''Nozze istriane'' (An
Istrian wedding) 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 libr ...
in three acts by
Antonio Smareglia to an Italian
libretto by
Luigi Illica
Luigi Illica (9 May 1857 – 16 December 1919) was an Italian librettist who wrote for Giacomo Puccini (usually with Giuseppe Giacosa), Pietro Mascagni, Alfredo Catalani, Umberto Giordano, Baron Alberto Franchetti and other important Italian co ...
. It premiered on 28 March 1895 at the
Teatro Comunale in
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into prov ...
.
Roles
Synopsis
:Time: 1895
:Place: The village of
Dignano
Dignano ( fur, Dignan) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about northwest of Trieste and about west of Udine.
Dignano borders the following municipalities: Coseano, ...
Marussa and Lorenzo, two young villagers, are in love. However, a more wealthy suitor, Nicola, has said that he would waive a
dowry
A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment ...
. Marussa's miserly father, Menico, is convinced by the village fiddler, Biagio, to marry her off to Nicola. Marussa is tricked into believing that Lorenzo has been unfaithful, and her wedding to Nicola is quickly arranged. In her room, shortly before the wedding, Marussa begs Nicola to release her from their engagement. Nicola refuses, and Lorenzo (who had been hiding behind the curtains), leaps out and attacks Nicola with a knife. During the fight, Nicola stabs Lorenzo, who dies in Marussa's arms.
[Siff (November 2001)]
Recording
*Antonio Smareglia: ''Nozze istriane'' – Ian Storey (tenor), Katia Lytting (mezzo-soprano),
Svetla Vassileva (soprano), Enzo Capuano (baritone), Giorgio Surjan (bass), Alberto Mastromarino (baritone); Teatro Verdi di Trieste Orchestra and Chorus; Tiziano Severini (conductor). Live performance recording from the
Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi
The Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi is an opera house located in Trieste, Italy and named after the composer Giuseppe Verdi. Privately constructed, it was inaugurated as the Teatro Nuovo to replace the smaller 800-seat "Cesareo Regio Teatro di San P ...
, December 1999. Label: Bongiovanni BGV 2265 king
Notes
References
*Ashbrook, William
Nozze istriane (review) ''The Opera Quarterly'', Volume 18, Number 3, Summer 2002, pp. 434–436. Accessed via subscription 2 May 2009.
*
*Sadie, Stanley (ed.), "''Nozze istriane''", ''
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 ...
'', Macmillan Press, 1992, Vol 1, p. 635.
*Siff, Ira
"Smareglia: Nozze Istriane"''
Opera News'', November 2001. Accessed via subscription 2 May 2009.
External links
Libretto(in Italian)
{{Authority control
Operas
Italian-language operas
1895 operas
Operas by Antonio Smareglia