Speranza
"La forza del destino" is an Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi.
The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on a Spanish drama, Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino (1835), by Ángel de Saavedra, Duke of Rivas, with a scene adapted from Friedrich Schiller's Wallensteins Lager.
It was first performed in the Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre of St. Petersburg, Russia, on 22 November [O.S. 10 November] 1862.
La forza del destino is still frequently performed, and there have been a number of complete recordings.
In addition, the overture (to the revised version of the opera) is part of the standard repertoire for symphony orchestras, often played as the opening piece at concerts.
After some further revisions, performances in Rome in 1863 (as Don Alvaro) and Madrid (with the Duke of Rivas, the play's author, in attendance) followed shortly afterwards, and the opera subsequently travelled to New York and Vienna (1865), Buenos Aires (1866) and London (1867).
Verdi made other revisions, with additions by Antonio Ghislanzoni.
This version, which premiered at La Scala, Milan, on 27 February 1869, has become the "standard" performance version.
The most important changes were a new overture (replacing a brief prelude).
The addition of a final scene to Act 3, following the duel between Carlo and Alvaro; and a new ending, in which Alvaro
remains alive,
instead of throwing himself off a cliff to his death.
A critical edition[1] of all versions of the opera (including material from the original 1861 score which was never performed as written) has been prepared by musicologist Philip Gossett of the University of Chicago.
The critical edition of the 1869 version was performed by the San Francisco Opera in November 2005 while the Caramoor International Music Festival gave a concert performance of the 1862 version plus never-performed vocal pieces from the 1861 version at the July 2008 festival.
Gossett's essay on differences between the versions is included on Caramoor's website.
Role
Voice type
Premiere cast
22 November [O.S. 10 November] 1862[5]
(Conductor: Edoardo Bauer (Baveri)[6])
Revised version
premiere cast
27 February 1869[5]
(Conductor: Eugenio Terziani[7])
The Marquis of Calatrava, bass ... Meo.Giuseppe Vecchi
Leonora, his daughter
soprano
Caroline Barbot
Teresa Stolz
Don Carlo di Vargas, his son
baritone
Francesco Graziani
Luigi Colonnese
Don Alvaro, Leonora's suitor, tenor ... Enrico Tamberlik/Mario Tiberini
Curra, Leonora's maid
mezzo-soprano
Lagramante
Ester Neri
Preziosilla, a young gipsy
mezzo-soprano
Constance Nantier-Didier
Ida Benzi
Mayor
bass
Ignazio Marini
Luigi Alessandrini
Maestro Trabuco, a muleteer and peddler
tenor
Geremia Bettini
Antonio Tasso
Padre Guardiano, a Franciscan
bass
Gian Francesco Angelini
Marcello Junca
Fra Melitone, a Franciscan
baritone
Achille De Bassini
Giacomo Rota
A surgeon
bass
Alessandro Polonini
Vincenzo Paraboschi
Peasants, servants, pilgrims, soldiers, vivandières and friars
[edit] Instrumentation
2 flutes (2nd doubling piccolo), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets (2nd doubling bass clarinet), 2 bassoons; 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, cimbasso; timpani, percussion (side drum, bass drum); 2 harps; strings. Onstage: organ, 6 trumpets, 4 side drums.[8]
[edit] Synopsis
Place:
Spain and Italy Time: around 1750[9]
[edit] Act 1
The mansion of Leonora's family, in Seville.
Don Alvaro "Incas" is a young nobleman from South America (presumably Peru) who is part Indian and who has settled in Seville, where, however, he is not very well thought of.
He falls in love with Donna Leonora, the daughter of the Marquis of Calatrava, who, notwithstanding his love for his daughter, is determined that she shall marry only a man of the highest origin.
Leonora, knowing her father’s aversion to and deeply in love with Don Alvaro, determines to give up her home and country in order to elope with him, aided by her confidante, Curra.(Me pellegrina ed orfana - "Exiled and orphaned far from my childhood home").
Her father unexpectedly enters and discovers Alvaro.
He threatens him with death, and, in order to remove any suspicion as to Leonora’s purity, Alvaro offers to surrender himself to the Marquis.
