Giuseppe Verdi

Aroldo

Aroldo, number 22 of the 32 operas written by Verdi, is certainly not one of the best-known works from 'the genius of Busseto. ' Written in 1857, it is in fact a remake of the 1848 opera Stiffelio, which told a story of adultery and which was censored for its 'indecent' content. Verdi found the censorship of Stiffelio unacceptable, and with a performance in Verona approaching at the start of 1851, he wrote to his editor, Ricordi: 'If my libretto is censored, it will not be possible to obtain the effect I desire, so I would rather wait until I can rewrite the last scene. ' But the modifications to Stiffelio did not stop there. The setting, the historical period andthe finale were also completely changed. In the process of converting Stiffelio to Aroldo, Verdi no doubt succeeded in strengthening certain moments. However, the fame of the three operas he had written in the meantime - Rigoletto, Il Trovatore and La Traviata - did not allow Aroldo to receive the recognition it deserved. The opera's symphony is indeed a superb work and contains moments of outstanding lyricism. The trumpet solo in the introduction is the longest written by Verdi for this instrument.