October 24, 1829:
Giuseppe Verdi (16) applies for the position of organist at Soragna, Parma. He will not be hired.
May 14, 1831:
Carlo Verdi applies to the Monte di Pietà e d’Abbondanza in Bussetto for one of their grants given to poor children with talent, for his son. On the same day, Giuseppe Verdi (17) moves into the home of his benefactor, Antonio Barezzi, in Busseto, 30 km northwest of Parma. See 14 January 1832.
January 14, 1832:
The Monte de Pietà e d’Abbondanza in Busseto grants Giuseppe Verdi (18) a scholarship.
May 22, 1832:
Giuseppe Verdi (18) is issued a passport by the Duchy of Parma for travel to Milan, which he will do in late June.
June 22, 1832:
Giuseppe Verdi (18) writes to the Milan Conservatory requesting admission as a paying pupil and sending compositions.
July 3, 1832:
Count Sormani-Andreani, director of Milan Conservatory, reports the unfavorable results of Giuseppe Verdi’s (18) entrance examination. Giuseppe Corbari, a civil clerk, includes comments that Verdi is too old, lives outside Lombardy and Venetia, and did badly on the piano examination.
January 5, 1835:
Giuseppe Verdi (21) returns to Milan from Busseto to complete his studies with Vincenzo Lavigna.
September 15, 1835:
Messa di Gloria for solo voices, chorus and orchestra by Giuseppe Verdi (21) is performed for the first time, in Busseto.
October 11, 1835:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) applies for the position of maestro di cappella at the Basilica of San Giovanni, Monza. He will not be successful.
December 15, 1835:
Vincenzo Lavigna certifies that Giuseppe Verdi (22) successfully completed lessons in counterpoint with him in Milan and that he is eligible for employment as a maestro di cappella.
February 8, 1836:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) apples for the post of maestro di musica in Busseto.
February 27, 1836:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) is examined in Parma for the post of maestro di musica in Busseto.
March 5, 1836:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) is appointed maestro di musica in Busseto.
April 16, 1836:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) is formally engaged to Margherita Barezzi in the office of the mayor of Busseto.
April 20, 1836:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) signs a contract to be maestro di musica in Busseto, a position that requires him to reside in Busseto ten months of every year, give vocal, instrumental, counterpoint, and composition lessons and conduct the Philharmonic Society.
May 4, 1836:
Giuseppe Verdi (22) marries Margherita Barezzi, daughter of Antonio Barezzi, a grocer and Verdi’s patron, in the Chiesa Collegiata di San Bartolomeo, Busseto.
January 1, 1837:
A setting of Tantum ergo by Giuseppe Verdi (23) is performed for the first time, in San Bartolomeo, Busseto.
August 12, 1838:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (24) baby daughter Virginia dies in Busseto.
September 8, 1838:
Giuseppe Verdi (24) and his wife arrive in Milan during the coronation festivities. He is there in an attempt to stage his opera Oberto.
October 28, 1838:
Giuseppe Verdi (25) resigns as maestro di musica in Busseto.
February 6, 1839:
Giuseppe Verdi (25), his wife and son leave Busseto for Milan.
May 10, 1839:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (25) resignation as maestro di musica in Busseto becomes effective today.
October 22, 1839:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (26) second child, one-year-old Icilio Romano, dies in Milan.
November 17, 1839:
Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio, a dramma by Giuseppe Verdi (26) to words of Solera after Piazza, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan. The work enjoys a reasonable success. This opera marks the first time that Giuseppina Strepponi appears in a Verdi production.
June 18, 1840:
Margherita Barezzi Verdi (27), wife of Giuseppe Verdi (26) dies in Milan of encephalitis. Verdi has lost his wife and two young children in less than two years.
September 5, 1840:
Un giorno di regno, a melodramma giocoso by Giuseppe Verdi (26) to words of Romani after Pineu-Duval, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan directed by the composer. It is not successful and is not repeated.
December 22, 1841:
Giuseppe Verdi (28) meets with the soprano Giuseppina Strepponi and shows her the score to Nabucco in an attempt to enlist her aid in having it produced in Milan.
March 9, 1842:
Nabucco, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (28) to words of Solera after Cortesi after Anicet-Bourgeois and Cornue, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan. The work is an unrivalled triumph and secures Verdi’s reputation. The Gazzetta Privilegiata di Milano calls the production a “clamorous and total success.”
February 11, 1843:
I Lombardi alla prima crociata, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (29) to words of Solera after Grossi, is performed for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. It is a triumph. The audience immediately takes up the nationalistic theme, casting themselves as the Lombards against the Austrians.
March 20, 1843:
Giuseppe Verdi (29) departs Milan for Vienna on the first long trip of his life. He hopes to produce Nabucco there.