Alvaro flings down his pistol which goes off and mortally wounds the Marquis who dies cursing his daughter.
[edit] Act 2
Scene 1: An inn in the village of Hornachuelos
The Alcalde, several peasant muleteers, and Don Carlo of Vargas, the brother of Donna Leonora, are gathered in the kitchen of an inn.
Don Carlo, disguised as a student of Salamanca, under the fictitious name of Pereda, is seeking revenge against Alvaro and Leonora (Son Pereda son ricco d'onore - "I am Pereda, of honorable descent").
During the supper, Preziosilla, a young gypsy, tells the young men’s fortunes and exhorts them
to enlist in the war (Al suon del tamburo - "When side drums rattle")
for Italy’s freedom, which all agree to do.
Having become separated from Alvaro, Leonora arrives in male attire, but slips away without being discovered by Carlo.
Scene 2: A monastery nearby
Leonora takes refuge in the monastery (Sono giunta! ... Madre, pietosa Vergine - "I've got here! Oh, thank God!") where she tells the abbot, Padre Guardiano, her true name and that she intends to spend the remainder of her life in a hermitage.
The abbot recounts the trials she will have to undergo. Leonora, Padre Guardiano, Fra Melitone, and the other monks join in prayer.
[edit] Act 3
Scene 1: A forest near Velletri, in Italy
Meanwhile Don Alvaro has joined the Spanish army under the name of Don Federico Herreros (La vita è inferno ... O tu che in seno agli angeli - "Life is a hell to those who are unhappy....Oh, my beloved, risen among the angels").
One night he saves the life of Don Carlo who is serving in the same army under the name of Don Felix Bornos. They become close friends and go into battle side by side.
Scene 2: The officers' quarters
In one of these engagements Don Alvaro is, as he supposes, mortally wounded, and confides to Don Carlo’s care a valise containing a bundle of letters which he is to destroy as soon as Don Alvaro dies. (Solenne in quest'ora - "Swear to me, in this solemn hour").
Don Carlo has sworn not to look at the contents of the letters.
But he becomes suspicious of his friend. (Morir! Tremenda cosa! ... Urna fatale del mio destino - "To die! What an awesome thought...Get away, fatal lot sent to my Destiny!").
He opens the valise, finds his sister’s picture, and realizes Alvaro's true identity.
At that moment a surgeon brings word that Don Alvaro may recover.
Don Carlo is overjoyed at the idea of avenging his father’s death.
"Nè gustare m'è dato un'ora..."
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Scene 3: A camp near the battleground
Alvaro, having recovered, is confronted by Carlo.
They begin to duel but are pulled away from each other by the soldiers.
As they restrain Carlo, the anguished Don Alvaro vows to enter a monastery.
The soldiers gather.
Trabucco, the peddler, tries to sell them his wares; Fra Melitone chastises them for their godless ways; and Preziosilla leads them in a chorus in praise of the military life (Rataplan, rataplan, della gloria - "Rum-tum-tum on the drum is the music that makes a soldier's martial spirit rise").
[edit] Act 4
Scene 1: The monastery
Don Alvaro has entered the monastery at Hornachuelos, near which is Leonora’s cave, under the name of "Father Raphael".
Don Carlo arrives and forces him to fight (Le minacci, i fieri accenti - "May the winds carry off with them").
Scene 2: A desolate spot near Leonora's hermitage
Leonora prays that she may find peace in death (Pace, pace mio Dio! - "Peace, O mighty Father, give me peace!").
Alvaro runs in, calling for help, having mortally wounded Carlo in their duel.
The two lovers recognize each other.
Leonora runs offstage to see her brother, who, when she bends over him, stabs her to the heart.
Leonora returns with Padre Guardiano.
He and Alvaro pray to heaven as she dies.
