Episodes
| Series | Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 01 | Turning Points | 20120402 | 20160905 (R3) | Giuseppe Verdi was a leading figure in 19th-century Italian opera. But his impact on the cultural and political landscape of the country went much deeper. This week Donald Macleod investigates how Verdi achieved an iconic status which still holds good to this day, beginning with three operas which formed turning points in his career - the first established his international reputation, the second broke new ground with an operatic adaptation of Shakespeare's Scottish play, and finally, the work which, alongside Rigoletto and Il trovatore, represents a high-water mark in Italian operatic history. Libiamo ne'lieti calici' (La Traviata) Violetta - Ileana Cotrubas (soprano) Alfredo - Placido Domingo (tenor) Bavarian State Orchestra and Chorus Conductor, Carlos Kleiber Surta 耀 la notte' - 'Ernani, Ernani involami' (Ernani) Elvira - Mirella Freni (soprano) Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala Milan Conductor, Riccardo Muti Macbeth (extract from Act I) Lady Macbeth - Fiorenza Cossotto (mezzo) Macbeth - Sherrill Milnes (baritone) Macduff - Jos退 Carreras (tenor) Banquo - Ruggiero Raimondi (bass) Ambrosian Opera Chorus New Philharmonia Orchestra La Traviata (extract from Act III) Giorgio Germont - Sherrill Milnes (baritone) Conductor, Carlos Kleiber. Donald Macleod explores three operas that formed turning points in Verdi's career. |
| 2012 | 02 | 'viva Verdi!' | 20120403 | 20160906 (R3) | Donald Macleod investigates the challenges facing Verdi, while Italy was under Austrian rule, as he tried to cope with the strict censorship applied to operas such as Rigoletto and Un ballo in maschera, and the role played by Nabucco and La battaglia di Legnano in the movement for the unification of Italy. In the turbulent years of the 19th century, when Italy was struggling to gain independence from its Austrian rulers, Verdi's patriotic choruses seemed to embody the spirit of the movement for the unification of Italy, and an entire mythology has grown up around Verdi as hero of the Risorgimento. Donald Macleod investigates the role Verdi's music was thought to have played in Italy's fight for freedom, and the challenges he faced in his own battle with the Austrian censors. Questa o quella' (Rigoletto) Duke - Roberto Alagna (tenor) Orchestra of La Scala, Milan Conductor, Riccardo Muti Va pensiero' (Nabucco) Chorus and Orchestra of Deutsche Oper, Berlin Conductor, Giuseppe Sinopoli La battaglia di Legnano (extract from Act I) Arrigo - Jos退 Carreras (tenor) Rolando - Matteo Manuguerra (baritone) ORF Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Vienna Conductor, Lamberto Gardelli Ȁ il sol dell'anima (Rigoletto) Gilda - Andrea Rost (soprano) Rigoletto (extract from Act II) Rigoletto - Renato Bruson (baritone) Un ballo in maschera (extract from Act II) Amelia - Margaret Price (soprano) Riccardo - Luciano Pavarotti (tenor) Renato - Renato Bruson (baritone) National Philharmonic Orchestra Conductor, George Solti. Donald Macleod investigates the role of Verdi's operas in Italy's fight for independence. |
| 2012 | 03 | Paris | 20120404 | 20160907 (R3) | Donald Macleod looks at the pros and cons of writing grand opera for Paris with its tradition of lengthy ballet interludes, spectacular sets and lavish costumes, and plays highlights from Verdi's two grand operas written expressly for Paris, which took full advantage of the extravagant resources at his disposal. Don Carlos ballet music (extract) Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera House Conductor, James Levine Macbeth ballet music Berlin Phiharmonic Orchestra Conductor, Claudio Abbado Les Vꀀpres siciliennes (Act II extract) Robert - Michael Rippon (baritone) Jean Procida - Ayhan Baran (bass) Thibault - Gerald English (tenor) Dani退li - Bernard Dickerson (tenor) H退l耀ne - Jacqueline Brumaire (soprano) BBC Chorus and Concert Orchestra Conductor, Mario Rossi Don Carlos (extracts) Don Carlos - Richard Margison (tenor) Rodrigo - Dmitri Hvorostovsky (baritone) Elisabeth - Galina Gorchakova (soprano) Philip - Roberto Scandiuzzi (bass) Count Lerma - Robin Leggate (tenor) Eboli - Olga Borodina (mezzo) Grand Inquisitor - Robert Lloyd Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden Conductor, Bernard Haitink. Donald Macleod explores Verdi's two grand operas written expressly for Paris. |
| 2012 | 04 | Aida | 20120405 | 20160908 (R3) | Donald Macleod focuses his attention on one of Verdi's most remarkable operas in which, amongst the spectacular pomp and ceremony, an intimate tragedy unfolds. It's the timeless story of a love affair between a man and his enemy's daughter, both torn between love, patriotism and family loyalty. Aida (extracts) Radam耀s - Placido Domingo (tenor) Aida - Montserrat Caball退 (soprano) Amneris - Fiorenza Cossotto (mezzo) Amonasro - Piero Cappuccilli (baritone) Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden New Philharmonia Orchestra Conductor, Riccardi Muti. Donald Macleod focuses on Aida, one of Verdi's most remarkable operas. |
