Episode 4
Donald Macleod considers whether the experience of flight to the cities during the post-unification years in Italy informed works like Puccini's La boheme.
The years following unification were difficult times for many Italians, with huge numbers abandoning rural life and moving to the cities.
Donald Macleod and Roger Parker consider whether these experiences informed works like Puccini's La Bohème and how well themes like this catered to the changing tastes of audiences.
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Ruggero Leoncavallo
La Boheme: Musette svaria sulla bocca viva
Performer: Renee Fleming (Mimi), Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, Marco Armiliato (conductor)
- Decca 478 1533.
- 7.
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Giacomo Puccini
La Boheme, Act 2: Aranci, ninnoli! Caldi I marroni……Chi l'ha richiesto? (Monelli)
Performer: Luciano Pavarotti (Rodolfo), Gianni Maffei (Schaunard), Nicolai Ghiaurov (Colline), Rolando Panerai (Marcello), Elizabeth Harwood (Musetta), Berlin Philharmonic, Chorus of Deutsche Oper, Berlin, Herbert von Karajan (conductor)
- Decca 421 049-2.
- 11 to 16.
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Giacomo Puccini
Tosca, Act 3
Performer: Maria Callas (Tosca), Giuseppe de Stefano (Cavaradossi), Alvaro Cordova Boy Shepherd, Orchestra of La Scala, Milan, Victor de Sabata (conductor)
- EMI 5 85644 2.
- 18 to 25.
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Francesco Cilea
Adriana Lecouvreur, End of Act 2: Sia! Non risponde
Performer: Renata Scotto (Adriana), Elena Obraztsova (Princess de Bouillon), Philharmonia Orchestra, James Levine (conductor)
- Sony 88697446212.
Broadcasts
- Thu 20 May 201012:00BBC Radio 3
- Thu 20 May 201022:00BBC Radio 3
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