Sadness and Success
Donald Macleod focuses on Donizetti's life in the late 1830s, by which time he had tired completely of Naples.
Gaetano Donizetti composed almost 70 operas in 19th-century Italy, the age of the impresario, the prima donna and the star tenor. Donald Macleod traces his extraordinary life.
By the late 1830s Donizetti had tired completely of Naples, exasperated by the censors' meddling and impresarios' incompetence. He was also devastated by grief, having lost his wife and newborn child. Deciding to settle in Paris, he delighted audiences at the Theatre-Italien with his operas La Fille du Regiment and La Favorite.
Last on
Music Played
![]()
Gaetano Donizetti
Poliuto - Act III: Donna! Malvagio!... Ah! fugge da morte!... Fia vero! di
Singer: Juan Pons. Choir: Vienna Singakademie. Singer: László Polgár. Conductor: Oleg Caetani. Singer: José Carreras. Singer: Harry Peeters. Singer: Paolo Gavanelli. Singer: Katia Ricciarelli.- CBS : 4482-1.
- CBS.
- 16.
![]()
Gaetano Donizetti
Maria Padilla - Act II, Ines! Mis dolce suoara! ...A fliglia incauta.. A si! suo
Orchestra: London S O.. Singer: Lois Mcdonall. Conductor: Alun Francis. Singer: Della Jones.- Opera Rara ORC6-3.
- Opera Rara.
- 7.
![]()
Gaetano Donizetti
La Fille du regiment - Act I: Ah! mes amis, quel jour de fete...Le camarade est
Orchestra: Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Singer: Luciano Pavarotti. Conductor: Richard Bonynge. Singer: Eric Garrett. Choir: The Rome Opera Chorus.- DECCA : 414-520-2.
- DECCA.
- 12.
![]()
Gaetano Donizetti
La Favorita - Act IV: Fernand! Fernand! pourrai-je le trouver? ... Mes voeux so
Singer: Ramón Vargas. Orchestra: Munich Radio Orchestra. Singer: Vesselina Kasarova. Choir: Bavarian Radio Chorus. Singer: Carlo Colombara.- RCA : 66229-2.
- RCA.
- 15.
Broadcasts
- Thu 18 Sep 201412:00BBC Radio 3
- Thu 18 Sep 201418:30BBC Radio 3
Beethoven Unleashed – the box set
The complete set of Radio 3 Beethoven Unleashed podcasts, with Donald Macleod.
What was really wrong with Beethoven?
Georgia Mann and neurosurgeon Henry Marsh examine the composer's numerous health problems
Composers A to Z
Visit the extensive audio archive of Radio 3 programmes about Composers and their works.
Who knew? Five eye-opening stories from Composer of the Week
The production team reflects on 5 of Donald Macleod’s best stories from the last 20 years
Five reasons why we love Parry's Jerusalem
What is the strange power of Jerusalem which makes strong men weep?
A man out of time – why Parry's music and ideas were at odds with his image...
The composer of Jerusalem was very far from the conservative figure his image suggests.
Composer Help Page
Find resources and contacts for composers from within the classical music industry.