| 2012 | 05 LAST | Verdi And Shakespeare | 20120406 | After Aida was performed in 1871, there was a gap of sixteen years before Verdi's penultimate opera found its way to the stage. He'd been lured back by the temptation of a new Shakespearean work - Otello. Donald Macleod introduces highlights from the work regarded by many as Verdi's finest tragic opera, and he takes a look at Verdi's final contribution to the stage, based on Shakespeare's comic fictional character - Falstaff. Otello (extracts) Otello - Placido Domingo (tenor) Desdemona - Cheryl Studer (soprano) Iago - Sergei Leiferkus (baritone) Orchestra and Chorus of Bastille Opera Conductor, Myung-Whun Chung Falstaff (extracts) Falstaff - Bryn Terfel (baritone) Bardolph - Anthony Mee (tenor) Pistol - Anatoli Kotscherga (bass) Mistress Quickly - Larissa Diadkova (mezzo) Alice Ford - Adrianne Pieczonka (soprano) Meg Page - Stella Doufexis (contralto) Nanetta - Dorothea R怀schmann (soprano) Ford - Thomas Hampson (baritone) Dr Caius - Enrico Facini (tenor) Berlin Radio Choir Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Conductor, Claudio Abbado. Donald Macleod introduces highlights from two of Verdi's Shakespearean operas. | |
| 2015 | 01 | Enough Work To Fell An Ox... | 20150223 | Donald Macleod explores Giuseppe Verdi's 'middle period'. In 1853 Verdi was on the crest of a wave of immense popularity. He had been working unmercifully hard and had completed what became known in Italy as his 'popular trilogy', Rigoletto, Il Trovatore and La Traviata. Not that La Traviata had been an instant success with audiences - that didn't happen until it was revived a year later. Verdi was in Paris by then though, behind schedule and slogging away to catch up on his next work: the Sicilian Vespers, which he composed for the Paris Opera - his first experience of dealing with the management of what he called 'La Grande Boutique. Il Trovatore, Act 2 (The Anvil Chorus) Orchestra and Chorus del Maggio Musicale Florence Zubin Mehta, Conductor La Traviata, Act 1 (Libiamo ne lieti calici) Giuseppe Di Stefano, tenor Maria Callas, soprano (Violetta) Orchestra and Chorus of Teatro alla Scala Carlo Maria Giulini, Conductor Les Vepres Siciliennes (Overture) Berlin Philharmonic Claudio Abbado (Conductor) Les Vepres Siciliennes (Palerme! O mon pays! Pays tant regrette) Ayhan Baran, bass (Jean Procida) BBC Concert Orchestra and Chorus Mario Rossi (Conductor) Les Vepres Siciliennes, Act III, S2 (Les Quatre Saisons - Spring, Summer) Metropolitan Opera Orchestra James Levine, Conductor I Vespri Siciliani, Act IV (O sdegni, tacete! / Arrigo! Ah, parli a un core) Cheryl Studer, soprano (Elena) Chris Merritt, Tenor (Arrigo) Orchestra and Chorus of Teatro della Scala Riccardo Muti (Conductor). How Verdi rushed to complete his first work for the Paris Opera: the Sicilian Vespers. | |
| 2015 | 02 | A Rickety Table... | 20150224 | Donald Macleod explores Giuseppe Verdi's 'middle period'. In Paris, exhausted by the crushing work on The Sicilian Vespers, Verdi had felt so overwhelmed that he said he felt he would never compose anything ever again. Once he got back to his home at Sant'Agata, now, at long last, actually married to his long-term partner Giuseppina Strepponi, he said he couldn't so much as read or write, but could only walk round the fields from morning till evening trying to cure the stomach trouble which was his legacy from the Vespers, fuming aloud: 'Damned, damned operas!' After the Parisian ordeal, Giuseppina urged him to focus on what he liked: 'In your position... I should look for a libretto I liked, and set it to music without any engagement and in my own time.' It emerged that what Verdi liked, revealed in a throw-away line to the librettist Francesco Maria Piave, was the bleak story of the Doge of Genoa: Simon Boccanegra. I Vespri Siciliani, Act 5 (Merce, dilette amiche) Martina Arroyo, Soprano (Elena) John Alldis Choir New Philharmonia Orchestra James Levine, Conductor Simon Boccanegra, Prologue (Che dicesti? / L'altra magion vedete? / A te l'estremo addio... Il lacerato spirito) Piero Cappuccilli, Baritone (Simon) Nicolai Ghiaurov, Bass (Fiesco) Jose van Dam, Baritone (Paolo) Pietro Giovanni Foiani, Bass) Chorus and Orchestra of Teatr alla Scala Claudio Abbado, Conductor Simon Boccanegra, Act 1, Sc 1 (Come in Quest'ora bruna) Miriam Gauci, Soprano (Amelia) BRTN Philharmonic Orchestra, Brussels Alexander Rahbarim, Conductor Cielo di stelle orbato... & Vieni a mirar la cerula Simon Boccanegra, Act 1, Sc 2 Berlin Philharmonic / Claudio Abaddo Angela Gheorghiu / Roberto Alagna Simon Boccanegra, Act 1 Sc 2 Kiri Te Kanawa, Soprano (Amelia) Leo Nucci, Baritone (Simon) Giacomo Aragall, Tenor (Gabriele). Orchestra and Chorus of Teatro alla Scala Georg Solti, Conductor. How, after the ordeal of the Sicilian Vespers, Verdi focused on Simon Boccanegra. | |
