Composer Guiseppe Verdi was born on Oct. 10, 1813 in Roncole, near Busseto.
After some years as a conductor in small communities, Verdi submitted an unsolicited opera to La Scala, entitled Oberto, conte di Bonfacio. Based on its success, Verdi was given a contract for three further operas.
However, his next opera failed and the deaths of his wife and two young children in 1840 sent him into a deep depression. He composed nothing for nearly a year.
Everything changed with the premiere of Nabucco in 1842. The Italian people strongly identified with its politically charged biblical story, securing Verdi's fame throughout the country.
From 1842 to 1853 he wrote 16 operas, with performances in Milan, Rome, Naples, Venice, Florence, Trieste, Paris and London. The operas included his biggest hits: Rigoletto, Il Trovatore and La Traviata. Verdi looked to great writers for inspiration including Victor Hugo (Rigoletto), Schiller (Luisa Miller) and Shakespeare (Macbeth).
In the following 18 years, Verdi's output slowed considerably, to a mere six operas: Simon Boccanegra, Un Ballo in Maschera, Don Carlos, Aida, Les Vepres Siciliennes and La Forza del destino.
Interestingly, Verdi employed no agent or manager, negotiating commissions personally from theatre managements with Ricordi, his publisher and consultant, by his side.
By this point Verdi was not only the great man of opera, but also a national hero. Even Verdi's name was used as a political acronym: Vittorio Emmanuele, Rè d'Italia (Victor Emmanuel was to be the first King of a united Italy).
After Aida's premiere in Cairo in 1871, Verdi did not write another opera for the next 16 years. He travelled through Europe, watching over his productions, and wrote his famous Requiem. Late in life, Verdi created two final works, Otello and Falstaff.
Verdi suffered a stroke and died on Jan. 27, 1901 in Milan, Italy.
Born November 25, 1824, in Lecco, Italy, librettist Antonio Ghislanzoni had an erratic early life. At age 15 he was expelled from the seminary where he was preparing for the priesthood and moved into the study of medicine, followed by singing.
Between 1846 and 1855, he performed as a baritone in France and Italy, including the role of Carlo in Verdi’s Ernani. However, after an uneven career, he moved on to writing, drawing on his theatre experience for his novel, Gli artisti da teatro. He also pursued ventures as librettist, journalist, publisher and editor, although not always financially successful.
Ghislanzoni is best known for his collaborations with Verdi, including the revision of Piave’s libretto for La forza del destino and the versification of the prose sketch of Aida. He wrote 85 librettos, including Petrella’s I promessi sposi (1869), Ponchielli’s I lituani (1874), and Catalani’s Edmea (1886). He also wrote thousands of articles, including a description of Verdi’s life at the Villa Sant’Agata.
In 1880, he bought a house at Caprino Bergamasco, Italy, where he lived until his death on July 16, 1893.