Viva Verdi!

Kip Cranna, PhD

The leading artist of Italy’s reunification into a single country in the mid-Nineteenth Century was the great composer Giuseppe Verdi. His operatic masterworks brought to the stage the values and issues of the “Risorgimento” movement, giving vivid creative expression to the ideals of his time.  His stirring and melodious music provided a common bond for peoples divided by political boundaries, customs, and dialects.  Verdi’s personal life—his humble beginnings, his professional triumphs and family tragedies, his moral integrity, his patriotic yearnings—became symbolic of an emerging nation’s vital spirit.  We will explore Giuseppe Verdi’s life and art in their historical context and use video examples (with English subtitles) to examine in detail his magnificent music dramas, whose creative genius continues to thrill audiences everywhere. No previous opera background required.  Just watch, listen, and enjoy.