- Piegare la nota: Contrappunto e dramma in Verdi by Marcello Conati
Rivers of ink have been spilled about Giuseppe Verdi. General books about his life and music do not always make the most of new research and analysis, but Marcello Conati’s Piegare la nota, contrappunto e dramma in Verdi is, without doubt, a relevant addition to the literature on Verdi. Although the book does not present new material, it provides a cohesive collection of essays written by the scholar from 1969 to 2006, previously accessible only individually within various conference proceedings or academic journals. All are now available in one volume, assembled by Olschki. Fifty years of research demonstrate Conati’s significant interest in and passion for this operatic composer.
The title of the book, Piegare la nota: Contrappunto e dramma in Verdi, alludes to the significance of counterpoint and of traditional rules, as expressed by Verdi himself. In fact, the composer received, as a youth, a framework of strict studies in composition as passed down through the generations. These fundamental compositional studies were based on the great Neapolitan school, which Verdi considered essential for every student, as Conati affirms in the introduction, in which he examines the importance of Verdi’s training. It stands to reason that Verdi’s music can be understood in light of the education he received.
The preamble, despite being dedicated to counterpoint and harmony in Verdi, only touches on these aspects of compositional practice and the central place they were to take in molding his future career. This initial section might have benefited from the development of deeper insights into counterpoint-dedicated analysis, particularly by use of an example of the composition process. This would have been illuminating, given the author’s substantial knowledge of Verdi’s works. This is the only shortcoming of the volume, which I maintain should form part of any serious collection of literature devoted to a proper understanding of Giuseppe Verdi.
These nine ricognizioni (or essays) retrace the important stages of the composer’s career, from the beginning with Oberto until his maturity, when he composed the Pezzi sacri (sacred works), discussing various topics related to Verdi’s operas. Conati’s Piegare la nota covers more than Verdi’s operas: each essay sets out to explore one distinct aspect of Verdi’s compositional practice, and sometimes the related facets of staging and dramaturgy. They also provide us with fascinating and relevant documents, such as the press reviews of Oberto found in the first ricognizione, which highlight how this work merits attention as a specific case study.
The first essay discusses the international reception of the La Scala premiere of Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio, and elucidates the judgments and prejudices shown towards this early work. In doing so, Conati explores one of the most overlooked of Verdi’s operas, his very first. The subsequent essay is concerned with the genesis of the first performance of Verdi’s Macbeth. Many aspects of the production stage of the work are documented through the testimony of critics and the chronicles of those attending, and also through elements drawn from the composer’s correspondence. The technical solutions chosen by Verdi and documented by Conati not only shed light on the first Macbeth performance but also provide the reader with detailed insights into nineteenth-century theatrical life (similar solutions are analyzed in the sixth essay in relation to the first version of Simon Boccanegra in 1857, in which different aspects of lighting and visual staging effects are documented thoroughly). What this essay confirms is Verdi’s professed drive for consistency in his desired dramaturgical effects; Conati’s work testifies to the centrality of these effects in Verdi’s creative process.
The author asserts that the composer had one central purpose: the complete translation of dramatic action into music. The third essay on Luisa Miller and the tragedy Kabale und Liebe by Friedrich Schiller, together with the fourth essay, E quasi si direbbe prosa strumentata, discuss the composer’s...
