian king Amonasro. RIGOLETTO To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: Première: Venice at the Teatro La Fenice on 11 March 1851 Aida (Complete) ...... 8.660033-34 The opera deals with the fate of the hunchback court jester Rigoletto, who abets the lascivious Duke of Mantua in Aida (Highlights) ...... 8.554706 his amorous exploits only to have his own beloved daughter Gilda seduced by the Duke, his master. Aida (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558509 Questa o quella (CD 1, track 8) In ‘Questa o quella’ (This or that woman), the Duke explains how all beauties are the same to him and he has no OTELLO intention of tying himself to a single one. Première: Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 5 February 1887 Jealous of his young Venetian wife Desdemona and through the machinations of the wicked Iago, the Moor Pari siamo! (CD 1, track 9) Othello, principal general in the service of Venice, kills her, then discovers his jealousy was unjustifed. Rigoletto draws a comparison between himself and a hired assassin: he recalls a courtier’s curse and expresses his contempt for the servants of the Duke. Fuoco di gioia (CD 2, track 15) The chorus ‘Fuoco di gioia’ (Fire of joy) comes in Act I, when Otello’s ship has safely weathered the storm to Gualtier Maldè (CD 1, track 10) reach Cyprus. The Duke declares his love for Rigoletto’s daughter Gilda, giving her an assumed name and not revealing his true identity. Mia madre aveva una povera ancella … Piangea cantando (Willow Song) … Ave Maria (CD 2, track 16) Here, in the final act of the opera, Desdemona prepares for bed, recalling the gentle Willow Song of her childhood Caro nome (CD 1, track 11) and offering a prayer to the Blessed Virgin as her death draws near. Once he has gone, Gilda muses on his dear name.

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Cortigiani, vil razza dannata (CD 1, track 12) Di’ tu se fedele (CD 1, track 19) Rigoletto realizes that Gilda is with the Duke; he curses the conniving courtiers, and in desperation tries to open In ‘Di’ tu se fedele’ (Say if the flood awaits me) Riccardo consults the witch Ulrica, who tells him he will be killed the doors of the inner chamber, to be held back by the courtiers, while he begs them all to have pity on him. by the hand of a friend. La donna è mobile (CD 1, track 13) MESSA DA REQUIEM The most famous Verdi aria is this celebration of the fickleness of women sung by the Duke at the end of the opera. First performance: Milan at the Church of San Marco on 22 May 1874. To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: Dies irae (CD 2, track 1) Rigoletto (Complete) ...... 8.660013-14 Terror strikes with the forceful opening of the Dies irae (Day of wrath), the chorus’ strength reinforced by the Rigoletto (Highlights) ...... 8.553042 drum. Rigoletto (Opera Explained)...... 8.558048 Tuba mirum (CD 2, track 2) In Tuba mirum spargens sonum ( scattering wondrous sound), a fanfare of is answered from IL TROVATORE the distance. Première: Rome at the Teatro Apollo on 19 January 1853 Ingemisco (CD 2, track 3) Il Trovatore, set in northern Spain at the beginning of the fifteenth century, is a tale of nobles and gypsies and the Here the tenor sings Ingemisco tamquam reus (I groan in my guilt), written in a style that carries the mass very vengeful circumstances that bring them together to share tragedy. close to opera. Vedi le fosche notturne (CD 1, track 14) At their camp in the mountains the gypsies welcome the dawn, with ‘Vedi le fosche notturne spoglie’ (See, the Requiem / ...... 