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Not until 1855 did Verdi have a chance to try his hand at French grand opera. A setting of a libretto by Eugene Scribe, Les Vepres siciliennes proved a success in Paris despite its problematic subject matter: the Sicilian uprising against occupying french forces in Palermo in 1282. Today, the opera is usually given in the Italian version of 1861 as I Vespri Siciliani. To celebrate Giuseppe Verdis bicentenary in 2013, C Major is proud to present the truly unique project, TUTTO VERDI: All 26 operas released on DVD and Blu-ray, together with his immortal Requiem and special documentary.



CAST:
Guido di Monforte – Leo Nucci
Il sire di Bethune – Dario Russo
Il conte Vaudemont – Andrea Mastroni
Arrigo – Fabio Armiliato
Giovanni da Procida – Giacomo Prestia
La duchessa Elena – Daniela Dessì
Ninetta – Adriana Di Paola
Danieli – Raoul d’Eramo
Tebaldo – Roberto Jachini Virgili
Roberto – Alessandro Battiato
Manfredo – Camillo Facchino

Parma Teatro Regio Chorus and Orchestra
(chorus master: Martino Faggiani)
Massimo Zanetti, conductor

Pier Luigi Pizzi, stage director, set and costume designer
Vincenzo Raponi, lighting designer
Roberto Maria Pizzuto, choreographer

REVIEW:
Tami Horiuchi, Amazon.com

Originally a French grand opera, I Vespri Siciliani was Verdi's risky foray into the greater proportion and variety of form of the grand opera style following the successes of Rigoletto, Il Trovatore, and La Traviata. The story was originally set in Bruges and written in French, but librettist Eugène Scribe relocated the setting to 13th-century Palermo for Verdi and the language was changed to Italian in response to the political situation of the day.

I Vespri Siciliani is Verdi's 17th most performed opera and it is the Italian version that remains the most popular today. The story focuses on Duchess Elena, a woman mourning her brother's death at the hands of the French, who falls in love with soldier Arrigo and agrees to marry him to help Procida, another soldier, incite revolt and exact revenge against the French. The group plots to murder French governor Monforte, but when Arrigo discovers he possesses an unlikely connection with him, he has second thoughts and warns him.
Elena and Procida are imprisoned, while Arrigo is pardoned, and eventually Elena and Arrigo face the very difficult prospect of choosing between love and country. This production of I Vespri Siciliani is considered one of the most definitive and is part of the Tutto Verdi project, which encompasses all of the composer's operas. Vespri was filmed in high definition and recorded at Teatro Regio di Parma, and the picture and the sound on the Blu-ray are top-notch.

The cast members are exceptional, both in their vocal performances and their expressive delivery, and the large orchestra delivers a powerful performance of the lofty score. An oddity for the grand opera style, the staging is very simple, even minimalist, though actors do make full use of the entire, suitably grand, theater.

Works on This Recording
I vespri siciliani by Giuseppe Verdi
Performer: Andrea Mastroni (Bass), Leo Nucci (Baritone), Giacomo Prestia (Baritone), Fabio Armiliato (Tenor), Daniela Dessi (Soprano), Adriana Di Paola (Mezzo Soprano), Dario Russo (Bass), Raoul D'eramo (Bass)
Conductor: Massimo Zanetti
Orchestra/Ensemble: Parma Teatro Regio Orchestra, Parma Teatro Regio Chorus
Period: Romantic
Written: 1855; Italy