June 6, 1843:
Giuseppe Verdi (29), fresh from Nabucco and I Lombardi, signs a contract to compose a new opera for Teatro La Fenice, Venice. This will be Ernani.
December 6, 1843:
The Venetian police approve the libretto to Ernani with some changes “in agreement with the poet Francesco Maria Piave.” It will soon be transmitted to Giuseppe Verdi (30) for the composition.
December 26, 1843:
The Venice Carnival season begins with a performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s (30) I Lombardi. It is a complete disaster. The audience hates it. “One of the truly classic fiascos”, writes the composer.
March 9, 1844:
Ernani, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (30) to words of Piave after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice. Despite a mediocre performance, it is very successful, enjoying a favorable reception.
May 8, 1844:
Giuseppe Verdi (30) buys Il Pulgaro, a farm near Bussetto. It will be his parents’ primary home.
November 3, 1844:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (31) tragedia lirica I due Foscari to words of Piave after Byron is performed for the first time, at Teatro Argentina, Rome. Verdi reports that it is a “mezzo-fiasco.”
February 15, 1845:
Giovanna d’Arco, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (31) to words of Solera after Schiller, is performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan and enjoys enormous popular success.
March 8, 1845:
Ernani becomes the first opera by Giuseppe Verdi (31) to be performed in England, at Her Majesty’s Theatre, London.
August 12, 1845:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (31) tragedia lirica Alzira to words of Cammarano after Voltaire, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples and enjoys a moderate success.
December 2, 1845:
Johannes Simon Mayr dies in Bergamo, Austrian Empire, aged 82 years, five months, and 18 days. After a funeral, attended by Giuseppe Verdi (32), his mortal remains will be laid to rest in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Bergamo.
March 17, 1846:
Attila, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (32) to words of Solera and Piave after Werner, is performed for the first time, at Teatro La Fenice, Venice directed by the composer. Verdi reports that the work “enjoyed a very good success.”
March 22, 1846:
After the success of Attila in Venice, Giuseppe Verdi (32) returns to Milan very ill. His doctors diagnose gastric fever and order six months rest. Since 1844, he has produced five operas in four cities.
September 16, 1846:
As a great fire breaks out in Milan, Giuseppe Verdi (32) and his student Emanuele Muzio go to watch just as police are beginning to impress onlookers to work the pump. They run. Muzio is caught and forced to work until 06:00. Verdi escapes by jumping over a wall into the public gardens. He hides for one-and-a-half hours. When he summons enough courage to leave, he finds the gates locked and the walls too high. It takes him an hour to gather enough rocks to climb up and over the wall. When the two meet in the morning they are so disheveled that they laugh at each other for some time.
March 14, 1847:
Macbeth, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (33) to words of Piave and Maffei after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, in Teatro della Pergola, Florence directed by the composer. The work proves to be a great success and Verdi is called on stage dozens of times.
May 26, 1847:
Giuseppe Verdi (33), accompanied by his student Emanuele Muzio, leaves Milan for London to produce I masnadieri.
June 1, 1847:
Giuseppe Verdi (33) stops in Paris, his first visit, on his way to London. He attends the Opéra for the first time.
June 7, 1847:
Giuseppe Verdi (33) arrives in London to produce I masnadieri.
July 22, 1847:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (33) tragic opera I masnadieri, to words of Maffei after Schiller, is performed for the first time, at Her Majesty’s Theatre, London directed by the composer with a baton. The soprano is Jenny Lind. When Verdi arrives in the orchestra there is 15 minutes of applause during which Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, the Prince of Wales, and a large contingent of the royal family arrive. The opera enjoys a great success. However, it receives only four performances.
November 26, 1847:
Jérusalem, an opéra by Giuseppe Verdi (34) to words of Royer and Vaëz (an adaption of I Lombardi), is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. It is not a success.
April 5, 1848:
Giuseppe Verdi (34) arrives in Milan from Paris, in the midst of the revolution.
April 21, 1848:
Giuseppe Verdi (34) writes to his librettist Piave from Milan, “I am drunk with joy. Just think--there are no more Germans here!!...You speak of music to me!! What are you thinking? Do you imagine I want to occupy myself now with notes, with sounds? There is, and should be, only one kind of music pleasing to the ears of the Italians of 1848--the music of the cannon! I would not write a note for all the gold in the world: I should feel immense remorse for using up music paper, which is so good to make cartridges." (Izzo, 202)
May 8, 1848:
Giuseppe Verdi (34) buys the first parcel of land he is to own at Sant’ Agata.
October 25, 1848:
Il corsaro, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (35) to words of Piave after Byron, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Grande, Trieste. The audience is less than complementary.
December 20, 1848:
Giuseppe Verdi (35) leaves Paris for Rome to produce La Battaglia di Legnano.
January 7, 1849:
Leon Escudier publishes Giuseppe Verdi’s (35) song L’abandonée in Paris. It is dedicated to Giuseppina Strepponi.
January 27, 1849:
La battaglia di Legnano, a tragedia lirica by Giuseppe Verdi (35) to words of Cammarano after Méry, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Argentina, Rome, directed by the composer. It is a patriotic event with the audience festooned with flags, pins, and patriotic slogans. The opera so fits the fervor of the crowd that they require the entire last act to be repeated.
July 14, 1849:
Giuseppe Verdi (35) writes from Paris, “Force still rules the world. And justice? What use is it against bayonets? All we can do is weep over our wrongs, and curse the authors of so many misfortunes.”
October 13, 1849:
Giuseppe Verdi (36) and Antonio Barezzi arrive in Rome where they are promptly quarantined for two weeks due to an outbreak of cholera. They are trying to get to Naples to produce Luisa Miller.
October 27, 1849:
Giuseppe Verdi (36) and Antonio Barezzi arrive in Naples to produce Luisa Miller.
December 8, 1849:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (36) melodramma tragico Luisa Miller, to words of Cammarano after Schiller, is performed for the first time, in Teatro San Carlo, Naples, directed by the composer. It is successful, despite numerous difficulties during rehearsals.
March 9, 1850:
President Marzari of Teatro La Fenice, Venice writes to Giuseppe Verdi (36) asking for a new opera.
October 31, 1850:
Giuseppe Verdi (36) and Francesco Maria Piave arrive in Trieste to oversee the premiere of Stiffelio.
November 16, 1850:
Stiffelio, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (37) to words of Piave after Souvestre and Bourgeois, is performed for the first time, at the Teatro Civico Grande, Trieste, the composer directing. The audience is warm. The critics remark that Verdi did the best he could in the face of emasculating censorship. See 19 November 1850.
November 19, 1850:
Domenico Ronzani, the director of Teatro Civico Grande, Trieste, is enjoined by the president of the theatre to warn singers to use only the words of Giuseppe Verdi’s (37) Stiffelio printed in the approved libretto or dire consequences will result. The work has been heavily censored.
December 1, 1850:
The president of Teatro La Fenice, Venice forwards to Giuseppe Verdi (37) and Francesco Maria Piave the Austrian governor’s “profound regret that the poet Piave and the celebrated Maestro Verdi have not chosen some other field to display their talents than the revolting immorality and obscene triviality forming the story of the libretto Le Maledizione (Rigoletto), submitted to us for eventual performance at La Fenice.”
December 14, 1850:
Giuseppe Verdi (37) writes to Carlo Marzari, director of Teatro La Fenice, protesting the changes demanded in Rigoletto by the Austrian governor of Venice.
December 30, 1850:
Giuseppe Verdi (37), Francesco Maria Piave, and Guglielmo Brenna, the secretary of Teatro La Fenice, meet at Busseto and sign a document agreeing to certain changes in the libretto of Le Maledizione (Rigoletto) which will allow its production. Verdi and Piave mostly get their way.
February 19, 1851:
Giuseppe Verdi (37) arrives in Venice to oversee the premiere of Rigoletto.
March 11, 1851:
Rigoletto, a melodramma by Giuseppe Verdi (37) to words of Piave after Hugo, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice directed by the composer. It is a great success and runs for 13 performances.
February 2, 1852:
Alexandre Dumas’ La Dame aux camélias is produced in Paris. During the play’s run this month, it will be witnessed by an interested opera composer, Giuseppe Verdi (38).
February 28, 1852:
Giuseppe Verdi (38) signs a contract with the Paris Opéra to write an opera of four or five acts on a libretto by Eugène Scribe to be produced no later than December 1854. It will be Les Vépres siciliennes.
July 17, 1852:
Salvatore Cammarano dies in Naples, about a week after substantially completing the libretto to Il Trovatore. Although the outline is complete, part of the third act and all of the fourth are not written. Verdi (38) hires the Neapolitan poet Leone Emanuele Bardare to finish the work.
August 10, 1852:
French President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte confers on Giuseppe Verdi (38) the title of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor. He dispatches the publisher Leon Escudier to present the honor to Verdi who is now in Italy.
January 19, 1853:
Il Trovatore, a dramma by Giuseppe Verdi (39) to words of Cammarano and Bardare after García Gutiérrez, is performed for the first time, in Teatro Apollo, Rome directed by the composer. The work is extremely successful with the audience who demand that the fourth act be repeated.
February 21, 1853:
Giuseppe Verdi (39) arrives in Venice to produce La Traviata, particularly upset at the choice of soprano.
March 6, 1853:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (39) opera La Traviata to words of Piave after Dumas is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice. The evening is a disaster. Critics blame the singers. Verdi will write, “ La Traviata was a grand fiasco, and what is worse, they laughed.”
October 18, 1853:
Sometime during the next five days, Giuseppe Verdi (40) arrives in Paris with Giuseppina Strepponi to spend the winter. He is staying five minutes walk from the hotel where Franz Liszt (41) and Richard Wagner (40) are. They do not run into each other, and Verdi will never meet either Wagner or Liszt.
May 6, 1854:
Over a year after its disasterous premiere, La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi (40) is produced once again in Venice, this time at Teatro San Benedetto. With different singers and a different theatre it is a complete success.
December 24, 1854:
At the second performance of Hector Berlioz’ (51) L’enfance du Christ in Salle Herz, the audience includes Giuseppe Verdi (41), Heinrich Heine, and Cosima and Blandine Liszt.
May 19, 1855:
Two months after giving birth, Pauline Viardot (33) stars in the London premiere of Giuseppe Verdi's (41) Il Trovatore at Covent Garden.
June 13, 1855:
Les Vépres siciliennes, an opéra by Giuseppe Verdi (41) to words of Scribe and Duveyrier, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. Presented during the Paris Exposition, it enjoys a good success.
February 9, 1856:
Giuseppe Verdi (42) receives the title of Cavalier Knight of the Order of St. Maurizio and St. Lazzaro from King Vittorio Emanuele II of Sardinia.
August 25, 1856:
On Independence Day, Teatro Solís opens in Montevideo with a performance of Ernani by Giuseppe Verdi (42).
February 18, 1857:
Giuseppe Verdi (43) arrives in Venice to oversee the premiere of Simon Boccanegra.
March 12, 1857:
Simon Boccanegra, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (43) to words of Piave and Montanelli after García Gutiérrez, is performed for the first time, in Teatro La Fenice, Venice. The work is a critical success but its failure with the audience precludes financial reward.
July 23, 1857:
Giuseppe Verdi (43) arrives in Rimini to oversee the premiere of Aroldo.
August 16, 1857:
Aroldo, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (43) to words of Piave, is performed for the first time, in the Teatro Nuovo Comunale, Rimini. It enjoys a warm reception from the audience.
October 19, 1857:
Giuseppe Verdi (44) sends the outline of a new opera, Gustavo III, to Vincenzo Torelli, secretary to the impressario of Teatro San Carlo, Naples in order that it might gain approval by the censors. They will disapprove it. See 28 January 1858.
January 14, 1858:
On the same day as the attempt on Emperor Napoléon III, Giuseppe Verdi (44) arrives in Naples with an opera about killing a king. See 28 January 1858.
January 28, 1858:
Giuseppe Verdi (44) submits his newly completed opera Una vendetta in domino (with revised libretto) to the Neapolitan censors.
February 27, 1858:
Neapolitan censors return Giuseppe Verdi’s (44) new opera with a slashed and rearranged libretto and a new title: Adelia degli Adimari. The composer refuses to produce the work in Naples.
April 23, 1858:
Giuseppe Verdi (44) leaves Naples, determined to produce his new opera elsewhere. See 17 February 1859.
January 15, 1859:
Giuseppe Verdi (45) arrives in Rome to oversee the premiere of Un ballo in maschera.
February 17, 1859:
After several title changes and struggles with censors, Un ballo in maschera, a melodramma by Giuseppe Verdi (45) to words of Somma after Scribe, is performed for the first time, at Teatro Apollo, Rome. The public is appreciative, the critics mixed.
February 20, 1859:
The Accademia Filarmonica Romana elects Giuseppe Verdi (45) an honorary member.
March 11, 1859:
At a dinner party before his departure from Rome, Giuseppe Verdi (45) announces his intention to retire.
May 21, 1859:
At his villa, Sant’Agata, Giuseppe Verdi (45) can hear the sound of the Austrian assault on Piacenza, some 30 km away.
June 11, 1859:
French and Sardinian troops begin entering Piacenza to general rejoicing. Among the soldiers is Giuseppe Montanelli who was one of the authors of the libretto to Giuseppe Verdi’s (45) Simon Boccanegra.
June 20, 1859:
Writing from Sant’Agata, Giuseppe Verdi (45) begins a subscription list to aid the families who have given men for the Italian cause.
August 29, 1859:
In a private ceremony in the parish church of Collonges-sous-Salève in Savoy, near Piedmont’s border with Switzerland, Giuseppe Verdi (45) marries his long-time mistress, Giuseppina Strepponi, an opera singer. The only witnesses are the church bell ringer and the cabbie who drove the couple there from Geneva.
September 4, 1859:
Giuseppe Verdi (45) is elected by the town of Busetto to the Assembly in Parma.
September 12, 1859:
The Parma Assembly, including Giuseppe Verdi (45), votes unanimously in favor of their annexation by Sardinia.
September 15, 1859:
A delegation from Parma, including Giuseppe Verdi (45), presents a petition to King Vittorio Emanuele in Turin requesting that Sardinia annex Parma.
September 17, 1859:
Giuseppe Verdi (45) is voted an honorary citizen by the city of Turin. Later in the day, the composer meets Count Camillo Benso di Cavour whom Verdi will later call “the supreme citizen, he whom every Italian will have to call father of our country.” Verdi finds that the admiration is mutual.
February 3, 1861:
The town of Bussetto votes 339-206 in favor of Giuseppe Verdi (47) to represent them in the Italian Chamber of Deputies. Verdi is elected to represent Borgo S. Donnino (Fidenza).
February 18, 1861:
The new Italian Parliament is opened by King Vittorio Emanuele of Sardinia in Turin. Deputy Giuseppe Verdi (47) takes his seat. Count Camillo Benso di Cavour, Prime Minister of Sardinia, declares the Kingdom of Italy. In the evening, Verdi attends a performance of La Favorita in the Teatro Regio. At the end of the second act, as word spreads that he is in the theatre, the audience begins to spontaneously shout “Viva Verdi!”
June 3, 1861:
Giuseppe Verdi (47) concludes a contract with the Russian Imperial Theatre to compose an opera on the poem Don Alvaro ou la Forza del Destino.
November 24, 1861:
Giuseppe Verdi (48) and his wife leave Busseto for St. Petersburg with the unorchestrated score of La forza del destino.
December 6, 1861:
Giuseppe Verdi (48) and his wife arrive in St. Petersburg to produce La forza del destino.
February 17, 1862:
The premiere of La forza del destino having been postponed, Giuseppe Verdi (48) and his wife depart St. Petersburg for Moscow and thence to Paris.
April 13, 1862:
When Giacomo Meyerbeer (70) hears from Arrigo Boito (20) that Giuseppe Verdi (48) will be traveling to London to produce his piece for the exhibition, he decides to do the same.
April 20, 1862:
Giuseppe Verdi (48) arrives in London to produce Inno della nazioni at the London Exhibition.
April 24, 1862:
In The Times of London an indignant letter from Giuseppe Verdi (48) appears. He complains that his Inno delle nazioni, composed on commission from the organizers of the London Exhibition, has been rejected for performance.
September 24, 1862:
Giuseppe Verdi (48) and his wife arrive once again in St. Petersburg to produce La forza del destino.
November 8, 1862:
Tsar Alyeksandr II confers the Cross of the Imperial and Royal Order of St. Stanislas on Giuseppe Verdi (49).
November 10, 1862:
La forza del destino, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (49) to words of Piave after Saavedra, is performed for the first time, at the Imperial Theatre, St. Petersburg. The work enjoys a good success.
December 9, 1862:
Giuseppe Verdi (49) and his wife depart St. Petersburg for Paris.
February 24, 1863:
“Il brigidino”, a stornello for voice and piano by Giuseppe Verdi (49) to words of Dall’Ongaro, is performed for the first time, in Parma.
July 5, 1866:
In Genoa, Giuseppe Verdi (52) learns that Venetia has been given by Austria to France and not Italy. He is so upset that he stops composing Don Carlos. “I am ill in a thousand ways.”
January 14, 1867:
Carlo Verdi, the father of Giuseppe Verdi (53) dies in Bussetto. In Paris, the composer is so depressed that he stops attending rehearsals of Don Carlos.
March 11, 1867:
Don Carlos, an opéra by Giuseppe Verdi (53) to words of Méry and DuLocle after Schiller, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. In attendance are Emperor Napoléon III and Empress Eugénie as well as many court and state officials and members of the diplomatic corps. It is moderately successful. Reviews are mixed.
April 24, 1867:
The City of Genoa confers honorary citizenship on Giuseppe Verdi (53).
July 21, 1867:
Antonio Barezzi, first benefactor and father-in-law to Giuseppe Verdi (53) dies in Busetto, attended by Verdi and his second wife, Giuseppina.
December 5, 1867:
Francesco Maria Piave, librettist of Ernani, Rigoletto, La Traviata, Simon Boccanegra, and a host of others, suffers a stroke in Milan. He will linger, paralyzed but alert, for eight years until his death on 5 March 1876. Giuseppe Verdi (54) will provide for him and his illegitimate daughter.
May 21, 1868:
In the Milan newspaper Il pungolo, Arrigo Boito (26) attacks the Italian Minister of Education Broglio for a public letter he wrote to Gioachino Rossini (76) snubbing Giuseppe Verdi (54). Verdi has already returned the title Commander of the Crown of Italy over the incident. The article is seen as the beginning of a reconciliation between Boito and Verdi.
June 30, 1868:
Giuseppe Verdi (54) meets Alessandro Manzoni in Milan for the first and only time.
November 17, 1868:
Giuseppe Verdi (55) writes from his villa Sant’Agata to his publisher, Tito Ricordi, suggesting a Requiem mass be composed by Italy’s best composers to be performed on the anniversary of Rossini’s death.
November 20, 1868:
The earthly remains of Gioachino Rossini (†0) are moved to L'Église de la Trinité for the funeral. This venue is chosen owing to the number of people desirous of attending. Giuseppe Verdi (55) writes this day, “A great name has disappeared from the world! His was the most extensive, the most popular reputation of our time, and it was an Italian glory!”
August 9, 1869:
In response to a request that Giuseppe Verdi (55) compose something for the opening of the Cairo Opera House and the Suez Canal, Verdi writes that he is too busy and, in any case, he does not compose occasional pieces.
November 1, 1869:
The Cairo Opera House is inaugurated with a performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s (56) Rigoletto.
April 26, 1870:
Camille Du Locle, a french librettist and opera director, visits Giuseppe Verdi (56) in Busetto and, acting for the Khedive of Egypt, asks Verdi to compose an opera for the Cairo Opera House.
June 10, 1870:
Khedive Ismail of Egypt accepts Giuseppe Verdi’s (56) terms for an opera for the Cairo Opera House.
September 30, 1870:
Giuseppe Verdi (56) writes to his friend, Countess Clarina Maffei, of the current conflict, “This disaster to France fills my heart, as it does yours, with desolation. It is true that the blague, the impertinence, the presumption of the French were and are, despite all their misfortunes, unbearable: but after all France gave liberty and civilization to the modern world. And if she falls, let us not deceive ourselves, all our liberties and civilizations will fall. Let our literary men, and our politicians sing as they will the praises of the knowledge, the sciences and even (God forgive them) the arts of these victors; but if they looked a bit more closely, they would see that in their veins the old Gothic blood still flows; that they are of boundless pride, hard, intolerant, contemptuous of all that is not Germanic, and of a rapacity without limit. Men of head, but without heart; a strong race, but not civilized.”
January 4, 1871:
Giuseppe Verdi (57) writes to Francesco Florimo, archivist of the Naples Conservatory, declining their offer of the directorship of the school.
January 26, 1871:
Giulio Ricordi writes to Giuseppe Verdi (57) that he recently met with Arrigo Boito (28). He reports that Boito would be thrilled to write the libretto to a projected Nerone to be composed by Verdi. Verdi never writes the opera but this is the beginning of a working relationship between the two.
September 23, 1871:
Teresa Stolz pays her first visit to Sant’Agata to study her part for Aida with Giuseppe Verdi (57).
November 19, 1871:
Giuseppe Verdi (58) attends a performance of Richard Wagner’s (58) Lohengrin in Bologna, also attended by Arrigo Boito (29). Verdi is recognized after the second act and applauded for 15 minutes, but refuses to show himself to the crowd. He brings with him a copy of the score and makes notes on it throughout the performance. His opinion: “Impression mediocre.”
December 24, 1871:
Aida, an opera by Giuseppe Verdi (58) to words of Ghislanzoni after Mariette, is performed for the first time, at the Cairo Opera House. It is very successful. The composer is not present.
February 8, 1872:
Giuseppe Verdi’s (58) opera Aida is performed for the first time in Europe, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. During the course of the evening, the composer is called out 32 times. Reviews are mixed.
May 7, 1872:
Giuseppe Verdi (58) receives a letter from a Signor Prospero Bertani of Reggio, demanding that the composer reimburse him for his train travel, supper and two viewings of Aida, which he finds totally lacking in virtue. Verdi pays for the tickets and train fare, but not the supper.
April 1, 1873:
String Quartet in e by Giuseppe Verdi (59) is performed for the first time, in the Albergo delle Crocelle before friends of the composer mysteriously invited for the event. It is Verdi’s only work of chamber music. Of his string quartet, the composer later remarked, “I don’t know whether this quartet is beautiful or ugly, but I do know that it’s a quartet.”
May 22, 1873:
Italian novelist Alessandro Manzoni, hero of Giuseppe Verdi (59), dies in Milan at the age of 89.
June 2, 1873:
After being emotionally unable to attend the funeral of Alessandro Manzoni, Giuseppe Verdi (59) travels to Milan to visit his grave. In a day or two, Verdi will write to the mayor of Milan, offering to compose a Requiem mass for the anniversary of Manzoni’s death. See 22 May 1874.
May 22, 1874:
Messa da Requiem for solo voices, chorus, and orchestra by Giuseppe Verdi (60) is performed for the first time, in the church of San Marco, Milan, conducted by the composer. See 2 June 1873.
November 15, 1874:
Giuseppe Verdi (61) is made a member of the Italian Senate. He will not go to Rome to be sworn in because he does not wish to be involved in the production of Aida currently at the Teatro Apollo, Rome.
April 12, 1875:
Giuseppe Verdi (61) leaves Milan on a tour during which he will conduct his Messa da Requiem in Paris, London, and Vienna.
September 4, 1875:
The Florence Rivista Independente publishes the first of five articles revealing intimate details of the professional and private life of the soprano Teresa Stolz, accusing her of immoral relationships with the conductor Angelo Mariani and the composer Giuseppe Verdi (61).
November 15, 1875:
Giuseppe Verdi (62) takes the oath of office as an Italian Senator in Rome, one year to the day after he was supposed to be sworn.
June 6, 1876:
String Quartet by Giuseppe Verdi (62) is performed publicly for the first time, at the Théâtre-Italien, Paris. See 1 April 1873.
December 28, 1878:
Giuseppe Verdi (65) is elected an honorary member of the Academy of Sciences, Letters, and Arts in Modena.
June 23, 1879:
While visiting Milan, Arrigo Boito (37) presents Giuseppe Verdi (65) with a scenario for Otello.
December 2, 1879:
Arrigo Boito (37) sends Giuseppe Verdi (66) the libretto to Otello and offers to make any revisions that Verdi might require.
April 11, 1880:
King Umberto I of Italy confers on Giuseppe Verdi (66) the title of Cavaliere of the Great Cross.
April 18, 1880:
Two sacred works by Giuseppe Verdi (66) for unaccompanied chorus are performed for the first time, in Teatro alla Scala, Milan: Pater noster and Ave Maria.
October 25, 1881:
A statue of Giuseppe Verdi (68) is dedicated in the foyer of Teatro alla Scala, Milan. The honoree does not attend.
February 15, 1883:
On hearing of the death of Richard Wagner, Giuseppe Verdi (69) writes to his publisher, “It is a great individual who has disappeared! A name that leaves a powerful imprint on the history of art!” (Barker, 284)
November 1, 1886:
Giuseppe Verdi (73) writes the last note of Otello.
January 4, 1887:
Giuseppe Verdi (73) arrives in Milan to oversee preparations for the premiere of Otello.
January 27, 1887:
King Umberto I of Italy confers on Giuseppe Verdi (73) the Great Cross of the Order of SS Maurizio e Lazzaro.
February 5, 1887:
Before dawn. Crowds of people anticipating the evening performance are so large that the area around Teatro alla Scala, Milan becomes impassable.
Morning. The Mayor of Milan orders that all streets in the vicinity of Teatro alla Scala be closed to traffic.
Throughout the day, large crowds assemble outside the theatre and windows facing La Scala are filled with people. They continually shout “Viva Verdi!”
Otello, a dramma lirico by Giuseppe Verdi (73) to words of Boito (44) after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. It is a thunderous, overwhelming success. There are dozens of curtain calls for the performers, Verdi, and Boito. The composer and his wife, along with the librettist are mobbed as they leave the theatre. Verdi is almost denuded. As they enter their carriage the crowd detaches it from the horses and it is drawn by manpower to the Grand Hôtel de Milan. Finally making it inside, the three appear on the balcony to the multitude. Crowds in the streets of Milan shout “Viva Verdi” and music is played under his window until 05:00 tomorrow morning. In the orchestra for the premiere is a 19-year-old cellist named Arturo Toscanini.
February 8, 1887:
The mayor of Milan confers honorary citizenship on Giuseppe Verdi (73).
November 6, 1888:
A hospital opens at Villanova near Sant’Agata. The man responsible for the design, who supervised the building, hired the medical staff, and funded the entire project is Giuseppe Verdi (74).
July 10, 1889:
Giuseppe Verdi (75), in Montecatini, writes to Arrigo Boito (47) agreeing to compose Falstaff.
October 18, 1889:
Giuseppe Verdi (76) buys land near Porta Garibaldi in Milan. This will be the site of the Casa di Riposa per Musicisti.
November 4, 1889:
Arrigo Boito (47) arrives at Sant’ Agata for a week of work on Falstaff with Giuseppe Verdi (76).
November 30, 1890:
Giulio Ricordi reveals in Gazzetta musicale di Milano that Giuseppe Verdi (77) and Arrigo Boito (48) are working on a new comic opera on the theme of Falstaff.
November 6, 1891:
Giuseppe Verdi (78) writes to his publisher, Giulio Ricordi, “Thank you for the score of [Mascagni’s (28) L’Amico] Fritz which you sent me. In my life I have read many, many, very many bad librettos, but I have never read a libretto as idiotic as this...”
April 10, 1892:
During the celebrations for the centennial of Gioachino Rossini’s (†23) birth, Giuseppe Verdi (78) conducts the Preghiera from Mosè at Teatro alla Scala, Milan.
January 2, 1893:
Giuseppe Verdi (79) and his wife arrive in Milan to oversee preparations for the premiere of Falstaff.
February 9, 1893:
Falstaff, a commedia lirica by Giuseppe Verdi (79) to words of Boito (50) after Shakespeare, is performed for the first time, at Teatro alla Scala, Milan. Numerous state and musical luminaries are present including Giacomo Puccini (34), Pietro Mascagni (29) and Teresa Stolz. Unlike the premiere of Otello, Verdi, his wife, and Boito manage to make it out of the theatre unscathed, but when they reach the Grand Hôtel de Milan the mob of admirers and well wishers awaits. The three make it into the lobby to be greeted by dignitaries and then appear to the crowds on the balcony. See 5 February 1887.
April 14, 1893:
Giuseppe Verdi (79) is made an honorary citizen of the City of Rome by the mayor.
October 12, 1894:
At the premiere of the French version of Otello, Giuseppe Verdi (81) receives the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor from President Jean Casimir-Périer.
October 18, 1894:
Giuseppe Verdi (81) and his wife eat dinner with President Jean Casimir-Périer at the Elysée Place, France.
November 14, 1897:
16:30 Giuseppina Strepponi Verdi dies of pneumonia at Villa Sant’Agata in the presence of her husband, Giuseppe Verdi (84). The two have been together for 54 years.
April 7, 1898:
Three of the Quattro pezzi sacri by Giuseppe Verdi (84) are performed for the first time, in Paris: Laudi alla Vergine Maria for female voices to words of Dante, Te Deum for double chorus and orchestra, and Stabat mater for chorus and orchestra. It is one of the few times that Verdi is not present for the premiere of one of his works. He has been ordered by his doctor to stay home.
December 16, 1899:
Giuseppe Verdi (86) signs a document establishing the foundation of the Casa di Riposo in Milan.
December 31, 1899:
The Casa di Riposo per Musicisti in Milan, funded completely by Giuseppe Verdi (86), is founded by royal decree in Rome.
May 14, 1900:
Giuseppe Verdi (86) signs his will in Milan. It calls for compositions from his youth to be burned after his death.
January 21, 1901:
About 10:30, Giuseppe Verdi (87) loses consciousness in his room at the Grand Hotel, Milan. He shows signs of a cerebral hemorrhage, paralyzing his right side.
January 24, 1901:
Giuseppe Verdi (87), now in a coma, receives the last rights of the Roman Catholic Church. Straw is laid on the street outside Verdi’s room so that traffic noises will not disturb him.
January 30, 1901:
06:30 The body of Giuseppe Verdi is temporarily buried in the Milan municipal cemetery. According to his wishes, the ceremony is simple. See 28 February 1901.
February 27, 1901:
According to the composer’s wishes, the bodies of Giuseppe Verdi (†0) and his wife, Giuseppina, are moved from the Cimitero Monumentale and buried together at the Casa di Riposa, Milan. This second funeral is attended by 300,000 people, including many eminent representatives of the Italian state and foreign governments. Also in attendance are Ruggero Leoncavallo (43), Giacomo Puccini (42), and Pietro Mascagni (37). Before the procession begins, a massed choir of 820 voices, directed by Arturo Toscanini, sings Va pensiero from Nabucco.
January 27, 1905:
On the fourth anniversary of the death of Giuseppe Verdi, a setting of the Requiem by Giacomo Puccini (46) is performed for the first time, at the Casa di Riposo, Milan.
November 7, 1917:
10:00 The Bolsheviks announce the overthrow of the Provisional Government of Russia. Russian Prime Minister Kerensky escapes Petrograd in a car owned by the American Embassy. Bolshevik forces take the Winter Palace with a loss of six lives. The new government announces their intention to withdraw the country from the war. The Second Congress of Soviets convenes in Petrograd. 390 of the 650 delegates are controlled by Lenin. Lev Borisovich Kamenev becomes President of the Russian Republic. Fyodor Ivanovich Chaliapin sings the role of King Philip in Don Carlos by Giuseppe Verdi (†16) to the sound of gunfire from outside the People’s House.
December 26, 1921:
Teatro alla Scala reopens for the first time since the Great War with Giuseppe Verdi’s (†20) Falstaff conducted by Arturo Toscanini.
May 6, 1922:
The Society of St. Gregory of America, meeting in convention in Rochester, New York, publishes a list of music not in accordance with Pope Pius X’s encyclical Motu proprio of 22 November 1903. Among the music frowned upon are compositions by Luigi Cherubini (†80), Gioacchino Rossini (†53), and Giuseppe Verdi (†21).
January 7, 1955:
Marian Anderson makes her Metropolitan Opera debut as Ulrica in Giuseppe Verdi’s (†53) Un ballo in maschera. She is the first black lead in the company’s history.
October 28, 1971:
The Cairo Opera House, opened in 1871 with the premiere of Giuseppe Verdi’s (†70) Aida, is destroyed by fire.