8.550944-45 darkness of night dissolves), before the old gypsy Azucena recalls the scene of her mother’s death at the stake. LA TRAVIATA Il balen del suo sorriso (CD 1, track 15) Première: Venice at the Teatro La Fenice on 6 March 1853 The Count recalls the light of Leonora’s smile, which conquers reason, of his love and of the tempest in his heart. Based on a work by the younger Alexandre Dumas (La dame aux camélias), La Traviata centres on the relationship Ah, sì, ben mio (CD 1, track 16) between the young Alfredo and the courtesan Violetta, who is persuaded by Alfredo’s father to end their affair, In ‘Ah, sì, ben mio’, Manrico acknowledges the strength that he finds in the love of Leonora. while not revealing to her lover the reason for her action. Di quella pira (CD 1, track 17) Libiamo, ne’ lieti calici (CD 2, track 4) Count di Luna sentences Azucena to a fiery death at the stake on suspicion of spying, and Manrico sets off to The drinking-song, Libiamo ne’lieti calici, is introduced by Alfredo at a party at Violetta’s house. rescue her in ‘Di quella pira’. È strano! È strano!... Ah, fors’è lui / Sempre libera (CD 2, tracks 5-6) D’amor sull’ali rosee (CD 1, track 18) Manrico, captured, is imprisoned in the Count’s palace. Leonora stands Violetta, after their first meeting, wonders whether at last Alfredo has aroused true love in her heart. In ‘Sempre below the tower, from which she hopes to rescue her lover and sings that Love will bring comfort to the mind of libera’ (Always free) Violetta puts such thoughts out of her head. the prisoner. Lunge da lei… De’ miei bollenti spiriti (CD 2, track 7) To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: Alfredo sings of his happiness with Violetta, soon to be brought to an end. Il Trovatore (Complete) ...... 8.660023-24 Di Provenza il mar (CD 2, track 8) Il Trovatore (Highlights) ...... 8.554707 Alfredo’s father reminds him of his home, ‘Di Provenza il mar’, now that Violetta is gone, but the young man Il Trovatore (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558079 impetuously rushes away to find and reproach her for leaving him. UN BALLO IN MASCHERA To hear the full opera or just highlights, please try: Première: Rome at the Teatro Apollo on 17 February 1859 La Traviata (Complete) ...... 8.660011-12 Un ballo in maschera suffered at the hands of the censors, who objected to its theme of regicide. The action was La Traviata (Highlights) ...... 8.553041 then transferred from the Sweden of Gustav III to the Boston of Riccardo, Count of Warwick, a North American La Traviata (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558050 setting at the end of the seventeenth century. 4 8.552121-22 8.552121-22 5 552121-22bk VBO Verdi 10/2/06 7:04 PM Page 4

Cortigiani, vil razza dannata (CD 1, track 12) Di’ tu se fedele (CD 1, track 19) Rigoletto realizes that Gilda is with the Duke; he curses the conniving courtiers, and in desperation tries to open In ‘Di’ tu se fedele’ (Say if the flood awaits me) Riccardo consults the witch Ulrica, who tells him he will be killed the doors of the inner chamber, to be held back by the courtiers, while he begs them all to have pity on him. by the hand of a friend. La donna è mobile (CD 1, track 13) MESSA DA REQUIEM The most famous Verdi aria is this celebration of the fickleness of women sung by the Duke at the end of the opera. First performance: Milan at the Church of San Marco on 22 May 1874. To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: Dies irae (CD 2, track 1) Rigoletto (Complete) ...... 8.660013-14 Terror strikes with the forceful opening of the Dies irae (Day of wrath), the chorus’ strength reinforced by the bass Rigoletto (Highlights) ...... 8.553042 drum. Rigoletto (Opera Explained)...... 8.558048 Tuba mirum (CD 2, track 2) In Tuba mirum spargens sonum (Trumpet scattering wondrous sound), a fanfare of trumpets is answered from IL TROVATORE the distance. Première: Rome at the Teatro Apollo on 19 January 1853 Ingemisco (CD 2, track 3) Il Trovatore, set in northern Spain at the beginning of the fifteenth century, is a tale of nobles and gypsies and the Here the tenor sings Ingemisco tamquam reus (I groan in my guilt), written in a style that carries the mass very vengeful circumstances that bring them together to share tragedy. close to opera. Vedi le fosche notturne (CD 1, track 14) At their camp in the mountains the gypsies welcome the dawn, with ‘Vedi le fosche notturne spoglie’ (See, the Requiem / Quattro Pezzi Sacri ...... 