Loeb Music Library

We would like to remind those who will be alone on Valentine’s Day that the Music Library will be open from 9 am to 10 pm, and our audiovisual stacks offer a wide array of reminders that the course of true love does not run particularly smoothly. For the Taylor Swiftian who just knows that if you’re nice and helpful enough, your beloved is bound to leave hir current stormy relationship and start dating you, La Gioconda offers a warning (also a reminder that Les Miserables is far from the only bizarre Victor Hugo plot rendered into popular musical entertainment.)  Take it from Lucia di Lammermoor‘s Arturo: if she doesn’t want to be with you, she really doesn’t want to be with you!

Found your perfect mate? Sure nothing can go wrong? Otello and his bride might have something to say about that. Elsa from Lohengrin would probably advise you to be happy with what you have and not ask too many questions, while Judith from Bluebeard’s Castle might modify that recommendation and suggest you ask the questions before you and your intended are isolated together in a gloomy stronghold. Does s/he have controlling, overbearing relatives? Does s/he have a problem with drinking, drugs, gambling or infidelity?  Does s/he just have problems, full stop?  And if you doubt the need for a pre-nup, consider the fate of Elisabetta in Don Carlo: don’t let your prospective father-in-law substitute himself for your bridegroom at the last minute.

If you and your Ms. or Mr. Right are thinking of having kids, Peter and Gertrud from Hänsel und Gretel would urge you to find competent and reliable child care.  Asking Kostelnička Buryjovka or Azucena from Il Trovatore, for example, would be a bad idea. Make sure your babysitter clearly understands and follows all instructions.  Bandits, pirates, enemy soldiers and other wanderers are everywhere, just waiting to seize your precious little bundle and raise him or her as one of their own.  (And if you must split up, you’ll probably want a better custody plan than the one in Medea.)

If, on the other hand, your beloved just wants somebody who isn’t you (and you don’t feel comfortable stabbing, betraying or poisoning them) why not be like two of the greatest characters in all opera and graciously let them go?  The beautiful music you get to sing, and the respect from other characters in the opera, might make the whole thing worth it!  Happy Valentine’s Day!

Sarah Barton

As we near our goal of digitizing the Music Library’s collection of first editions and notable variants of Giuseppe Verdi’s operas, these vocal scores and libretti have been added to the digital scores collection:

• Giovanna d’Arco: dramma lirico in quattro parti da rappresentarsi nel regio Teatro il carnovale del 1845-46, alla presenza delle LL. SS. RR. MM. Torino: Tipografia dei fratelli Favale, [1845].
  Merritt Room Mus 577.322.11

  An early edition of the libretto, published with two ballet scenarios by Luigi Astolfi: Alma, ossia, La figlia del fuoco and Il consiglio di Recluta.

• Il finto Stanislao: melodramma giocoso in due atti / de Felice Romani; posto in musica dal maestro Giuseppe Verdi; riduzione per canto con accompagnamento di pianoforte dei L. Truzzi, A. Rajneri e C. Dominiceti. Milano: G. Ricordi, [1846].
  Mus 857.1.605.5
  Hopkinson 38B(a)

  The first complete edition of the vocal score. After one performance at La Scala in 1840, with the title Un Giorno di Regno, Il Finto Stanislao was next produced in 1845 in Venice.

• Attila : dramma lirico in tre atti con prologo / poesia di T. Solera ; musica di Gius. Verdi ; canto con accompto. di piano forte. [1st ed.]. Milano : F. Lucca, [1846].
  Mus 857.1.616.5
  Hopkinson, 45A(a)

  The first complete edition of the first version, premiered at La Fenice in 1846.

• L’assedio di Arlem: tragedia lirica in quattro atti / posta in musica del maestro Giuseppe Verdi; riduzione per canto con accomp. di pianoforte di E. Muzio. Milano: G. Ricordi, [1850].
  Mus 857.1.621.5
  Hopkinson, 50A A(b) 

  The confusing production and publication history of L’Assedio di Arlem/La Battaglia di Legnano reveals some of the changes that could be made to accommodate the political climates of different cities (and the demands of censors). When premiered in 1849 in Rome – as La Battaglia di Legnano – this patriotic opera was set in 1176 during the struggles of the Lombard League against Frederick Barbarossa and the Holy Roman Empire. In the aftermath of failed revolutions against the Austrian Empire, however, such an obviously nationalistic subject was viewed with suspicion: while this variant of the first complete edition, published in Austrian-governed Milan, preserves the original music, it moves the action of the work instead to 16th-century Haarlem, during the Eighty Years’ War between the Dutch provinces and the Spanish Habsburg Empire.¹

• Rigoletto : melodramma di F.M. Piave ; musica del maestro G. Verdi ; riduzioni per canto con accomp. di pfte. di Luigi Truzzi. Milano : G. Ricordi, [1852].
  Merritt Room Mus 857.1.559 

  A variant of the first complete edition, not listed in Hopkinson.

