Verdi Week: At-a-Glance
With his stirring choruses, popular melodies and ardent political themes, Giuseppe Verdi has given generations of opera-lovers plenty to savor.To mark the 200th anniversary of his birth WQXR is...
View ArticleThe Vocal Scene with George Jellinek: The Great Verdi Singers, Part I
The late George Jellinek offers an historical survey of the great Verdi singers from the first half of the 20th century, including Francesco Tamagno who was the first Otello, Rosa Ponselle and Giovanni...
View ArticleQuiz: How Well Do You Know Your Verdi?
Giuseppe Verdi is the most-performed composer in opera houses worldwide, and his themes have taken root in popular culture from movies to hip-hop. Take our (moderately tricky!) quiz and see how much...
View ArticleVerdi: Part 1
A towering presence in Italian art and perhaps the greatest composer of 19th century opera, Giuseppe Verdi is one of the most venerated figures in classical music. This week WQXR's Verdi Week kicks off...
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Top Five Toasts in Verdi's Operas
To celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Giuseppe Verdi, we thought we’d give him a toast—or five. The prolific opera composer wrote a number of toasts, or brindisi, as he would say in...
View ArticlePlacido Domingo Calls Otello His All-Time Favorite Verdi Role
When Placido Domingo sang his first Otello at the Metropolitan Opera in 1979, there was much anticipation and even worry. Was the title role of Verdi's Shakespearean opera too heavy for the 38-year-old...
View ArticleThe Sacred Verdi
To almost every opera lover, and to every Italian, Giuseppe Verdi is sacred. Although opera is more than four centuries old and embraces many languages, styles and viewpoints, somehow the works of...
View ArticleVerdi Flashmob: Choir Surprises Shoppers with 'Va, Pensiero'
Giuseppe Verdi has inspired plenty of flash mob performances – in markets, public squares and department stores.In honor of the 200th anniversary of his birth, here's one with particular charm....
View ArticleVerdi’s Greatest Non-Hits
Giuseppe Verdi is probably best known as the composer of certain “hit opera tunes” – tunes that have been stuck in millions of people’s heads for the past century and a half – like the drinking song...
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Verdi's Aida and its Role in the Egyptian Revolution
It might distress Giuseppe Verdi, the great Italian patriot and nationalist, that Egypt's history of European occupation is in partly the fault of his wonderful opera, Aida.Verdi understood the...
View ArticleSaturday Morning Cartoons: A Sweet Verdi Animation
It’s Verdi week, so we present cartoon that features “Noi siamo zingarelle," the gypsy chorus from Giuseppe Verdi's tragic opera, La Traviata.If this confectionary short leaves you hankering for more...
View ArticleVerdi's Rigoletto from the Metropolitan Opera
To celebrate Verdi’s bicentennial, at 9 pm Thursday hear an encore performance of Rigoletto from the Metropolitan Opera.In this production from last season, Verdi's Rigoletto, set in 16th century...
View ArticleVerdi's Nabucco from the Royal Opera House
In honor of the Verdi bicentennial, this week's broadcast features Nabucco from London's Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. The production, recorded last season, features Placido Domingo, reinventing...
View ArticleViva Verdi
On this week’s program, Kent Tritle presents a mix of Verdi’s best choral music. We hear portions of his colossal Messa da Requiem and some of his most famous opera melodies, including choruses from Il...
View ArticleVerdi, Part II
Host Bill McGlaughlin launches into a second week exploring the music of Giuseppe Verdi.
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