8.550944-45 darkness of night dissolves), before the old gypsy Azucena recalls the scene of her mother’s death at the stake. LA TRAVIATA Il balen del suo sorriso (CD 1, track 15) Première: Venice at the Teatro La Fenice on 6 March 1853 The Count recalls the light of Leonora’s smile, which conquers reason, of his love and of the tempest in his heart. Based on a work by the younger Alexandre Dumas (La dame aux camélias), La Traviata centres on the relationship Ah, sì, ben mio (CD 1, track 16) between the young Alfredo and the courtesan Violetta, who is persuaded by Alfredo’s father to end their affair, In ‘Ah, sì, ben mio’, Manrico acknowledges the strength that he finds in the love of Leonora. while not revealing to her lover the reason for her action. Di quella pira (CD 1, track 17) Libiamo, ne’ lieti calici (CD 2, track 4) Count di Luna sentences Azucena to a fiery death at the stake on suspicion of spying, and Manrico sets off to The drinking-song, Libiamo ne’lieti calici, is introduced by Alfredo at a party at Violetta’s house. rescue her in ‘Di quella pira’. È strano! È strano!... Ah, fors’è lui / Sempre libera (CD 2, tracks 5-6) D’amor sull’ali rosee (CD 1, track 18) Manrico, captured, is imprisoned in the Count’s palace. Leonora stands Violetta, after their first meeting, wonders whether at last Alfredo has aroused true love in her heart. In ‘Sempre below the tower, from which she hopes to rescue her lover and sings that Love will bring comfort to the mind of libera’ (Always free) Violetta puts such thoughts out of her head. the prisoner. Lunge da lei… De’ miei bollenti spiriti (CD 2, track 7) To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: Alfredo sings of his happiness with Violetta, soon to be brought to an end. Il Trovatore (Complete) ...... 8.660023-24 Di Provenza il mar (CD 2, track 8) Il Trovatore (Highlights) ...... 8.554707 Alfredo’s father reminds him of his home, ‘Di Provenza il mar’, now that Violetta is gone, but the young man Il Trovatore (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558079 impetuously rushes away to find and reproach her for leaving him. UN BALLO IN MASCHERA To hear the full opera or just highlights, please try: Première: Rome at the Teatro Apollo on 17 February 1859 La Traviata (Complete) ...... 8.660011-12 Un ballo in maschera suffered at the hands of the censors, who objected to its theme of regicide. The action was La Traviata (Highlights) ...... 8.553041 then transferred from the Sweden of Gustav III to the Boston of Riccardo, Count of Warwick, a North American La Traviata (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558050 setting at the end of the seventeenth century. 4 8.552121-22 8.552121-22 5 552121-22bk VBO Verdi 10/2/06 7:04 PM Page 6

DON CARLOS Surta è la notte… Ernani, involami (CD 1, track 5) Première : Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 10 January 1884 In ‘Ernani, Ernani, involami’, Elvira feels like a hostage in the castle of her guardian, Don Ruy Gomez da Silva, an The story is set in sixteenth century France and Spain, dealing with the rivalry between the Infante Don Carlos and old aristocrat who wants to marry her. She hopes to be kidnapped by the bandit hero Ernani: his mountain cave his father, Philip II of Spain, for the love of Elisabeth de Valois, daughter of the King of France. will be heaven compared with her gilded cage. In the closing cabaletta she bursts into an outright declaration of love. E lui! Desso! l’Infante!... Dio, che nell’alma infondere (CD 2, track 9) MACBETH Carlos is dismayed at seeing Elisabeth again, and he and his friend Rodrigo swear eternal friendship. Première: Florence at the Teatro della Pergola on 14 March 1847 To hear the full opera, please see: Verdi’s first Shakespearean opera, Macbeth, is an effective transposition of the original play, with the three Don Carlos (Complete) ...... 