''Bianca e Fernando'' (''Bianca and Fernando'') is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

in two acts by

Vincenzo Bellini Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Giu ...

. The original version of this opera was presented as ''Bianca e Gernando'' and was set to a

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

by Domenico Gilardoni, based on ''Bianca e Fernando alla tomba di Carlo IV, duca di Agrigento'' (''Bianca and Ferdinand at the Tomb of Charles IV, Duke of Agrigento''), a play by Carlo Roti which is set in Sicily. In 1826, use of the name ''Fernando'' in the title was forbidden because Ferdinando was the name of the

heir to the throne An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

, and no form of it could be used on a royal stage. The 1826 work—Bellini's first professionally staged opera—had its first performance at the

Teatro di San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent t ...

in Naples on 30 May 1826.Weinstock 1971, pp. 30—34 Its success resulted in the offer to the young composer from

Domenico Barbaia Domenico Barbaia (also spelled Barbaja; 10 August 1777 – 19 October 1841) was best known as an opera Italian impresario. An energetic man, Barbaia, who was born in Milan, began his career by running a coffee shop. He made his first fortune by ...

, the

intendente An intendant (; pt, intendente ; es, intendente ) was, and sometimes still is, a public official, especially in France, Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The intendancy system was a centralizing administrative system developed in France. In ...

at the San Carlo and also part of the management of

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

opera house in Milan, of a commission to write a new opera for La Scala. The revival of ''Bianca e Gernando'', with the title reverting to the original one proposed for the opera, came about after the success of ''

Il pirata ''Il pirata'' (''The Pirate'') is an opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with an Italian libretto by Felice Romani which was based on a three-act ''mélodrame ''from 1826: ''Bertram, ou le Pirate'' (''Bertram, or The Pirate'') by Charles Nodie ...

'' in Milan in October 1827. A commission came from Genoa in early 1828, too late for Bellini to write anything new. However, he did re-arrange the music to suit the singers' voices and in addition (as Galatopoulos states), Romani took on the re-construction of the libretto with the result that "out of the whole of Bianca, the only pieces entirely unchanged are the big duet and the romanza; everything else is altered, and about half of it is new". For this later production, Bellini specifically rejected a request by Gilardoni to revise the libretto, preferring instead

Felice Romani Giuseppe Felice Romani (31 January 178828 January 1865) was an Italian poet and scholar of literature and mythology who wrote many librettos for the opera composers Donizetti and Bellini. Romani was considered the finest Italian librettist betw ...

, whom he regarded as the superior poet.

Performance history

The first version, given as ''Bianca e Gernando'', premiered at the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples on 30 May 1826 with

Henriette Méric-Lalande Henriette Méric-Lalande (1798 – 7 September 1867) was a French operatic soprano, one of the leading sopranos of the early 19th century. She was born at Dunkirk, the daughter and pupil of the conductor Jean-Baptiste Lalande. She made her stag ...

and

Giovanni Battista Rubini Giovanni Battista Rubini (7 April 1794 – 3 March 1854) was an Italian tenor, as famous in his time as Enrico Caruso in a later day. His ringing and expressive coloratura dexterity in the highest register of his voice, the ''tenorino'', insp ...

in the title roles. The revised version, given under its original title, ''Bianca e Fernando'', took place on the occasion of the opening of the new

Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, and dates fr ...

in Genoa on 7 April 1828. It was performed again in the 1829 Autumn season at

in a production designed by

Alessandro Sanquirico Alessandro Sanquirico (27 July 1777, in Milan – 12 March 1849, in Milan) was an Italian scenic designer, architect, and painter. He began his career in conjunction with leading artists of the time such as Paolo Landriani, Giovanni Pedroni, ...

with Méric-Lalande and Rubini reprising the title roles. Two years after Bellini's death, the opera was revived at Rome's

Teatro Valle Teatro may refer to: * Theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific p ...

on 31 July 1837 with Leonilde Franceschini-Rossi and Cirillo Antognini in the title roles. The reception was mixed with the critic for ''Il pirata'' wondering why it had even been resurrected. Antonio Tosi writing in ''Rivista Teatrale di Roma'' had praise for the leading singers, but contrasted ''Bianca e Fernando'' with Bellini's mature works, writing that in this early opera Bellini had

"followed the method of those numerous servile imitators of the Rossinian style who, lacking that master's genius and distinction, remained unaware that in the fine arts, not copies, but creations are wanted, not imitations, but originality.

