Paul Archibald Sounding Out

La Scala is regarded as one of the leading opera and ballet theatres in the world and most of Italy’s greatest operatic artists, and many of the finest singers from around the world, have performed in the theatre. Inaugurated on 3 August 1778, it is home to the La Scala Theatre Chorus, La Scala Theatre Ballet, La Scala Theatre Orchestra, and the La Scala Philharmonic Orchestra.

The premieres of some of the greatest operas have taken place in this iconic theatre and I’ve selected just a few of them to present in the programme today.

Gioacchino Rossini (1792–1868)
The Thieving Magpie Overture
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Edward van Beinum
Premiere 31 May 1817

Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) 
Otello Act 1: ‘Inaffia , l’ugola’
Florindo Andreolli and Piero de Palma (tenors)
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (baritone)
Ambrosian Opera Chorus
New Philharmonia Orchestra
Sir John Barbirolli (conductor) 
Premiere 5 February 1887

Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924) 
Madama Butterfly Act 2: ‘Scuoti quella fronda di ciliegio’
Maria Calla (soprano)
Lucia Danieli (mezzo soprano)
Orchestra of La Scala
Herbert von Karajan (conductor)
Premiere 17 February 1904

Gaetano Donizetti (1797-1848)
Lucrezia Borgia ‘Era desso il figlio mio’
Montserrat Caballe (soprano)
RCA Italiano Opera Orchestra and Chorus
Jonel Perlea (conductor)
Premiere 26 December 1833

The Thieving Magpie was Rossini’s twentieth opera and he composed the work in 1817 when he was only 25 years old. For Rossini this was business as usual as, during his twenties, he composed nearly three operas a year. He slowed down in his thirties, composing only one per year but his total of 39 operas is still a remarkable achievement. He composed very little when he retired from composing at 37 years but when he died, he was a revered elder-statesman of a musical style that disappeared with his passing.

After the completion and premiere of his opera Aida in December 1871, Verdi decided that it was time for him to end his successful career as a composer of opera, much as Rossini had done after the completion of the opera William Tell. He was easily the most popular, and possibly the wealthiest, composer in Italy at the time. However, because of the immense popularity of his music, retirement seemed to his publisher, Giulio Ricordi to be a waste of talent and possible profits. It took Ricordi nearly 15 years to persuade Verdi to write the score of Otello which, when it finally premiered at La Scala on 5th February 1887, proved to be a resounding success.

Set in the early 20th century, Puccini’s Madam Butterfly explores themes of love, heartbreak, betrayal and cultural differences. Based on a one-act play by American playwright, David Belasco. For this work, Puccini researched traditional Japanese songs and melodies which influenced his writing throughout the work. The premiere on February 17th 1904 was received with boos and jeers from a rowdy audience who, from the start, wanted to undermine the success of the opera. Puccini ended up withdrawing the opera, returning his fee to the management of La Scala, and went on to revise the work. The version performed in 1906 in Paris has become the standard most often presented to audiences today.

Lucrezia Borgia (1480-1519) was an Italian noblewoman and a central figure of the infamous Borgia family of the Italian Renaissance. Donizetti composed his two act opera based on the play Lucrezia Borgia by Victor Hugo. The opera was premiered on 26 December 1833. The closing cabaletta He was my son is one of the most demanding arias in all the operatic repertoire, with trills and coloratura passages that demand extreme vocal agility.