8.660096-98 witches that provoke Macbeth to his acts of regicide and usurpation represented by a tripartite chorus of witches. Patria oppressa! (CD 1, track 6) AIDA ‘Patria oppressa’ (Oppressed homeland) opens Act IV. Here, those who have been forced to seek refuge in Première: Cairo at the Opera House on 24 December 1871 England from Macbeth’s oppression lament the fate of their country, soon to be freed by the murdered king’s son, Written for the new Cairo Opera House, Aida is set in Egypt, where the Egyptian general Radamès is divided Malcolm. between his loyalty to his country and his love for the captured princess Aida. LUISA MILLER Se quel guerrier io fossi… Celeste Aida (CD 2, track 10) Première: Naples at the Teatro San Carlo on 8 December 1849 Radamès sings the praises of his beloved, the captured princess Aida. Based on Schiller’s 1784 melodrama Kabale und Liebe (Intrigue and Love), the opera tells of the title character’s Ritorna vincitor... I sacri nomi di padre, d’amante (CD 2, track 11) love for Rodolfo, son of Count Walter, and the machinations of Walter to keep them apart, to conceal the fact that Aida is troubled by the prospect of her lover’s victory over her own people, as he leaves to lead the Egyptian army he has come into his noble title through murder. against the Ethiopians. Quando le sere al placido (CD 1, track 7) Gloria all’Egitto (CD 2, track 12)—Marcia (CD 2, track 13)—Ballet Music (CD 2, track 14) Falsely convinced of Luisa’s faithlessness, Rodolfo sings of his heartbreak in ‘Quando le sere al placido’ (When This triumphal chorus from Act II of the opera marks the return of Radamès, victorious over Aida’s father, the the nights were peaceful). Ethiopian king Amonasro. RIGOLETTO To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: Première: Venice at the Teatro La Fenice on 11 March 1851 Aida (Complete) ...... 8.660033-34 The opera deals with the fate of the hunchback court jester Rigoletto, who abets the lascivious Duke of Mantua in Aida (Highlights) ...... 8.554706 his amorous exploits only to have his own beloved daughter Gilda seduced by the Duke, his master. Aida (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558509 Questa o quella (CD 1, track 8) In ‘Questa o quella’ (This or that woman), the Duke explains how all beauties are the same to him and he has no OTELLO intention of tying himself to a single one. Première: Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 5 February 1887 Jealous of his young Venetian wife Desdemona and through the machinations of the wicked Iago, the Moor Pari siamo! (CD 1, track 9) Othello, principal general in the service of Venice, kills her, then discovers his jealousy was unjustifed. Rigoletto draws a comparison between himself and a hired assassin: he recalls a courtier’s curse and expresses his contempt for the servants of the Duke. Fuoco di gioia (CD 2, track 15) The chorus ‘Fuoco di gioia’ (Fire of joy) comes in Act I, when Otello’s ship has safely weathered the storm to Gualtier Maldè (CD 1, track 10) reach Cyprus. The Duke declares his love for Rigoletto’s daughter Gilda, giving her an assumed name and not revealing his true identity. Mia madre aveva una povera ancella … Piangea cantando (Willow Song) … Ave Maria (CD 2, track 16) Here, in the final act of the opera, Desdemona prepares for bed, recalling the gentle Willow Song of her childhood Caro nome (CD 1, track 11) and offering a prayer to the Blessed Virgin as her death draws near. Once he has gone, Gilda muses on his dear name.

