Verdi: Otello

In England, at Windsor during the reign of Henry IV of England (1399–1413). Sir John Falstaff, also known as ‘Il Pancione’ (the Potbelly), has two identical love letters sent out, one to Meg Page and the other to Alice Ford, then delivers a sarcastic lecture on honour to his servants Bardolfo and Pistola. In Ford’s garden, his wife Alice and her friend Meg notice the similarity between Falstaff’s letters and decide to take revenge on him by pretending that Alice is receiving him at home whilst Ford is away. ‘Falstaff’ is a three-act opera buffa by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare’s ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ and ‘Henry IV’, Parts I and II. It premiered on 9 February 1893 at La Scala in Milan and on 18 April 1894 at the Opéra-Comique in Paris. It was the last opera composed by the composer, then aged 80. Taken from the 27-opera Verdi box set “Tutto Verdi”. Recorded live at the Teatro Regio in Parma on 10, 12, 15, 22 and 25 October 2011.

A requiem inspired by the death, on May 22, 1873, of the Italian poet and writer Alessandro Manzoni, author of the novel “The Betrothal”. Giuseppe Verdi’s “Messa da Requiem” (more commonly known as the “Verdi Requiem”) is a requiem mass for soloists (soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, and bass), double choir, and orchestra, premiered on May 22, 1874, at the Church of San Marco in Milan. The Requiem is Verdi’s only major composition not intended for the opera. From the 27-opera Verdi box set “Tutto Verdi.” Recorded live at the Teatro Farnese in Parma on October 8, 2011.

Daniel Barenboim conducts the Staatskapelle Berlin in this production of Verdi's opera starring Anna Netrebko and Plácido Domingo. The Count Di Luna believes that his younger brother was murdered years before by a vengeful gypsy but still hopes that he may be alive. When he attempts to court the beautiful Leonora, he is enraged to discover that she has a lover – the troubadour, Manrico. Manrico and the Count duel, and afterwards Manrico reveals to Azucena, the woman he believes to be his mother, that when he had the opportunity to kill the Count he felt something holding him back.

‘Nabucco’, or ‘Nebuchadnezzar’ (Italian: Nabucco), is an opera by Giuseppe Verdi with a libretto by T. Solera, based on events described in the Bible. (Nabucco is a shortened Italian rendering of the name of King Nebuchadnezzar II). It was this opera, the third in Verdi’s oeuvre, that brought him true fame. It tells of the tribulations of the Jews, their captivity by the Babylonians, and their subsequent release to their homeland by Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. Giuseppe Verdi’s opera ‘Nabucco’, is a monumental work that tells the story of the enslavement of the Hebrew people by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar (Nabucco) and their journey towards redemption. The premiere took place on 9 March 1842 at La Scala in Milan. The first performance of the final version was held at the Teatro San Giacomo in Corfu in September 1844. From the box set of 27 Verdi operas, ‘Tutto Verdi’. Recorded live at the Teatro Regio in Parma, 12–14 October 2009.

The Salzburg Festival presents one of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's masterpieces: the opera Le Nozze di Figaro, in a new production staged by Sven-Eric Bechtolf and conducted by Dan Ettinger. Set-List: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492.

Around 1850, in Paris. At a soirée, Alfredo Germont, a young man from a respectable Provençal family, falls in love with Violetta Valéry, a courtesan. Deeply in love, Violetta gives up her profession and devotes herself entirely to Alfredo. However, Mr Germont senior, in the name of bourgeois respectability, persuades her to break up with his son. Violetta then writes a letter of separation to Alfredo without revealing the real reason for her decision. The fatal illness from which she was already suffering then flares up once more. A month later, Alfredo learns from his father that Violetta never stopped loving him... ‘La traviata’ is a 3 act opera by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave based on the novel ‘The Lady of the Camellias’ by Alexandre Dumas, fils (1848) and its stage adaptation (1852). Premiered on 6 March 1853 at La Fenice in Venice. From the 27-opera Verdi box set “Tutto Verdi”. Recorded live at the Teatro Regio in Parma on 4 April 2012.

Part of Tutto Verdi series - La battaglia di Legnano (2012) Trieste. 'La battaglia di Legnano' ('The Battle of Legnano') is an opera in four acts, with music by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian-language libretto by Salvadore Cammarano. Most of the early Verdi operas are sort of rare for a reason. They do not rise to the heights of genius that his middle period and late period operas did. However, there are always some beautiful arias or choruses and most of them are great fun......sort of like bel canto on steroids! What I mean is that you can hear that he was coming from the bel canto tradition, but he liked to inject a lot more power into the characters and their music.