The opera has been rarely performed in modern times. It was revived in a staged performance in Genoa in 1978 with

Cristina Deutekom Cristina Deutekom (28 August 1931 – 7 August 2014) was a Dutch operatic coloratura soprano. She sang with many of the leading tenors of her time, including Carlo Bergonzi, José Carreras, Franco Corelli, Plácido Domingo, Nicolai Gedda, Al ...

and

Werner Hollweg Werner Hollweg (13 September 1936 in Solingen - 1 January 2007 in Freiburg im Breisgau) was a German operatic tenor. He is best known for his interpretation of Mozart's operas. Hollweg died from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic l ...

in the title roles and given a concert performance in London in 1981. The first version of the opera, ''Bianca e Gernando'', was given in concert form by the

Rossini in Wildbad Rossini in Wildbad is a bel canto opera festival in Bad Wildbad, Baden-Württemberg, specialising in the lesser-known operas of Gioachino Rossini and his contemporaries. The festival commemorates a stay by Rossini at the town's spa in 1856, whic ...

festival in the summer of 2016. A live recording exists of the latter production, as well as of two previous performances of the second version.

Roles

Synopsis

:Place:

Agrigento Agrigento (; scn, Girgenti or ; grc, Ἀκράγας, translit=Akrágas; la, Agrigentum or ; ar, كركنت, Kirkant, or ''Jirjant'') is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. It was one of ...

:Late 14th/15th century ''Background'' The ambitious Filippo has secretly imprisoned Carlo, Duke of Agrigento and usurped his throne. Carlo's son Fernando was accordingly forced into exile although he was still only a child. Carlo's daughter, Bianca, the widow of the Duke of Messina, unaware of Filippo's plots agrees to become his wife. Fernando, now an adult, returns home with a desire to avenge his father, who he thinks is dead.

Act 1

Using a false name and pretending to be a soldier of fortune, Fernando comes to the palace of Agrigento and offers his services to the new Duke. He convinces Viscardo, a follower of Filippo, that he saw Fernando die and Filippo receives this news with joy. He hires Fernando without hesitation, thinking of entrusting the task of killing Carlo to him. Bianca comes to the palace to meet her prospective bridegroom. Here she meets Fernando, but after so many years, she does not recognize him. Indeed, she suspects him. Fernando, for his part, is convinced that his sister is an accomplice of the usurper.

Act 2

Filippo orders Fernando go to the prison to kill Carlo. At the same time, he announces his approaching wedding to Bianca. The old and trusted henchman of Fernando, Clemente, informs Bianca that Fernando wants to see her and brother and sister finally meet face to face. But when they recognize each other, Fernando tells Bianca of Filippo's plots. Together, they go to the prison to free Carlo, followed by Fernando's companions in arms. Filippo also arrives at the palace, bringing with him Bianca's infant son whom he threatens to kill if Fernando will not give himself up. But the trusty Clemente disarms him, and the tyrant is finally ousted.Synopsis taken from the translation of the Italian Wikipedia article.

Recordings

References

Notes Cited sources *Galatopoulos, Stelios (2002), '' Bellini: Life, Times, Music: 1801–1835''. London, Sanctuary Publishing Ltd. * Osborne, Charles (1994), ''The Bel Canto Operas of Rossini, Donizetti, and Bellini'', Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. *Weinstock, Herbert (1971), ''Bellini: His life and His Operas'', New York: Knopf. Other sources *

Casa Ricordi Casa Ricordi is a publisher of primarily classical music and opera. Its classical repertoire represents one of the important sources in the world through its publishing of the work of the major 19th-century Italian composers such as Gioachino Ro ...

(pub.)
"Vincenzo Bellini": Outline of his life (in English) and list of critical editions of his works published by Ricordi
on ricordi.it. Retrieved 13 December 2013. *Kimbell, David (2001), "Vincenzo Bellini" in Holden, Amanda (Ed.), ''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', pp. 46–55. New York: Penguin Putnam. *Lippmann, Friedrich; McGuire, Simon (1998), "''Bianca e Fernando''", in

Stanley Sadie Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...

, (Ed.), ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...

'', Vol. One, pp. 389–397. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. * Maguire, Simon (1998), "''Bianca e Fernando''" in

, (Ed.), ''

'', Vol. One, pp. 464–465. London: Macmillan Publishers, Inc. *Orrey, Leslie (1973), ''Bellini'' (The Master Musicians Series), London: J. M. Dent, Ltd. *Rosselli, John (1996)
''The Life of Bellini''
New York: Cambridge University Press. * Thiellay, Jean; Thiellay, Jean-Philippe, ''Bellini'', Paris: Actes Sud, 2013, *Willier, Stephen Ace
''Vincenzo Bellini: A Guide to Research''
Routledge, 2002. and on books.google.com.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bianca E Fernando Italian-language operas Operas by Vincenzo Bellini 1826 operas 1828 operas Operas Opera world premieres at the Teatro San Carlo Libretti by Felice Romani