The Verdi that inspired Finnissy
Posted: November 29, 2016 Filed under: Academia, Music - General, Musicology, New Music, Theatre | Tags: aida, alzira, aroldo, attila, deptford town hall, don carlo, don carlos, ernani, falstaff, giuseppe verdi, goldsmith's college, i due foscari, i lombardi, i masnadieri, ian pace, il corsaro, il trovatore, jérusalem, la battaglia di legnano, la forza del destino, la traviata, Les vêpres siciliennes, luisa miller, macbeth, michael finnissy, missa da requiem, nabucco, oberto, otello, simon boccanegra, stiffelio, un ballo di maschera, un giorno di regno 3 CommentsThis coming Thursday, December 1st, will see the ninth concert in my series of the complete piano works of Michael Finnissy, at Deptford Town Hall, Goldsmith’s College, beginning at 18:00 (with a 15-minute talk between myself and the composer, followed by the performance immediately afterwards). This cycle, which I have recorded in its earlier incarnation, and which was considerably expanded (to around twice the original duration, and four books referencing every Verdi opera) in 2004-2005, is one for which I hold a special affection, as Book 1 was the first music of Finnissy I ever learned.
As earlier with Finnissy’s Gershwin Arrangements, I thought some would find it informative to be able to listen to the Verdi originals before the concert, so I have made this blog containing all of the numbers/sections in question, in the same order as they appear in the Finnissy cycle.
I hope many people will be able to come along on Thursday, and bring others!
Book 1
No. 1: Aria: ‘Sciagatura! a questo lido ricercai l’amante infido!’, Oberto (Act 2)
(From 2:00:50)
No. 2: Trio: ‘Bella speranza in vero’, Un Giorno di Regno (Act 1)
No. 3: Chorus: ‘Il maledetto non ha fratelli’, Nabucco (Part 2)
No. 4: Chorus:‘Fra tante sciagure…’, I Lombardi (Act 3)
(From 1:33:24)
No. 5: Septet with Chorus: ‘Vedi come il buon vegliardo…’, Ernani (Part 1)
No. 6:Choral Barcarolle: ‘Tace il vento, è queta l’onda’, I Due Foscari (Act 3)
(From 1:15:34)
No. 7: Aria: ‘So che per via di triboli’, Giovanna d’Arco (Act 1)
(from 4:35)
No. 8: Duet: ‘Il pianto…l’angoscia…di lean mi priva’, Alzira (Act 2)
(From 1:03:27)
No. 9: Aria: ‘Mentre gonfiarsi l’Anima’, Attila (Act 1)
Book 2
No. 10: Duetto: ‘Vanitosi! Che abietti e dormenti’, Attila (Prologo)
(From 22:35)
No. 11: Coro: ‘Patria oppressa! Il dolce nome…’, Macbeth (Act 4, 1847 version)
No. 12: Duetto: ‘Qual mare, qual terra….’, I masnadieri (Parte Terza)
No. 13: Récit et Duo: ‘Non, ce bruit, ce ne’est rien…’, Jérusalem (Act 1)
(From 3:38)
No. 14: Romanza: ‘Non so le tetre immagini’, Il Corsaro (Act 1)
No. 15: Inno di Vittoria: ‘Dall’Alpi a Caridi echeggi vittoria!’, La Battaglia di Legnano (Act 4)
(From 1:44:16)
No. 16: Scena e Quartetto: ‘Rea fucina d’empie frodi…’, Luisa Miller (Act 2)
(From 1:24:08)
No. 17: Duetto: ‘Opposto é il calle che in avvenire’, Stiffelio (Act 3)
(From 1:30:00)
No. 18: Scena e Coro: ‘Vendetta del pazzo! Contr’esso un rancore’, Rigoletto (Act 1)
(From 9:25)
Book 3
No. 19: Canzone: ‘La donna è mobile’, Rigoletto (Act 3)
No. 20: Duo: ‘Vivra! Contende il giubilo’, Il Trovatore (Act 4, scene 1)
(From 4:48)
No. 21: Duetto: ‘È nulla, sai?’, La Traviata (Act 3)
(From 2:20:40)
No. 22: Boléro: ‘Merci, jeunes amies, d’un souvenir si doux!’, Les vêpres siciliennes (Act 5, scene 2)
No. 23: Scena: ‘Tradimento!’, Simon Boccanegra (Finale dell’Atto Primo, 1857 version)
(if this link does not work, simply do a search for Verdi Boccanegra Tradimento on Spotify)
No. 24: Coro, Burrasca e Finale: ‘Allora che gl’anni’, Aroldo (Act 4); ‘Vi fu in Palestina’, Aroldo (Finale Act 1)
(From 1:56:54 for ‘Allora che gl’anni’, 40:32 for ‘Vi fu in Palestina’)
No. 25: Stretta: ‘Ogni cura si doni al diletto’, Un Ballo di Maschera (Act 1)
No. 26: Romanza: ‘Me pellegrina ed orfano’, La Forza del Destino (Act 1)
No. 27: Aria: (a) ‘Trionfai! Securi alfino’ (1847), (b) ‘La luce langue’ (1864-5), Macbeth (Act 2)
Book 4
No. 28: Chorus: ‘S’allontanarono! N’accozzeremo’, Macbeth (Act 1)
No. 29: (a) Duo: ‘Restez! Auprès de ma personne’ (Acte II, Tableau II); (b) Duo: ‘J’ai tout compris’ (Acte IV, Tableau I), Don Carlos (1866-7)
(From 1:05)
No. 30: Romanza: ‘O cieli azzuri…’, Aida (Act 3)
No. 31: String Quartet: (a) III. Prestissimo, (b) IV. Scherzo fuga
No. 32: Aria: ‘Cielo, pietoso, rendila’, Simon Boccanegra (Act 2)
No. 33: Aria: ‘Tu che la vanità conoscesti’, Don Carlo (Act 5)
No. 34: (a) Ballet No. 3: ‘Chanson Grecque’ (Cancone Greca)’; (b) Scena: ‘Una gran nube turba’, Otello (Act 3, Finale)
(From 1:47)
(From 1:31:30)
No. 35: ‘Brava! Quelle corna saranno la mio gioia!’, Falstaff (Act 3, Part 1)
(From 1:41:25)
No. 36: ‘Requiem Aeternam’, Missa da Requiem
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Ouch! A deeply troubling comment.
Not really worth worrying about – author regularly trolls numerous other people with whom he has had some type of contact, with abusive posts. Accuses comprehensive-school-educated people of being from private schools (because they have a double-barreled name – which is actually because the individual took their wife’s name as well upon marriage), gets Russian Shamans to put curses on people’s bikes (I kid you not), and so on. And has a pathological hatred of modern music. Each to their own.
I’m pretty confident I know a fair amount about Verdi, having studied all his operas in depth, taught them over a number of years to undergraduates, and read widely on Italian opera in general. Oh, and seen plenty of them (and plenty else) at opera houses in various countries.