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GIUSEPPE VERDI (1813-1901) FALSTAFF Première: Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 9 February 1893 HIS LIFE Falstaff, Verdi’s last and only comic opera, is based on Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor. On the gala night, encores were given and the applause continued for over twenty minutes after curtain-fall. By this time, aged Verdi dominated the world of Italian opera from his first considerable success in 1842 with Nabucco until his final almost eighty, Verdi must have realised that Falstaff would be his last work. Shakespearean operas, Otello, staged at La Scala, Milan, in 1887, and Falstaff, mounted at the same opera-house Ehi! Paggio!... L’onore! Ladri! (CD 2, track 17) in 1893. His career coincided with the rise of Italian nationalism and the unification of the country, causes with In ‘Ehi! paggio!…L’onore! Ladri!’, Falstaff sends messages with his page, while verbally abusing his two which he was openly associated. henchmen, Bardolph and Pistol. HIS MUSIC To hear the full opera or just highlights, please see: LA FORZA DEL DESTINO Falstaff (Complete) ...... 8.660050-51 Première: St. Petersburg, Russia, on 10 November 1862 Falstaff (Highlights) ...... 8.555846 The opera deals with the workings of fate, as Alvaro is accidentally instrumental in the death of the father of his Falstaff (Opera Explained) ...... 8.558158 beloved Leonora and therefore suffers the vengeance of her brother Carlo, who finally kills his sister as he himself lies dying. Interested in further selections from Verdi’s operas? Other Naxos recordings on offer: Overture (CD 1, track 1) Overtures: From the striking three-note unison that begins the overture we are swept through a medley of the opera’s most Verdi: Overtures, Vol. 1 ...... 8.553018 memorable tunes, most famously, a dominating string melody that becomes a recurring theme. Verdi: Overtures, Vol. 2 ...... 8.553089 Pace, pace, mio Dio (CD 1, track 2) Verdi: Overtures / Preludes / Ballet Music ...... 8.554077 In ‘Pace, pace, mio Dio’ (Peace, grant me peace, O God), Leonora prays outside her cell for a peace that she has Choruses: never known, complaining that the bread left for her, out of charity, only prolongs her misery. Verdi: Opera Choruses ...... 8.550241 Solenne in quest’ora (CD 1, track 3) Italian Opera Choruses ...... 8.553963 The duet between Carlos and Alvaro, ‘Solenne in quest’ora’, occurs in Act III, when Alvaro is wounded in battle Arias, Duets and more: and asks Carlos to carry out his last wishes and destroy papers he has with him, papers that would reveal his Soprano Arias ...... 8.557109 identity. Tenor Arias ...... 8.557269 Famous Tenor Arias ...... 8.550497 NABUCCO Great Operatic Arias for Baritone ...... 8.555922 Première: Milan at the Teatro alla Scala on 9 March 1842 Nessun Dorma and Other Favourite Italian Arias ...... 8.554065 Nebuchadnezzar captures the Israelites and takes them into servitude. Nebuchadnezzar’s eventual madness is Duets and Arias from Italian Operas ...... 8.550684 relieved when he prays to the god of Israel. Pearl Fishers and Other Famous Operatic Duets ...... 8.555797 Va pensiero, sull’ali dorate (CD 1, track 4) The Best of Opera, Vol. 1 ...... 8.553166 ‘Va, pensiero, sull’ali dorate’ (Fly, my thoughts, on golden wings) is sung by the chorus of Hebrew slaves, toiling in exile and slavery by the waters of Babylon. ERNANI Première: Venice at the Teatro La Fenice on 9 March 1844 Based on the stage success Hérnani by Victor Hugo, Ernani is Verdi’s first opera set in Spain. It presents sharp contrasts between day and night, love and duty, personal ethics and religion, young and old.

