Verdi, Giuseppe

to the conductor Pietro Massini in Milan, about staging his opera, also mentioning Antonio Piazza, the librettist of Rocester, explaining that he had wanted to wait before replying to his letter until hearing something definite about his opera, and so he had written first to Piazza, reporting his many efforts to get his opera staged at Parma, including applying to the Court, and calling upon the Chamberlain, describing the queen's support for the opera there, and declaring that the only reason preventing the staging of his opera must be that the impresario has signed up the singers promising to stage operas that are already known;  Verdi therefore implores Massini to speak about his opera to the singers, who are almost certainly all in Milan, including Garcia, Winter and Varesi, to find out what they think of it, with a view to getting his work staged, and promising to come to Milan himself to clear matters up with Piazza once he has received a positive response

1 page, 4to (c.25 x 19cm), fine paper, watermark of a crowned posthorn, lettered "B", integral autograph address-leaf, remains of papered seal, Busseto, 9 October 1837, some light spotting and creasing, seal tear not affecting text, minor paper-loss to the address-leaf, some later musicological annotations to the address leaf

F. Abbiati, Verdi (1959), vol. I, p.240.

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"...Non vi potrebbe essere altra difficoltà per non eseguire la mia Opera, che l'Impresario avesse scritturato i Cantanti colla condizione di fare Opere conosciute, e di questo temo assai...io ti pregherei di fare tutti gli impegni possibili per parlare di quest' Opera ai Cantanti chi sicuramente si troveranno in Milano, e con bella maniera sentire come la pensano...credo che siano la Garcia, Winter, Varesi. Quando avrò risposta sicura allora ti scriverò di nuovo, ed poi verrò a Milano per intenderci anco con Piazza..."

Letters from Verdi about the start of his career in opera are of the greatest rarity at auction.  His letters to Pietro Massini (b.1796), the conductor of the Società filarmonica  in Milan, are one of the main sources of our knowledge of Verdi's early career.

This is a remarkable letter by Verdi, about his first unperformed opera, in which he refers to the librettist Antonio Piazza and some of the great singers of his time.  Verdi's Rocester is now lost, and it is believed that much of it was re-used in his first staged opera, Oberto, which was given in Milan in 1839. 

Verdi later reported that Pietro Massini had suggested he write an opera for the amateur Filodrammatici Theatre, providing him with Piazza's libretto; however Verdi hoped to have his opera staged at the Teatro Ducale in Parma with professional singers, and only when he encountered difficulties, did he revert to Massini in Milan.  In subsequent letters, he continues to ask for Massini's assistance to stage the opera there instead of at Parma (see M.J. Matz, Verdi,  pp.79-80), and indeed it was eventually staged at La Scala with Massini's help, reworked as Oberto, conte di San Bonifacio in 1839. 

Verdi mentions three singers in this letter: "Garcia, Winter and Varesi".  The first may possibly be Pauline Garcia (later Viardot), although it could also be her sister-in-law, Eugenia Garcia, who sang the roles of Amina in La sonnambula in London in 1842 and Abigaille in Nabucco at La Scala in 1846. The other two singers are the great Verdian baritone Felice Varesi (who was singing in Il pirata at Parma in 1837, and yet to make his debut at La Scala), and probably the tenor Berardo Winter. 

Arturo Toscanini chose this particular letter  as the one which most interested to him from a collection that was offered personally by the famous dealer Natale Gallini on the fiftieth anniversary of Toscanini's marriage on 21 June 1946: see H. Sachs Toscanini, page 293.