| 2015 | 03 | The Gentleman Farmer | 20150225 | Donald Macleod explores Giuseppe Verdi's 'middle period'. Verdi often said that he felt he was without honour in his native Italy. Perhaps that's why he accepted another commission abroad. Despite his previous very negative experiences writing for the Paris Opera, it was for the 'Grand Boutique' that he agreed to supply a new work. The subject agreed on was Friedrich Schiller's Don Carlos. A German play on a Spanish subject - that makes very free with history - prepared for the opera stage by a pair of Frenchmen, and set to music by an Italian, doesn't sound like a recipe for success, but Verdi created from those ingredients one of the great operatic dramas of all time: Verdi's Don Carlos. Adagio for Trumpet and Orchestra Gianluigi Petrarulo (trumpet) Symphony Orchestra of Milan Riccardo Chailly (Conductor) Don Carlos, Act II, Sc 2 (Nel Giardin del bello) Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Swedish Opera Alberto Hold-Garrido, Conductor Don Carlos, Act III (Il Grand Inquisitor!/ Nell'ispano suol mai) Royal Opera Chorus & Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Robin Leggate, Tenor (Count of Lerma). Robert Lloyd, Tenor (The Grand Inquisitor) Roberto Scandiuzzi, Bass (Filippo) Bernard Haitink, Conductor Don Carlos, Act III (Ballet of the Queen) Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, Milan Claudio Abbado (Conductor) Don Carlo, Act IV (Tu che le vanita / E dessa... Si, per sempre) Wiener Phiharmonic Sena Jurinac, Soprano (Elisabetta) Eugenio Fernandi, Tenor (Carlo) Herbert von Karajan, Conductor. Verdi's agreeing to supply a new work for the Paris Opera, based on Schiller's Don Carlos. | |
| 2015 | 04 | Ambition Fulfilled | 20150226 | Donald Macleod explores Giuseppe Verdi's 'middle period'. In July of 1870, Verdi's latest operatic tale of conflict between two nations at war, of love, conquest, military pomp, jealousy and revenge, was overtaken by real-life events with the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War. Verdi had had his bruising professional experiences with the French but this crisis in her history brought out the Francophile in him: '...the impertinence, the presumption of the French was and is, despite all their misfortunes, insupportable,' he wrote to a friend. 'Nevertheless, in the last resort, France gave freedom and civilisation to the modern world . And if she falls, don't let us delude ourselves, all our liberties and civilisation will fall with her.' By November, Paris was under siege and with it the scenery and costumes of Verdi's grandest of all grand operas: Aida. Aida, Act 2 (Gloria all'Egitto & Triumphal March) Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala, Milan Claudio Abbado (Conductor) String Quartet Vogler Quartet Aida, Act 3 (Pur ti riveggo ...La mia rival!) Orchestra and Chorus of the Rome Opera House Jon Vickers, Tenor (Radames) Leontyne Price, Soprano (Aida) Sir Georg Solti, Conductor Aida, Act 4, Sc 2 (La fatal pietra ... O terra, addio) Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden Trumpeters of the Royal Military School of Music, Kneller Hall New Philharmonia Orchestra Montserrat Caballe, Soprano (Aida) Placido Domingo, Tenor (Radames) Fiorenza Cossotto, Mezzo-soprano (Amonasro) Riccardo Muti (Conductor). Exploring the effect on Verdi of the outbreak in 1870 of the Franco-Prussian war. | |
| 2015 | 05 LAST | So Many Requiem Masses... | 20150227 | Donald Macleod explores Giuseppe Verdi's 'middle period'. The writer and fervent supporter of Italian independence and reunification, Alessandro Manzoni, died in May 1873. Within days Verdi told his publisher Ricordi that he wanted to compose a Requiem, to be performed on the first anniversary of the writer's death. He'd already begun a setting of the Requiem Mass and had shown this beginning to the conductor Alberto Mazzucato, who had been very impressed. His encouraging remarks, Verdi said, 'would almost have planted in me the desire to set the Mass in its entirety at some later date... but don't worry, it's a temptation that will pass like many others. There are so many requiem masses; there's no point in adding one more. Four Sacred Pieces, Ave Maria Choir of St Hedwig's Cathedral RIAS Chamber Choir Radio Symphony Orchestra Berlin Ferenc Fricsay, Conductor Requiem (Dies Irae, Tuba mirum, Liber scriptus) Ernst Senff Chorus Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Carlo Maria Giulini, Conductor Requiem (Offertorio, Sanctus & Agnus Dei) Semyon Bychkov WDR Symphony Orchestra WDR Radio Choir NDR Choir Choir of the Royal Theatre, Turin Semyon Bychkov, Conductor Requiem (Libera me) Orchestra and Choir of La Scala Daniel Barenboim - Conductor Anja Harteros (soprano) Elina Garanca (mezzo-soprano) Jonas Kaufmann (tenor) Rene Pape (bass) Fuoco di gioia, from Otello Act 1 Chorus and Orchestra of La Scala Claudio Abbado, Conductor. Donald Macleod uncovers the story behind the completion of Verdi's Requiem. | |