• Un ballo in maschera : melodramma tragico in tre atti / musica di G. Verdi ; riduzione per canto e pianoforte di Luigi ed Alessandro Truzzi. Milan : Ricordi, [1860].
  Merritt Room Mus 857.1.678.7 PHI 

  An early edition of the vocal score, not listed in Hopkinson.

• Simon Boccanegra : melodramma in un prologo e tre atti / di F. M. Piave ; musica di G. Verdi. Milano : R. Stabilimento Ricordi, [1881].
  Merritt Room Mus 689.630.360.9 PHI 

  The first edition of the revised version of the libretto, from the La Scala staging of 1880-1881.

1. For more information about the composition and publication of L’Assedio di Arlem, see Cecil Hopkinson, A Bibliography of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi, 1813-1901 (New York: Broude Brothers, 1973-1978) and Roger Parker, “La Battaglia di Legnano“, in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie, Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online (access restricted to Harvard affiliates).

- Kerry Masteller

Our project to digitize first and early editions of Verdi continues apace, with works selected from two of the library’s special collections of 18th and 19th century scores, the Packard Humanities Institute Collection and the Ruth Neils and John M. Ward Collection of Opera Scores. These five operas have been recently added to our collection of Digital Scores and Libretti:

Erminia Frezzolini / Charles Vogt (1855)
Image courtesy
Bibliothèque nationale de France

• I Lombardi alla prima crociata: dramma lirico in quattro atti di Temistocle Solera; riduzione per canto con accompagnamento di pianoforte dei maestri L. Truzzi e P. Tonassi. Milano, G. Ricordi [1843?]. Merritt Mus 857.1.690.5 PHI

  Hopkinson 40A(a): though not dated, this first complete edition was probably printed in June of 1843. The hugely successful I Lombardi premiered at La Scala on February 11, 1843, with Erminia Frezzolini in the prima donna role of Giselda.

• Ernani: dramma lirico in quattro parti di Francesco Maria Piave; posto in musica da Giuseppe Verdi; riduzione per canto con accompagnamento di pianoforte del maestro L. Truzzi. Milano: Tito di Gio. Ricordi, [1844]. Mus 857.1.504.5

  Hopkinson 41A(c): a variant of the first complete edition, advertised for publication by Ricordi in August of 1844. The first of Verdi’s operas to premiere at a house other than La Scala, Ernani opened at La Fenice on March 9th, 1844.

• I due Foscari: melodramma lirico di Francesco Maria Piave; posto in musica da Giuseppe Verdi; riduzione per canto con accompagnamento di pianoforte di L. Truzzi. Milano: Dall’I. R. Stabilimento nazionale privilegiato di Giovanni Ricordi, [1845]. Merritt Mus 857.1.536.3 PHI

  Hopkinson 42B(a): the first complete edition of the opera, premiered November 3, 1844, at the Teatro Argentina. Censors rejected Verdi’s original proposal for his first Roman premiere, an opera on the life of Lorenzino de Medici. He substituted instead I due Foscari, with a libretto by Piave based on Byron’s The Two Foscari, a subject which itself had been turned down by La Fenice, in part for its unflattering portrayal of the Venetian Republic.

Giuseppe Verdi. Title page, Giovanna d’Arco. Mus 857.1.540.5

• Giovanna d’Arco: dramma lirico di Temistocle Solera; posto in musica dal maestro cav. Giuseppe Verdi; riduzione par canto con accompagnamento di pianoforte; completa. Milano: Tito di Gio. Ricordi, [1846?]. Mus 857.1.540.5

  Hopkinson 43A(c): The last of Verdi’s five operas composed for Milan’s La Scala, premiered February 15, 1845. A variant of the first complete edition.

• Il corsaro: melodramma tragico di F.M. Piave; musica di Giuseppe Verdi; riduzione per canto con accompto. di piano forte di E. Muzio. Milano: F. Lucca; Londra: Addison e Hodson, [1848?]. Mus 857.1.464

  Hopkinson 49A(e), a variant of the first complete edition. Disputes over the rights to Giovanna d’Arco led Verdi to avoid productions at La Scala for over twenty years, and to publish his next three operas with Lucca, rather than Ricordi. Il Corsaro, which premiered at the Teatro Grande in Trieste on October 25, 1848, was the last work Verdi wrote while under contract to Lucca, and by all accounts it was not a success. One life-and-works article published in 1856, after several revivals, calls the opera “a solemn failure” (Giuseppe Verdi, The Musical World, 34:84 (Nov 29, 1856), p. 758).

For further reference, see:

Hopkinson, Cecil. A Bibliography of the Works of Giuseppe Verdi, 1813-1901. New York: Broude Brothers, 1973-1978.

Loewenberg, Alfred. Annals of Opera, 1597-1940. 3rd ed. Totowa, N.J.: Rowman and Littlefield, 1978.

-Kerry Masteller

One of the most interesting parts of my job is the chance to see all of the works that we add to our collection of Digital Scores and Libretti. These are some of the latest additions.