[edit] Recordings
[edit] 1862 original version
Year
Cast
(Leonora, Alvaro,
Carlo, Preziosilla,
Fra Melitone, Padre Guardiano)
Conductor,
Opera House and Orchestra
Label[10]
1981
Martina Arroyo,
Kenneth Collins,
Peter Glossop,
Janet Coster,
Derek Hammond-Stroud,
Don Garrard
John Matheson,
BBC Concert Orchestra and the BBC Singers
Live recording of a Promenade Concert, 8 August; broadcast by BBC Radio 3
Audio CD: Opera Rara,
Cat: ORCV 304
[edit] 1869 revised version
Year
Cast
(Leonora, Alvaro,
Carlo, Preziosilla,
Fra Melitone, Padre Guardiano)
Conductor,
Opera House and Orchestra
Label[10]
1941
Maria Caniglia,
Galliano Masini,
Carlo Tagliabue,
Ebe Stignani,
Saturno Meletti,
Tancredi Pasero
Gino Marinuzzi,
Orchestra Sinfonica e Coro dell'E.I.A.R di Torino
Audio CD: Warner-Fonit,
Cat: 8573 82652-5
1954
Maria Callas,
Richard Tucker,
Carlo Tagliabue,
Elena Nicolai,
Renato Capecchi,
Nicola Rossi-Lemeni
Tulio Serafin,
Teatro alla Scala orchestra and chorus
Audio CD: Naxos Classical, EMI
Cat: 5 56323-2
1955
Renata Tebaldi,
Mario del Monaco,
Ettore Bastianini,
Giulietta Simionato
Fernando Corena,
Cesare Siepi
Francesco Molinari-Pradelli,
Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
Audio CD: Decca Originals
Cat: 475 8681
1958
Renata Tebaldi,
Franco Corelli,
Ettore Bastianini,
Oralia Dominguez
Renato Capecchi,
Boris Christoff
Francesco Molinari-Pradelli,
Orchestra and chorus of the Teatro di San Carlo, Naples
Live recording of a performance on 15 March
Video DVD: Hardy Classic
Cat: HCA 6014
1962
Gré Brouwenstijn,
Jan Peerce,
John Shaw,
Rena Garazioti,
Renato Capecchi,
Georg Littasy
Alberto Erede,
Orhcestra and Chorus of the Netherlands Opera, Amsterdam
Live recording of a performance on July 5
Audio CD: Osteria
Cat: OS-1002
1964
Leontyne Price,
Richard Tucker,
Robert Merrill,
Shirley Verrett,
Ezio Flagello,
Giorgio Tozzi
Thomas Schippers,
RCA Italiana Opera orchestra and chorus
Audio CD: RCA Victor
Cat: GD 87971
1969
Martina Arroyo,
Carlo Bergonzi,
Piero Cappuccilli,
Bianca Maria Casoni,
Geraint Evans,
Ruggero Raimondi
Lamberto Gardelli,
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Ambrosian Opera Chorus
Audio CD:EMI
Cat: CMS 5 67124-2
1976
Leontyne Price,
Placido Domingo,
Sherrill Milnes,
Fiorenza Cossotto,
Gabriel Bacquier,
Bonaldo Giaiotti
James Levine,
London Symphony Orchestra and the John Alldis Choir
Audio CD:RCA Red Seal
Cat: 74321 39502 2
1985
Rosalind Plowright,
José Carreras,
Renato Bruson,
Agnes Baltsa,
Juan Pons,
Paata Burchuladze
Giuseppe Sinopoli,
Philharmonia Orchestra and the Ambrosian Opera Chorus
Audio CD:Deutsche Grammophon
Cat: 477 5621
1986
Mirella Freni,
Plácido Domingo,
Giorgio Zancanaro,
Dolora Zajick,
Sesto Bruscantini,
Paul Plishka
Riccardo Muti,
Teatro alla Scala orchestra and chorus
Audio CD: EMI Classics
Cat: CDS 7 47485-8
2006
Susanna Branchini,
Renzo Zulian,
Marco Di Felice,
Paolo Battaglia,
Paolo Rumetz
Lukas Karytinos,
Orchestra Filarmonia Veneta "G.F.Malipiero" and chorus of the Teatro Sociale di Rovigo
Video DVD: Dynamic
Cat: 33512
The so-called "curse"
Forza is an opera that many old school Italian singers felt was "cursed" and brought bad luck.
The very superstitious Luciano Pavarotti avoided the part of Alvaro for this reason.