| 2016 | 05 LAST | Verdi And Shakespeare | 20160909 | After Aida was performed in 1871, there was a gap of sixteen years before Verdi's penultimate opera found its way to the stage. He'd been lured back by the temptation of a new Shakespearean work - Otello. Donald Macleod introduces highlights from the work regarded by many as Verdi's finest tragic opera, and he takes a look at Verdi's final contribution to the stage, based on Shakespeare's comic fictional character - Falstaff. Otello (extracts) Otello - Placido Domingo (tenor) Desdemona - Cheryl Studer (soprano) Iago - Sergei Leiferkus (baritone) Orchestra and Chorus of Bastille Opera Conductor, Myung-Whun Chung Falstaff (extracts) Falstaff - Bryn Terfel (baritone) Bardolph - Anthony Mee (tenor) Pistol - Anatoli Kotscherga (bass) Mistress Quickly - Larissa Diadkova (mezzo) Alice Ford - Adrianne Pieczonka (soprano) Meg Page - Stella Doufexis (contralto) Nanetta - Dorothea R怀schmann (soprano) Ford - Thomas Hampson (baritone) Dr Caius - Enrico Facini (tenor) Berlin Radio Choir Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Conductor, Claudio Abbado. Donald Macleod introduces highlights from two of Verdi's Shakespearean operas. | |
| 2018 | 01 | Slow Beginnings | 20180416 | 20190527 (R3) | Few composers have made their mark on the world of opera like Giuseppe Verdi. He wrote a host of eminently hummable tunes as he rose to fame, paralleling the growing sense of identity which Italy was forging for itself in the 19th century, and establishing himself as the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Tracing his life is riddled with difficulties however, due to the artistic licence Verdi himself used when taking about his own history. Donald Macleod pieces together the truths as he traces Verdi's life and music and finds a story of shrewd investments, run-ins with the authorities, driving ambition, and emotional tragedy. In Monday's episode, Donald explores Verdi's youth and early musical experiences in Busetto including the Busseto 'civil war' which erupted over his proposed appointment to the post of town music master and organist, his marriage to Margherita Barezzi - the daughter of his patron, and the early operas he produced for La Scala in Milan which would make his name. La Forza del Destino - Overture Philharmonia Orchestra Giuseppe Sinopoli (conductor) Tantum Ergo in G Kenneth Tarver (tenor) Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi Riccardo Chailly (conductor) Deh, pietoso, oh addolorata Renata Scotto (soprano) Vincenzo Scalera (piano) Simon Boccanegra - Act 1 - Orfanella il tetto umile m'accogliea d'una meschina... ; Figlia! A tal nome io palpito Kristine Opolais (Amelia) Thomas Hampson (Doge) Wiener Symphoniker Massimo Zanetti (conductor) Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio - Act 2 - Eccolo!; Vili all'armi a donne eroi Samuel Ramey (Oberto) Maria Guleghina (Leonora) Violeta Urmana (Cuniza) Stuart Neill (Riccardo) Academy of St. Martin in the Fields London Voices Neville Marriner (conductor) Nabucco - Act 2 - Chi s'avanza Renata Scotto (Abigaille) Robert Lloyd (Gran Sacerdote) Ambrosian Opera Chorus Riccardo Muti (conductor) Producer: Sam Phillips Donald Macleod explores Verdi's youth and early musical experiences in Busetto and Milan. |
| 2018 | 02 | Giuseppina Strepponi | 20180417 | 20190528 (R3) | Few composers have made their mark on the world of opera like Giuseppe Verdi. He wrote a host of eminently hummable tunes as he rose to fame, paralleling the growing sense of identity which Italy was forging for itself in the 19th century, and establishing himself as the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Tracing his life is riddled with difficulties however, due to the artistic licence Verdi himself used when taking about his own history. Donald Macleod pieces together the truths as he traces Verdi's life and music and finds a story of shrewd investments, run-ins with the authorities, driving ambition, and emotional tragedy. In Tuesday's episode, Donald explores Verdi's long relationship with the singer Giuseppina Strepponi as the composer's fame began to spread throughout Italy and further afield in Europe, a period during which he travelled greatly, spending time in Paris, and throughout Italy where newspaper reports of his death lead to claims of poisoning by a rival composer. Nabucco - Act 1 - Viva Nabucco! Chorus and Orchestra of the German Opera, Berlin Giuseppe Sinopoli (conductor) Ernani - Act 1 - Ernani, ernani...; Tutto sprezzo Joan Sutherland (Elvira) Orchestra & Chorus of Welsh National Opera Richard Bonynge (conductor) Macbeth - Act 4 - Gran Scena del Sonnabulismo - 'Vegliammo invan due notti'; 'una Macchia... Shirley Verrett (Lady Macbeth) Anna Caterina Antonacci (Dama) Sergio Fontana (Medico) Orchestra & Chorus of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna Riccardo Chailly (conductor) Jerusalem - Act 2 - Helene!... O ciel! Gaston!; Une pensee amere... Aux armes! Jose Careras Katia Ricciarelli RAI Orchestra & Chorus Gianandrea Gavazzeni (conductor) Un Ballo in Maschera - Act 2 - Ma dall'arido stelo divulsa; Teco io sto.... M'ami m'ami Margaret Price (Amelia) Luciano Pavarotti (Riccardo) National Philharmonic Orchestra Georg Solti (conductor) Producer: Sam Phillips Donald Macleod explores Verdi's long relationship with singer Giuseppina Strepponi. |
