![]() However, both of these subjects were to become later Verdi operas, Il corsaro and I due Foscari.Īn unsolicited manuscript from the unknown Francesco Piave (who was La Fenice's resident poet and stage manager in addition to being a friend of Brenna, the company's Secretary) proposed an opera, Cromwell, based on Victor Hugo's play, and on which he had started work. In thinking about an opera about the Venetian Foscari family, he found that it was forbidden by the censor in order to avoid upsetting any of the descendants of that family who were then living in Venice. Several subjects came to Verdi's attention: for example, Byron's The Corsair was considered, but the right baritone was not available. Once this agreement was settled upon, the next step was to choose a subject, something which took some time. He explains -and this was rare at the time-that he began to compose only when the libretto was completed to his satisfaction because "when I have a general conception of the whole poem, the music comes of its own accord" David Kimbell notes one additional demand: In addition, he had the right to choose the singers from the assembled company for that season. Amongst other stipulations, he demanded the right to choose his own subject, his own librettist, and also to pay him directly, as well as refusing to accept the requirement that a full orchestral score be available in advance. However, the composer was only willing to accept the terms which he proposed: 12,000 Austrian lire to be paid after the first performance, not the third as proposed by Venice (Verdi recalled what had happened to Un giorno di regno with its one and only performance). Rather than prepare another for La Scala, he was interested in a commission for two operas for the 1843–44 season (one of which would be I Lombardi) which came from the President of the Teatro la Fenice in Venice, Marquis Nanni Mocenigo. Following the success of both Nabucco and I Lombardi, Verdi was approached by many opera companies wanting to commission him to write an opera for their houses. ![]()
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