When Ovid's “Metamorphoses” meet Vivaldi's music: conceived and directed by Barrie Kosky, an effervescent show presented at the 2025 Salzburg Festival. With Cecilia Bartoli, Lea Desandre, Nadezhda Karyazina, and Philippe Jaroussky, as well as actress Angela Winkler in the spoken role of Orpheus.

In Aquileia, around the middle of the 5th century. Odabella, daughter of the city’s lord, lost her family during the sacking carried out by Attila and intends to take revenge by killing him (Santo di patria indefinito amor). She herself was spared by Uldino, one of Attila’s slaves. Impressed by her courage, Attila gives her his sword. General Ezio, sent from Rome, proposes to Attila a deal to divide the Empire (Avrai tu l'universo, resti l'Italia a me!). But Attila denounces him as a traitor and refuses. Attila is an opera in a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Temistocle Solera based on Zacharias Werner’s tragedy, Attila, König der Hunnen, and premiered at the Teatro la Fenice in Venice on March 17, 1846. From the box set of 27 Verdi operas, “Tutto Verdi.” Recorded live at the Teatro Verdi in Busseto on October 21 and 25, 2010.

Part of Tutto Verdi series - Alzira (2012) Dobbiaco. This is a concert performance. Alzira is an opera in a prologue and two acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvatore Cammarano, based on the play Alzire, ou les Américains by Voltaire. The first performance was at the Teatro San Carlo, Naples, on 12 August 1845.

The 2021 edition of the Macerata Opera Festival was inaugurated with the same opera chosen in 1921 by Count Pier Alberto Conti. At that time, the Sferisterio, formerly a stadium for an ancient ball game, was turned into a venue for opera performances. 2021 was actually a double celebration: Aida, one of the most loved operas, premiered in Cairo in 1871, so this marks its 150th anniversary. Aida has become Verdi's most popular work. This highlight in the international repertoire is a challenge for the musical and scenic resources of an opera house. At the opening ceremony of the Suez Canal in 1869, Verdi’s Rigoletto was played. When the Opera House Cairo asked Verdi for a new work with an Egyptian story, he studied in detail Egyptian music and history in order to give his opera an exotic atmosphere. Performed at the Arena Sferisterio 23 July and 1, 7, 12 August 2021.

With “La Gioconda,” Amilcare Ponchielli (1834–1886) composed a magnificent romantic melodrama that blends French opera and Verdi-esque drama. Fifty years after its last performance, the Teatro San Carlo in Naples is staging “La Gioconda” with Anna Netrebko in the title role, alongside Jonas Kaufmann and Ludovic Tézier.

Part of Tutto Verdi series - Oberto (2007) Parma. Oberto was the first of Verdi’s operas to be staged and was heard for the first time at La Scala, Milan, in November 1839. As a young and unknown composer, Verdi was subject to the rules then governing the opera industry in Italy. Even so, there are already many scenes in this early work that reveal unmistakable signs of the composer’s individual style.

In Germany, at the castle of the Count of Stankar, on the banks of the Salzbach and in the vicinity of Salzburg, in the early 19th century. Upon his return from his travels, Pastor Stiffelio recounts his adventures: a boatman had handed him the wallet of a man who, fleeing from a woman’s bedroom, had thrown himself into the river. In the spirit of forgiveness, Stiffelio destroys the piece of evidence, unaware that it is proof that his wife, Lina, is guilty of adultery. ‘Stiffelio’ is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on ‘Le Pasteur ou l’évangile au foyer’ by Émile Souvestre and Eugène Bourgeois. Premiered in its original version on 26 December 1968 at the Teatro Regio in Parma. From the box set of 27 Verdi operas, “Tutto Verdi”. Recorded live at the Teatro Regio in Parma on 18 and 24 April 2012.

Discover Verdi’s magnificent ‘hometown’, the Parma region. From the small village of Le Roncole, near Parma, where Verdi was born, to the estate situated close to Parma, where Verdi always returned and chose to spend most of his life, despite the great triumphs he achieved in Milan, Venice, Naples and other major cities. We discover how Verdi ‘still lives on’ in the region and has even shaped the local landscape, from the daily life of a simple farmer to that of one of the world’s greatest opera stars, Leo Nucci, who is a regular guest at the Verdi Festival in Parma. From the 27-opera box set ‘Tutto Verdi’.

For the festivities marking the Pergolesi's tercentenary in his native Jesi, Ignacio García created a new staging of the imperial drama Adriano in Siria. His staging in Jesi's exquisite 18th-century Teatro Comunale Pergolesi includes the delightful comic intermezzo Livietta e Tracollo, thus following the precedent set at the premiere in 1734. A fine Italian cast and the distinguished Accademia Bizantina are led by the Accademia's director, Ottavio Dantone. Contains the intermezzo Livietta e Tracollo.