| 2018 | 03 | The Heights Of Success | 20180418 | Few composers have made their mark on the world of opera like Giuseppe Verdi. He wrote a host of eminently hummable tunes as he rose to fame, paralleling the growing sense of identity which Italy was forging for itself in the 19th century, and establishing himself as the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Tracing his life is riddled with difficulties however, due to the artistic licence Verdi himself used when taking about his own history. Donald Macleod pieces together the truths as he traces Verdi's life and music and finds a story of shrewd investments, run-ins with the authorities, driving ambition, and emotional tragedy. In Wednesday's programme, Donald focuses on the three hugely popular Operas which Verdi wrote in the early 1850s - Rigoletto, Il Trovatore and La Traviata, works which all have highly controversial subject matters. Stiffelio - Overture Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala Riccardo Muti (conductor) Rigoletto - Act 3 - E l'ami?; La donna e mobile; Un di, se ben rammentomi; Bella figlia dell'amore Maria Callas (Gilda) Tito Gobbi (Rigoletto) Giuseppe di Stefano (Il Duca) Adriana Lazzarini (Maddalena) La Scala Milan Chorus & Orchestra Tullio Serafin (cond) Il Trovatore - Act 2 - Vedi! Le fosche notturne spoglie (Anvil Chorus); Stride la vampa; Mesta e la tua canzon! Elena Zaremba (Azucena) Andrea Boceli (manrico) Salvatore Todaro (uno zingaro) Chorus and Orchestra of Teatro Massimo Bellini di Catania Steven Mercurio (cond) La Traviata - Act 1 - Prelude; Dell'invito trascorsa 耀 gi | |
| 2018 | 04 | Politics | 20180419 | 20190530 (R3) | Few composers have made their mark on the world of opera like Giuseppe Verdi. He wrote a host of eminently hummable tunes as he rose to fame, paralleling the growing sense of identity which Italy was forging for itself in the 19th century, and establishing himself as the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Tracing his life is riddled with difficulties however, due to the artistic licence Verdi himself used when taking about his own history. Donald Macleod pieces together the truths as he traces Verdi's life and music and finds a story of shrewd investments, run-ins with the authorities, driving ambition, and emotional tragedy. In Thursday's programme, Donald explores Verdi's ties with politics, investigating his involvement with the risorgimento movement in Italy, and works which show him in a broadly political light. Inno delle Nazioni (Hymn of the nations) Richard Margison (tenor) Canadian Opera Company Chorus and Orchestra Richard Bradshaw (conductor) La Battaglia di Legnano - Act 4 - Deus meus, pone illos ut rotam; Vittoria! Vittoria!; Per la salvata Italia Katia Ricciarelli (Lida) Ann Murray (Imelda) Dimitri Kavrakos (Secondo Console) Jose Carreras (Arrigo) Matteo Manuguerra (Rolando) ORF Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, Vienna Lamberto Gardelli (conductor) Il Brigidino Renatta Scotto (soprano) Vincenzo Scalera (piano) Don Carlo (1884 Four Act Version) - Act 3 - Ella giammai m'am ; Il Grand'Inquisitor! Nicolai Ghiaurov (Filippo II) Ruggero Raimondi (Il Grande Inquisitore) Horst Nitsche (Count of Lerma) Berlin Philharmonic Herbert von Karajan (conductor) Pieta Signor Michele Pertusi (bass-baritone) Parma Opera Ensemble Producer: Sam Phillips Donald Macleod charts Verdi's involvement with politics. |
| 2018 | 05 LAST | A Final Fling | 20180420 | 20190531 (R3) | Few composers have made their mark on the world of opera like Giuseppe Verdi. He wrote a host of eminently hummable tunes as he rose to fame, paralleling the growing sense of identity which Italy was forging for itself in the 19th century, and establishing himself as the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Tracing his life is riddled with difficulties however, due to the artistic licence Verdi himself used when taking about his own history. Donald Macleod pieces together the truths as he traces Verdi's life and music and finds a story of shrewd investments, run-ins with the authorities, driving ambition, and emotional tragedy. In the final programme of the week, Donald explores Verdi's final years, when after his Requiem, he made a surprise operatic comeback, and he developed a complex relationship with a young singer named Teresa Stolz. Aida - Act 3 - Qui Radames verra!; O patria mia; Ciel! mipo