The great moment arrived. On the evening of March 12, 1857, the Teatro
La Fenice in Venice resounded to the melodies of Simon Boccanegra. The
opera’s reception was not good. Tested in other theaters, it found the public
invariably severe, except in Naples. The fact is that—by seeking new forms
suited to dramatic expression, by giving greater importance to recitative,
and by being less concerned with melody—Verdi attempted in this opera a
fourth manner somewhat approaching German music. At least judging by the
prologue, I should say he was almost following—from afar it is true, but following nonetheless—in the footsteps of the famous Wagner, the subverter of
present-day music. It is well known that Wagner would like, as far as possible,
to render music a determinate language, almost a shadow of poetry.
