Verdi's tribute to a great Italian writer

Synopsis

On today's date in 1873, the great Italian poet and novelist Alessandro Manzoni died. One of his most ardent admirers was the Italian opera composer, Giuseppe Verdi, who was so stunned by his death that he was unable to attend Manzoni's funeral, instead paying a solitary visit to the writer's grave soon after.

As a tribute, Verdi conceived the idea of writing a requiem mass for the first anniversary of Manzoni's death. He approached the mayor of Milan suggesting that the city sponsor such a concert, while Verdi himself would pay for such expenses as copying and printing. The suggestion was accepted and Verdi began work began on his Manzoni Requiem. Verdi hand-picked his soloists and rehearsed a 100-piece orchestra and 120-voice for the premiere performance in Milan, on today's date in 1874.

In his letter to the mezzo Maria Waldmann, inviting her to participate in the premiere, Verdi wrote: "You would gain neither reputation nor money from it, but since this is something that will make history, certainly not because of the merit of the music, but because of the man to whom it is dedicated, I think it would be fine if, one, day, history would say: 'On 22 May there was a great Requiem Mass for the anniversary of Manzoni's death…"

After the premiere performances in Milan, Verdi took the "Requiem" on tour, conducting the first performances of the new work in Paris, London, and Vienna.

Music Played in Today's Program

Giuseppe Verdi (1813 – 1901) Sanctus, fr Requiem Chicago Symphony Chorus and Orchestra; Daniel Barenboim, cond. Erato 96357

On This Day

Births

• 1813 - German composer Richard Wagner, in Leipzig;

Deaths

• 1949 - German composer Hans Pfitzner, age 80, in Salzburg;

Premieres

• 1813 - Rossini: "L'Italiana in Algeri" (The Italian Woman in Algiers), in Venice at the Teatro San Benedetto;

• 1836 - Mendelssohn: oratorio "Paulus" (St. Paul), at the Lower Rhine Music Festival in Düsseldorf, with the composer conducting;

• 1874 - Verdi: "Requiem Mass," at the Milan Cathedral, with the composer conducting;

• 1911 - Debussy: "Le Martyre de Saint-Sebastien," in Paris at the Théatre du Châtelet, André Caplet conducting;

• 1924 - Stravinsky: Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments, at the Paris Opéra at a concert conducted by Serge Koussevitzky, with the composer as the piano soloist;

• 1931 - William Grant Still: ballet "Sahdji," by the Eastman Ballet and Rochester Civic Orchestra, Howard Hanson conducting;

• 1950 - R. Strauss: "Four Last Songs" for soprano and orchestra, in London, with the Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Wilhelm Furtw ä ngle and Kristen Flagstad the vocalsoloist;

• 1982 - Alvin Singleton: "A Yellow Rose Petal" for orchestra, by the Houston Symphony, C. William Harwood conducting;

• 1990 - John Harbison: "Simple Daylight" (to a text by Michael Fried) at the Herbst Theater in San Francisco, by soprano Dawn Upshaw and pianist Alan Feinberg;

• 1999 - Bright Sheng: "Flute Moon," with soloist Aralee Dorough (flute/piccolo) and the Houston Symphony, Christoph Eschenbach conducting;

Others

• 1723 - J.S. Bach, the newly appointed cantor of Leipzig's St. Thomas Church, arrives in that city with his family;

• 1790 - Possible premiere of Mozart's String Quartets in D (K. 575) and Bb (K. 589) at Mozart's apartment in Vienna, very likely with the composer as violist;

• 1872 - On his 59th birthday, Richard Wagner lays the cornerstone of his Festival Theater in Bayreuth, Germany.