padre!; Rivedrai le foreste imbalsamate; In armi ora si desta il popol nostro; Padre, a costoro schiava non sono Eleonora Buratto (Sacerdoti) Marco Spotti (Re) Jonas Kaufmann (Radam耀s) Erwin Schrott (Ramfis) Ludovic Tezier (Amonasro) Anja Harteros (Aida) Orchestra and Chorus Dell'Academia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia Sir Antonio Pappano (conductor) Requiem - Libera me Anja Harteros (soprano) Orchestra and Chorus of La Scala Daniel Barenboim (conductor) Otello - Act 1 - Una vela! Una vela!; Esultate! Giacomo Prestia (Montano) Ramon Vargas (Cassio) Sergei Leiferkus (Jago) Michael Schade (Roderigo) Placido Domingo (Otello) Orchestra and Chorus of the Bastille Opera Myung-Whun Chung (cond) Falstaff - Act 3 - Facciamo il parentado; Tutto nel mondo e burla Soloists led by Bryn Terfel Berlin Radio Choir Berlin Philharmonic Claudio Abbado (cond) Nabucco - Act 3 - Va pensiero (Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves) Westminster Choir NBC Symphony Orchestra Arturo Toscanini (cond) Producer: Sam Phillips. Donald Macleod explores Verdi's final years. |
| 2022 | 01 | Endings And Beginnings | 20221107 | Donald Macloed explores Verdi's epic funeral in Milan, and explores what the city was really like in Verdi's time. As the hearse carrying the coffin of the composer Giuseppe Verdi travelled through Milan, more than half of the city's population lined the streets to pay their respects and catch a final glimpse of their hero. Few musicians have made such an indelible impression on the population of a country, or become so linked to a nation's sense of identity. Fewer still have become as ingrained in the fabric of a city as Verdi is in Milan. Today, as well as a statue to the composer, both the Conservatoire and a major theatre are named after him. So how was this relationship, between the city of Milan and Verdi forged? After all, this was a man born in Le Roncole, which was then French territory, and yet he would rise to become the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Over the course of this week, Donald Macleod explores the twists and turns of Verdi's relationship with Milan -where Verdi would see his first iconic successes, and where he would breathe his last, but also a city where, for a time, he tried to ban performances of his music. In Monday's episode, Donald explores Verdi's epic funeral in Milan, and explores what the city was really like in Verdi's time, as he traces the composer's first youthful experiences in the city, when he travelled there to study, amid an oppressive police presence which saw armed Austrian soldiers patrolling the streets. Requiem - Sanctus Anja Harteros, soprano El?na Garan?a, mezzo Jonas Kaufmann, tenor Ren退 Pape, bass Orchestra e coro del Teatro alla Scala, Milan Daniel Barenboim, conductor Il Trovatore - Miserere Anna Netrebko (Leonora), soprano Rolando Villaz n (Manrico), tenor Orchestra del Teatro Regio di Torino, Coro del Teatro Regio di Torino Gianandrea Noseda, conductor Io la Vidi (Scena lirica) Luciano Pavarotti, tenor Antonio Savastano, tenor Claudio Abbado, conductor Un Ballo in Maschera - Act 3 scene 2 & 3 Leontyne Price (Amelia), soprano Carlo Bergonzi (Riccardo), tenor Robert Merrill (Renato), baritone Reri Grist (Oscar), soprano Ezio Flagello (Samuel), bass Ferruccio Mazzoli (Tom), bass RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra & Chorus Erich Leinsdorf, conductor Sei Romanze - no. 1 `Non t'accostare all'urna` & no. 6 `Deh, piatoso, oh Addolorata` Ning Liang, mezzo-soprano Cord Garben, piano Producer: Sam Phillips Donald Macleod explores Verdi's funeral in Milan, and his first experiences in the city. | |
| 2022 | 02 | Merelli's La Scala | 20221108 | Donald Macleod explores the beginnings of Verdi's tempestuous relationship with Milan's famous opera house - La Scala As the hearse carrying the coffin of the composer Giuseppe Verdi travelled through Milan, more than half of the city's population lined the streets to pay their respects and catch a final glimpse of their hero. Few musicians have made such an indelible impression on the population of a country, or become so linked to a nation's sense of identity. Fewer still have become as ingrained in the fabric of a city as Verdi is in Milan. Today, as well as a statue to the composer, both the Conservatoire and a major theatre are named after him. So how was this relationship, between the city of Milan and Verdi forged? After all, this was a man born in Le Roncole, which was then French territory, and yet he would rise to become the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Over the course of this week, Donald Macleod explores the twists and turns of Verdi's relationship with Milan -where Verdi would see his first iconic successes, and where he would breathe his last, but also a city where, for a time, he tried to ban performances of his music. In Tuesday's programme, Donald dives into the world of the theatre, exploring