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CD1 CD2 1 La forza del destino Overture ...... 7:43 1 Messa da Requiem Dies irae ...... 2:20 2 La forza del destino Pace, pace, mio Dio . . . . . 5:28 2 Messa da Requiem Tuba mirum ...... 1:53 3 La forza del destino Solenne in quest’ora . . . . 3:30 3 Messa da Requiem Ingemisco ...... 3:35 4 Nabucco Va pensiero, sull’ali dorate ...... 4:40 4 La Traviata Libiamo, ne’ lieti calici ...... 2:56 5 Ernani Surta è la notte...Ernani, involami . . . . . 6:38 5 La Traviata È strano! È strano! ...... 4:30 6 Macbeth Patria oppressa! ...... 5:50 6 La Traviata Sempre libera ...... 3:38 7 Luisa Miller Quando le sere al placido ...... 5:06 7 La Traviata Lunge da lei...De’ miei bollenti 8 Rigoletto Questa o quella ...... 1:37 spiriti ...... 3:44 9 Rigoletto Pari siamo! ...... 3:25 8 La Traviata Di Provenza il mar ...... 4:00 0 Rigoletto Gualtier Maldè ...... 0:43 9 Don Carlos È lui! Desso l’Infante!...Dio, che ! Rigoletto Caro nome ...... 5:46 nell’alma infondere ...... 7:25 @ Rigoletto Cortigiani, vil razza dannata ...... 4:16 0 Aida Se quel guerrier io fossi...Celeste Aida . . 4:27 # Rigoletto La donna è mobile ...... 2:56 ! Aida Ritorno vincitor...I sacri nomi di padre, $ Il Trovatore Vedi le fosche notturne ...... 2:51 d’amante ...... 6:26 % Il Trovatore Il balen del suo sorriso ...... 3:24 @ Aida Gloria all’Egitto ...... 3:20 ^ Il Trovatore Ah, sì, ben mio, coll’essere ...... 2:53 # Aida Marcia ...... 1:35 & Il Trovatore Di quella pira ...... 3:14 $ Aida Ballet Music ...... 4:49 * Il Trovatore D’amor sull’ali rosee ...... 3:48 % Otello Fuoco di gioia ...... 2:41 ( Un ballo in maschera Di’ tu se fedele ...... 3:04 ^ Otello Mia madre aveva una povera ancella... Total Timing ...... 77:44 Piangea cantando (Willow Song)...Ave Maria 14:21 & Falstaff Ehi! Paggio!...L’Onore! Ladri!...... 4:16 Total Timing ...... 76:40

FOR FULL LIST OF VERDI RECORDINGS WITH ARTIST DETAILS AND FOR A GLOSSARY OF MUSICAL TERMS PLEASE GO TO WWW.NAXOS.COM NAXOS 8.552121-22 Va pensiero, sull’ali dorate Va Quando le sere al placido Nabucco Libiamo, ne’ lieti calici • 4 Se quel Luisa Miller 7 Aida $ La Traviata – Mia madre aveva 8 0 – 4 (Verdi) Patria oppressa! Ave Maria Ave Fuoco di gioia • Macbeth Di’ tu se fedele Otello much, much better” much, much 6 ^ – % 1990-2004 Naxos Rights International Ltd 2006 Naxos Rights International Ltd 8.552121-22 ISBN 1-84379-219-2 Cartoon: John Minnion www.naxos.com Overture • Pace, pace, mio Dio • Solenne in quest’ora Overture • Pace, pace, mio Dio Dies irae • Tuba mirum • Ingemisco Dies irae • Tuba Un ballo in maschera ( Vedi le fosche notturne • Il balen del suo sorriso • Ah, sì, ben mio, coll’essere • Di quella pira • le fosche notturne • Il balen del suo sorriso • Ah, sì, ben Vedi Questa o quella • Pari siamo! • Gualtier Maldè • Caro nome • Cortigiani, vil razza dannata • La donna è mobile • Gualtier Maldè • Caro nome • Cortigiani, vil razza dannata Questa o quella • Pari siamo! È lui! Desso l’Infante!...Dio, che nell’alma infondere Ehi! paggio!...L’Onore! Ladri! “It may be a good thing to copy reality; but to invent reality is to invent reality copy reality; but a good thing to “It may be Surta è la notte...Ernani, involami Messa da Requiem La forza del destino Rigoletto Il Trovatore 3 3 # * Don Carlos Falstaff Ernani – – – – Compact Disc 2 1 libera • Lunge da lei...De’È strano! È strano! • Sempre spiriti • Di Provenza il mar miei bollenti 9 guerrier io fossi...Celeste Aida • Ritorno vincitor...I sacri nomi di padre, d’amante • • Ballet Music Gloria all’Egitto • Marcia una povera ancella...Piangea cantando (Willow Song)... & Compact Disc 1 1 5 8 $ D’amor sull’ali rosee Giuseppe Verdi was the greatest of the late-nineteenth–century was the carrying Italian opera composers, Giuseppe Verdi of the legacy Rossini forward realistic storylines, with more This in his opera settings. out the political headlines seemingly playing frequently performed excerpts from the most 2-CD set includes including selections works of Verdi, and recorded and his Requiem Mass. from over a dozen operas

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