Giuseppe Verdi

As we continue our coverage of Lombardy, ITALY Magazine’s featured region this November, we take a look at its notable music tradition. You may not be aware…

The Verdi Festival returns this October to Parma to celebrate the great opera composer hailing from the nearby town of Roncole di Busseto. The festival begins…

Background  Il Trovatore took a long time coming from its original conception in 1850 through to its eventual performance in early 1853. This four act…

While Milan’s La Scala is Italy’s most famous opera house, the Real Teatro di San Carlo (St. Charles Royal Theatre) in Naples takes credit for being the oldest…

Background Hot on the heels of the success of Rigoletto, Verdi was commissioned to put together another opera by La Fenice. Verdi's next inspirational port of…

BACKGROUNDOne of the most acclaimed Verdi operas, Rigoletto at one point, was very much a case of “touch and go”. The three-act opera, based on Victor Hugo's…

October 10, 2013 marks the bicentennial of Giuseppe Verdi’s birth. Italy Magazine has paid homage to the celebrated opera composer throughout the year with a…

Italian conductor and music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Riccardo Muti will lead the combined forces of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the…

BACKGROUND Having enjoyed a hugely successful career, by the early 1870s, Verdi felt that the time was right to take retirement. Verdi's publisher disagreed…