Gustav Mahler. Detail of 3rd Symphony, Merritt Room Mus 742.18.57

First, a heavily-annotated score of Gustav Mahler’s 3. Symphonie (Wien: J. Weinberger, [1898]), which may reflect revisions made by the composer.

Gaetano Donizetti’s three-act melodrama L’assedio di Calais (Milano: G. Ricordi, [1854?]) is an interesting reflection of the international business of composition for the opera: although it premiered in 1836 at the Teatro S Carlo in Naples, the set of dances in the third act was intended to appeal to the audiences of Paris and lead to a contract with the Paris Opéra.

Two keyboard works from members of the Bach family:

• Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. Clavier-Sonaten nebst einigen Rondos fürs Forte-Piano für Kenner und Liebhaber. Dritte Sammlung. Leipzig: Im Verlage des Autors, 1781. First edition, RISM A/I, B 88
• Johann Christian Bach. Fuge für das Pianoforte oder die Orgel über die Buchstaben seines Namens, BACH. Leipzig: Bureau de musique [de] C.F. Peters, [181-?].

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Title page, first ed. K. 493, Merritt Room Mus 745.1.304.12 BMEO

A first edition of the parts for Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Quartet, K. 493: Quartetto per il clavicembalo o forte piano con l’accompagnamento d’un violino, viola, e violoncello : opera 13 (Vienna: Artaria, [1787]), RISM A/I, M 6325.

Alexander Zemlinsky’s one-act opera Der Zwerg (Wien: Universal-Edition, c1921), based on Oscar Wilde’s short story The Birthday of the Infanta.

Giuseppe Verdi. Title page of Aida, Merritt Room Mus 857.1.648.7 PHI

And finally, our project to digitize the operas of Giuseppe Verdi continues, with early vocal scores of Aïda, Alzira, and Nabucco, the second version of La Traviata, and a French edition of Falstaff:

• Aïda : opera in quattro atti (Milano: Ricordi, [1872?]). Hopkinson, 62A(a)
• Alzira : tragedia lirica, divisa in prologo e due atti (Milano: G. Ricordi, [1846]). Hopkinson, 44A(a)
• Falstaff: comédie lyrique en trois actes de Arrigo Boïto (Paris : Ricordi, c1894). First edition, French text variant
• Nabucodonosor : drama lirico in quatro atti (Paris : Schonenberger … Boulevart Poissoniere No. 28, [1842?]). Hopkinson, 39A(f)
• La traviata (Milano : Tito di Gio. Ricordi, [1855?]). Second version, Hopkinson, 55B(a)

Enjoy! Coming up soon, we’ll have more early Bach editions, and a selection of Schubert songs and piano music.

- Kerry Masteller

Beginning with, as one staff member described them, “every opera which Verdi ever conceived any part of in French,” the Music Library’s goal is to make its entire collection of Verdi first editions available online by 2013, the bicentennial of the composer’s birth. Since the Library owns numerous Verdi first editions and variants, this project will make its Digital Scores and Libretti site a comprehensive resource for Verdi scholars seeking such materials. As of February, 2010, twenty-four scores are already part of the collection, and newly-digitized operas will be added monthly until the completion of the project.

Three versions of Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Don Carlos, from the library’s collection of Digital Scores and Libretti. From left to right: the final four-act French revision from 1883; the first edition of 1867; and the first edition incorporating revision for a Neapolitan production, 1872.

Several of the operas of Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901), Italy’s most renowned composer and creator of some of the greatest masterpieces of operatic literature, exist in multiple versions. While many of Verdi’s operas were subject to some form of revision, select operas underwent drastic recomposition resulting in ostensibly new works. These revisions not only illuminate Verdi’s compositional process and demonstrate his continual growth as a composer, they also serve as important documents in the study of the works’ reception, and provide fascinating evidence of the mutual influence, sociological as well as musical, of Verdi’s operas on cultural life in the capitals of 19th-century Europe.

Verdi’s revisions fall into two categories, those for the Italian stage and those for Paris. Stiffelio (1850, Trieste) was refashioned as Aroldo (1857, Rimini) owing to censorship issues. Three works of Verdi’s full maturity, Simon Boccanegra (Venice, 1857), La Forza del Destino (St. Petersburg, 1862), and Don Carlos (Paris, 1867) underwent major revisions for their premieres at Milan’s La Scala (Forza in 1869, Boccanegra in 1881, Don Carlos in 1884). Don Carlos is an exceptional example of a composer reworking a 5-act Parisian grand opera into a four act work for Italian theaters.

Verdi’s other revisions were prepared for Paris, then the reigning operatic capital of Europe, beginning with Jérusalem, his first composition for the Paris Opera in 1847, a reworking of I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata from 1843. The composer subsequently adapted Il Trovatore (as Le Trouvère) in 1857, Macbeth in 1865, and Otello in 1894, for which Verdi composed his last music for the operatic stage.