what Milan's famous opera house La Scala was like, and examines how Verdi - now a husband and a father - came to begin his tempestuous relationship with the theatre. Tragedy strikes and a new character enters Verdi's life - La Scala's impresario, Bartolomeo Merelli. Rigoletto - `Bella figlia dell'amore` Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Rigoletto), tenor Fiorenza Cossotto (Maddalena), mezzo-soprano Renata Scotto (Gilda), soprano Carlo Bergonzi (Il Duca), tenor Teatro alla Scala Rafael Kubelik, conductor La Forza del Destino - Overture Munich Philharmonic Orchestra Sergiu Celibidache, conductor Guarda che bianca luna: Notturno Jennifer Larmore, mezzo-soprano Bruce Ford, tenor Alastair Miles, bass Jaime Martin, flute Antoine Palloc, piano La seduzione Paul Armin Edelmann, baritone Friedrich Haider, piano Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio - `Ah, sgombro e il loco alfin!`; `Eccolo! E desso!` Francesca Lombardi Mazzilli (Leonora), soprano Adrian Gans (Oberto), baritone Manuela Custer (Cuniza), mezzo-soprano Norman Reinhardt (Riccardo), tenor Choir and Supplementary Choir of the Gie߀en Stadttheater The Philharmonic Orchestra Michael Hofstetter, conductor Un giorno di regno - `Non vo' quel vecchio` Lucia Aliberti (Giulietta), soprano Orchestra and Chorus Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi Oleg Caetani, conductor Producer: Sam Phillips Donald Macleod explores Verdi's relationship with Milan's famous opera house - La Scala. | |
| 2022 | 03 | Success | 20221109 | Donald Macleod sees Verdi make his mark on Milan with his first real operatic success at La Scala, and a work which would make his name throughout Italy. As the hearse carrying the coffin of the composer Giuseppe Verdi travelled through Milan, more than half of the city's population lined the streets to pay their respects and catch a final glimpse of their hero. Few musicians have made such an indelible impression on the population of a country, or become so linked to a nation's sense of identity. Fewer still have become as ingrained in the fabric of a city as Verdi is in Milan. Today, as well as a statue to the composer, both the Conservatoire and a major theatre are named after him. So how was this relationship, between the city of Milan and Verdi forged? After all, this was a man born in Le Roncole, which was then French territory, and yet he would rise to become the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Over the course of this week, Donald Macleod explores the twists and turns of Verdi's relationship with Milan -where Verdi would see his first iconic successes, and where he would breathe his last, but also a city where, for a time, he tried to ban performances of his music. In Wednesday's episode, Donald sees Verdi making his mark on Milan with his first real operatic triumph at La Scala - Nabucco. The work's wild popularity would make his name throughout Italy, and its music would go on to become the symbol of the Italian Risorgimento. It set Verdi up for nation-wide success, with performances in, and commissions from, other opera houses in Italy and throughout Europe. But as Verdi labours under increasing pressure to write more and more works and replicate Nabucco's acclaim, he becomes desperately overworked and is forced to take on an assistant. La Battaglia di Legnano - Cavatina `La pia materna mano` Andrew Richards (Arrigo), tenor Trieste Teatro Giuseppe Verdi Orchestra Boris Brott, conductor Nabucco - `Va, pensiero, sull'ali dorate` Deutsche Oper Berlin Chor der Deutschen Oper Berlin Giuseppe Sinopoli, conductor Nabucco - Overture Filarmonica della Scala Riccardo Chailly, conductor I Lombardi alla prima crociata - `Oh belle, a questa misera`; `Qual volutt | |
| 2022 | 04 | Addio | 20221110 | Things go badly wrong between Verdi and Milan and the composer leaves the city. Presented by Donald Macleod. As the hearse carrying the coffin of the composer Giuseppe Verdi travelled through Milan, more than half of the city's population lined the streets to pay their respects and catch a final glimpse of their hero. Few musicians have made such an indelible impression on the population of a country, or become so linked to a nation's sense of identity. Fewer still have become as ingrained in the fabric of a city as Verdi is in Milan. Today, as well as a statue to the composer, both the Conservatoire and a major theatre are named after him. So how was this relationship, between the city of Milan and Verdi forged? After all, this was a man born in Le Roncole, which was then French territory, and yet he would rise to become the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Over the course of this week, Donald Macleod explores the twists and turns of Verdi's relationship with Milan -where Verdi would see his first iconic successes, and where he would breathe his last, but also a city where, for a time, he tried to ban performances of his music. In Thursday's programme, Donald explores the circumstances which led to Verdi leaving the city where he had made his home, as pressures tell and Verdi's health suffers amid rumours of poisoning. The stresses placed on the composer pushed him to breaking point and after an operatic failure at La Scala, tempers clashed and Verdi fell out with La Scala's shady impresario Merelli, and the librettist Solera. The composer threatened a total ban on his music being performed in Milan. As revolutionary feeling grew in the city and throughout Italy, Verdi decided to leave Milan. After all, there were plenty of other opera houses in Europe, all too willing to agree to his every demand. He wouldn't return to the city of his early triumphs for over two decades. Rigoletto - Act I Scene 2 `Addio, addio` Carlo Bergonzi (Il Duca), tenor Renata Scotto (Gilda), soprano Coro e Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala Rafael Kubelik, conductor Giovanna d'Arco - Act 1, Scene 2 Anna Netrebko (Giovanna d'Arco), soprano Plကcido Domingo (Giacomo), baritone Francesco Meli (Carlo VII), tenor Philharmonia Chor Wien Munich Radio Orchestra Paolo Carignani, conductor Alzira Overture Berlin Philharmonic Herbert von Karajan, conductor Macbeth (1847 version) - ` Vegliammo invan due notti - `Un lume recasi in man?` Iano Tamar (Lady Macbeth), soprano Sonia Lee (Dama), mezzo-soprano Han-Gweong Jang (Medico), bass Orchestra Internazionale d'Italia Bratislava Chamber Choir Marco Guidarini, conductor La battaglia di legnano - `Giuriam d'Italia` Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Coro dell'Accademia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia Carlo Rizzi, conductor La Forza del Destino - `Hola` (Ballabile) Orchestra Del Teatro Alla Scala Di Milan Coro Del Teatro Alla Scala Di Milano Riccardo Muti, conductor Producer: Sam Phillips Things go badly wrong between Verdi and Milan. Presented by Donald Macleod. | |
| 2022 | 05 LAST | Verdi The Outsider, Verdi The Legend | 20221111 | Verdi is persuaded to return to the city of Milan, where he is greeted like a hero. Presented by Donald Macleod. As the hearse carrying the coffin of the composer Giuseppe Verdi travelled through Milan, more than half of the city's population lined the streets to pay their respects and catch a final glimpse of their hero. Few musicians have made such an indelible impression on the population of a country, or become so linked to a nation's sense of identity. Fewer still have become as ingrained in the fabric of a city as Verdi is in Milan. Today, as well as a statue to the composer, both the Conservatoire and a major theatre are named after him. So how was this relationship, between the city of Milan and Verdi forged? After all, this was a man born in Le Roncole, which was then French territory, and yet he would rise to become the most successful Italian composer of his generation. Over the course of this week, Donald Macleod explores the twists and turns of Verdi's relationship with Milan -where Verdi would see his first iconic successes, and where he would breathe his last, but also a city where, for a time, he tried to ban performances of his music. In Friday's programme, Verdi is persuaded to return to the city of Milan where he is greeted like a hero. However, he decides he won't live in the city and uses the Grand Hotel, Milan as his base. He oversees a series of late, great masterpieces at La Scala, and is mobbed by fans wherever he goes. Eventually, Verdi buys a plot of land in Milan, not to build his own home in the city but to build a rest home for musicians - the place where he himself would be buried, after dying in the city with which he had had such a turbulent relationship. Aida - `Gloria all'Egitto, ad Iside`; triumphal march Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden New Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Opera Chorus Riccardo Muti, conductor La Forza del Destino - `La Vergine degli angeli` Montserrat Caballe (Leonora), soprano Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Ambrosian Singers Anton Guadagno, conductor Requiem - Libera Me, Domine Anja Harteros, soprano Sonia Ganassi, mezzo-soprano Rolando Villazon, tenor Ren退 Pape, bass Orchestra dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia Coro dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia Antonio Pappano, conductor Falstaff - Act II Scene II Bryn Terfel (Falstaff), bass-baritone Thomas Hampson (Ford), baritone Adrianne Pieczonka (Alice Ford), soprano Danill Shtoda (Fenton), tenor Dorothea R怀schmann (Nannetta), soprano Larissa Diadkova (Mistress Quickly), contralto Stella Doufexis (Meg Page), mezzo-soprano Berliner Philharmoniker Rundfunkchor Berlin Claudio Abbado, conductor Otello - `Ave Maria` Maria Callas (Desdemona), soprano Paris Conservatoire Orchestra Nicola Rescigno, conductor Producer: Sam Phillips Verdi returns to Milan in a late blaze of glory. Presented by Donald Macleod. |