The Daughter of the Regiment (La Fille du régiment, or La figlia del reggimento) was first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on February 11, 1840. The French libretto by Jean François Bayard and Vernoy de Saint-Georges was translated into Italian by the composer. The setting is Tyrol in 1815, then being invaded by Napoleon’s troops. Marie is the vivandière (canteen manager) of the 21st Regiment of the French army. In love with Tonio, who is suspected by the French of being a spy, she is able to prevail on the troops to save his life. But Marie is soon compelled to be separated from both Tonio and the French soldiers when it is discovered that she is the long lost niece of the Countess of Berkenfeld and must return with her aunt to her castle. The Countess wants Marie to marry the Duke of Crackenthorp. When the French troops, with Tonio among them, storm the Berkenfeld castle and want to reclaim Marie, the Countess now reveals that Marie is not her niece but her daughter and thus must obey her wishes. However, the French soldiers finally prevail on the Countess to permit Marie to marry Tonio.
The most popular selections from this tuneful, and occasionally martially stirring opera are: Marie’s moving tribute to her regiment (“Ah, chacun le sait, chacun le dit”) and her tender farewell as she is about to leave for Berkenfeld (“Il faut partir, mes bons compagnons”) and a spirited French war song to victory (“Rataplan”) all from the first act; and from the second act, Marie’s moving aria (“Par le rang, et l’opulence”), the orchestral entr’acte “Tyrolienne,” and the dramatic paean to France (“Salut à la France”) with which the opera ends.
Don Pasquale is a classic in the literature of opera buffa. It received its première in Paris on January 3, 1843; its libretto (by the composer and Giacomo Ruffini) is based on a libretto created by Angelo Anelli for another opera. The central character is an old bachelor who objected to the marriage of his young nephew with a beautiful widow, Norina. To teach him a lesson, Norina puts on a disguise, involves the old man in a mock marriage, and then tortures him with her shrewish ways. Pasquale finally becomes so relieved to discover that he has merely been the victim of an intrigue, rather than a catastrophic marriage, that he does not hesitate any longer to give Norina and his nephew his consent to their marriage.
In the case of Don Pasquale its overture is heard far more often than potpourris of principal sections. It opens with heavy descending chords which lead into an opulent song for cellos, soon assumed by horns and the woodwind. The heart of the overture is a saucy melody for strings. The music now becomes dramatized with transitional material, but a new gay melody is offered by the woodwind and strings. The main string melody and the succeeding sprightly tune are recalled to finish the overture in a gay mood.
L’Elisir d’amore (The Elixir of Love) like Don Pasquale, is a delightful comic opera, one of the most effervescent ever written. It received its first performance in Milan on May 12, 1832. The libretto, by Felice Romani, was based on Eugène Scribe’s Le Philtre. Nemorino, in love with Adina who rejects him, purchases a love elixir from the quack, Dr. Dulcamara. But a sudden inheritance from his uncle, which forthwith makes Nemorino extremely popular with the girls, proves even more potent in winning Adina’s love than the potion itself.
Orchestral selections from his gay opera include one of the best loved tenor arias in the operatic repertory. It is “Una furtiva lagrima,” a soulful song by Nemorino in the second act with which he hopes to console Adina when he sees her jealousy suddenly aroused by the fact that he had become the favorite of the village girls. Other familiar episodes include a merry comic number “Udite, Udite” in which Dr. Dulcamara boasts of the power of his potions, and a beautiful aria, “Quanto è bella,” in which Nemorino discloses his love and longing for Adina, both in the first act.
Lucia di Lammermoor is Donizetti’s most famous grand opera, and the title role has been favored by the world’s foremost coloratura sopranos. The libretto, by Salvatore Cammarano, was based on the Sir Walter Scott romance, The Bride of Lammermoor. The opera was first performed in Naples on September 26, 1835. Lucia, sister of Lord Ashton, is in love with Edgar; but in planning to have her marry the wealthy Lord Arthur Bucklaw, Lord Ashton uses lies and wiles to convince his sister that Edgar does not love her. On the day of the signing of the marriage contract between Lucia and Bucklaw, Edgar invades the Lammermoor castle and curses its family. Maddened by her grief, Lucia kills her husband soon after the wedding, and then dies. When Edgar learns that Lucia has loved him all the time, he commits suicide.
The favorite selections from this opera include one of the most famous ensemble numbers in all opera, the sextet “Chi mi frena.” It is sung in Act 2, Scene 2, by Lucia, Edgar, Bucklaw, Raimond, Ashton and Alisa after Edgar had invaded the Lammermoor castle and witnessed the signing of the marriage contract between Lucia and Bucklaw. Each of the characters here gives voice to his or her personal reaction to this dramatic situation: Lucia speaks of her despair at the treachery of her brother; Edgar wonders why he does not commit an act of vengeance; Lord Ashton is led to sympathy at his sister’s despair; Lucia’s companion, Alisa, and Bucklaw hope that bloodshed might be averted; and Raimond, a chaplain, invokes divine help.
Another highly popular excerpt from the opera offered in orchestral potpourris includes Lucia’s “Mad Scene” from Act 3, Scene 2 (“Ardon gl’incensi”). Dressed in a white gown, Lucia appears and mistakes her brother for her beloved Edgar, who she believes has come to marry her. Then she entreats those around her to place a flower on her grave and not to weep at her death (“Spargi d’amaro pianto”).
Several other selections often played include Lucia’s lyrical cavatina from Act 1, Scene 2 (“Quando rapita in estasi”) as she thinks of her beloved Edgar; the love duet of Lucia and Edgar from the same scene (“Verrano a te sull’aure”); and the wedding music from Act 3, Scene 1 that precedes the “Mad Scene” (“D’immenso giubilo”).