composer insight

verdi

“Verdi has always been close to my heart,” says Semyon Bychkov. “I grew up in Leningrad, where there are three opera houses, including the least-known one that is part of the Conservatory. All three had La Traviata in their repertoire, and in those years there was hardly a week when I didn’t go to hear La Traviata, which gives you an idea of how deep my connection to this composer’s music goes.

“I am very happy to be returning to Verdi now: Don Carlo, Otello and the Requiem. It’s a new exploration of the relationship that started all those years ago, but with the benefit of my Italian experience. Just living there gives you a very different outlook on his music.

“He was a product of the Italian musical tradition that stretches back to madrigals. Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert were foreigners to him; it doesn’t mean that he valued them less, but they were not part of the air he breathed. He grew up hearing village bands in the streets. Naturally, he went far beyond such music, but this is the climate in which he was born. At the time when no one could escape being subjugated by Wagner, Verdi was one of the very few strong enough to remain independent, telling the younger generation of composers in his homeland that to be true to themselves they must not aspire to be anything but Italian.

“One thing that sets Verdi apart is that he never put himself above the concerns of his countrymen; in fact, eventually, he was elected as a deputy of parliament. He was in touch with the most progressive political leaders in Italy. This, for me, is the true reason why Verdi was honoured in his lifetime and loved by the Italian people. Most of them never heard his music. There was no radio, no television, no recordings, so they had no opportunity, unless they lived where the operas were performed and could afford a ticket. Yet people identified with Verdi, because they recognised that this man really cared about them and the country – and happened to be a great artist.

“We can see interesting parallels throughout history, with musicians who were able to transcend just being musicians. Rostropovich, for example – when Slava died there was an outpouring of love throughout the whole of Russia that is hard to compare with anybody else. It wasn’t just because he was an amazing artist, but because he had the courage to make a stand at a time when it was dangerous for him. He lost everything he had, but he was never destroyed. In fact it made him what he became.

“We should never forget that Verdi was not only a great composer. He was also his country’s true civic conscience.”

“Pour ses retrouvailles avec Paris, Semyon Bychkov prouve qu’il est toujours l’excellent chef de theater qu’on a connu. Ses tempos sont justes, comme sa façon de doser la dynamique sonore, sa narration, lyrique et fougueuse, met en valeur les du compositeur, son art de la concision, en particulier, qui, manifeste dès les opéras de jeunesse, atteint l’un de ses sommets avec le «Bal »dont chaque tableau est rondement mené.”
[Verdi Un Ballo in Maschera / Opéra National de Paris]
Les Echos, June 07

[Translation]: For his return to Paris, Semyon Bychkov proved that he is still the same excellent conductor that we knew previously. His tempi are correct, as is his dynamic balance, and his narrative – at once lyrical and emphatic, drew out the composers’ qualities. His precision, in particular, (which has always been present in his operatic conducting), reached such heights with Ballo that each scene was completely rounded in itself.”

“The Don Carlo staged the other night at the Teatro Regio is beautiful. The musical direction is by one of the world’s finest conductors: Semyon Bychkov makes the orchestra play with an enthusiasm of which few conductors are capable. The expressive power of Verdi’s masterpiece is displayed in all its range of nuances.”
[Verdi Don Carlo / Teatro Regio Torino]
La Stampa, June 06

Recordings featuring verdi: