Nabucco by Verdi, N 01 dets 2022, Alates (2022/2023), Juhatatud Detlef Soelter,, Dirigent Ayrton Desimpelaere, Dejan Savić, SNG, Ljubljana, Slovenia

The opera Nabucco is extremely well-known and popular with our audience, mainly because of the well-known chorus Splavaj, misel . It was performed here for the first time in 1959, and again in the 2000/2001 season, on the hundredth anniversary of the composer's death. Verdi's legendary youth work began its triumphant march around the world shortly after its first performance in 1842 in Milan. The success of this opera is based on expressive recitatives, which lead to singing arias and ensembles, and solemn choruses. Librettist Solero was inspired by an Old Testament Bible story, based on the Old Testament book of Daniel, about the Assyrian leader Nebuchadnezzar and his fight against the Israelites. The rivalry between Nabucco's daughters Fenena and the scheming Abigailla, who are fighting for the love of the Israeli leader Ishmael, further complicates the story. Giuseppe Verdi (Roncole, 1813 – Milan, 1901) was not only a great artist and musical genius, but also a symbol of a unifying nation. However, it took years of hard work, during which the composer was building his personal style and when each new opera did not yet mean a new success. Thus, on March 9, 1842, the triumphant premiere of Nabucco was staged in Milan's Scala. For Verdi, the period that he later called the "Galiot years" began: between 1842 and 1851, he wrote as many as fourteen operas. After the opera Ernani , which premiered at the La Fenice theater in Venice (1844), he was also celebrated as a national hero, for example.