October 08, 2021

Verdi!

Tomorrow, or maybe the next day, is the 208th birthday of Giuseppe Verdi, born the 9th or 10th of October in 1813.

His operas are as popular now as they ever were, maybe more so. Look at this list: Aida, Otello, Falstaff, Nabucco, Il trovatore, La traviata, Rigoletto, La forza del destino, Un ballo in Maschera, and his great Requiem, which I have had the privilege of singing many times (in the chorus, not solos).

To write an opera that stands the test of time is one thing. To write so many that are still in the repertoire years after composition is astounding. 

There are many arias or choruses one could choose to represent Verdi, but the one we’ll hear today is the one that people lining the streets for Verdi’s funeral procession sang in honor of the great man. Here is “Va, pensiero” from Nabucco




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