On March 4, 1960 at the Metropolitan Opera, in a performance of La Forza del Destino with Renata Tebaldi and tenor Richard Tucker, the American baritone Leonard Warren was about to launch into the vigorous cabaletta to Don Carlo's Act 3 aria, which begins "Morir, tremenda cosa" ("to die, a momentous thing").
While Rudolf Bing reports that Warren simply went silent and fell face-forward to the floor, others state that he started coughing and gasping, and that he cried out "Help me, help me!" before falling to the floor, remaining motionless.
A few minutes later he was pronounced dead of a massive cerebral hemorrhage, and the rest of the performance was canceled.
Warren was only 48.
The "Curse" prompted singers and others to
do strange things to fend off possible bad luck.
The great Italian tenor Franco Corelli was
rumoured to have held on to his crotch
during some of his performances
of the opera as "protection."
Anthony Stivanello, a well-known Italian director from the 1950s-1980s who also provided sets and costumes to opera companies nationwide insisted that while he had the scenery and costumes for the opera, he would not touch them himself.
"Oh, tu che in seno agli angeli" the tenor's main aria from the opera, was being sung during a concert in Bergen County, NJ, a number of years ago.
As the tenor finished the aria, the lights went out in the theater.
The power failure was reportedly blamed on a problem in the cemetery across the street.
[edit] In other media
The musical score for the French films Jean de Florette and Manon des Sources uses the main theme for both.
It was adapted by Jean-Claude Petit from the aria "Invano, Alvaro" in La forza del destino.
The Korean film The Scarlet Letter (2004 film) opens with Pace, Pace Mio Dio, introducing a film about intensely powerful obsession which brings its lovers to the brink of madness.
[edit] References
Notes
1.^ Patricia Brauner, "What is a Critical Edition? How Does it Happen?", University of Chicago website
2.^ Unk,"Settling The Score: An Interview With Philip Gossett", Opera Today, 8 October 2006
3.^ Details of Caramoor's July 2008 performances and background to them
4.^ Philip Gossett, " La forza del destino: Three States of One Opera"
5.^ a b Budden, p. 427
6.^ Mazza Schiantarelli, Simona (2011). Un viaggio tra dominante e tonica negli anni del risorgimento. Tirano, Italy: Polaris.
7.^ Source of cast for revised version on amadeusonline.net. Retrieved 3 July 2011
8.^ David Kimbell, in Holden p. 1000
9.^ Melitz and Osborne, Charles: sources of the synopsis
10.^ a b Recordings on operadis-opera-discography
11.^ Tim Smith, "Baltimore Opera tests superstition: Company to take on Verdi's 'La forza del destino,' despite its history of bad luck", The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, MD), September 30, 2007: "Superstition comes easily to the colorful, slightly crazy world of the performing arts.....Opera houses seem just as susceptible to superstitious thinking"
12.^ Bing, p. ?
13.^ Mike Mitchell, " 'Cursed' opera to be performed", The Beacon News (Aurora, IL), April 15, 2007
Cited sources Bing, Rudolf, 5000 Nights at the Opera. New York: Doubleday, 1972
Budden, Julian, The Operas of Verdi, Volume 2: From ‘’Il Trovatore’’ to ‘’La Forza del destino’’. London: Cassell, 1984. ISBN 9780195200683 (hardcover) ISBN 9780195204506 (paperback).
Gossett, Philip, Divas and Scholars: Performing Italian opera, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2006 ISBN 0226304845
Holden, Amanda (Ed.), The New Penguin Opera Guide, New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001. ISBN 0-140-29312-4
Melitz, Leo, The Opera Goer's Complete Guide, 1921 version.
Osborne, Charles, The Complete Operas of Verdi, New York: Da Capo Press, 1969. ISBN 0-306-80072-1
Other sources Phillips-Matz, Mary Jane, ‘’Verdi: A Biography’’, London & New York: Oxford University Press, 1993 ISBN 0193132044
[edit] External links
Link to Italian libretto
Link to English libretto
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Categories: Operas by Giuseppe Verdi
Italian-language operas
1862 operas
Operas
Operas set in Iberia
Operas set in Italy
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