Va, pensiero

Melody and first verse of "Va, pensiero"

Va, pensiero (Va, pensiero, sull'ali dorate - Fly, thought, on wings of gold, in English also known as Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves) is a chorus from the third act of Nabucco (1842) by Giuseppe Verdi, with words by Temistocle Solera, inspired by Psalm 137. Known as Verdi's "Jewish" work of art, it recollects the story of Jewish exiles from Judea after the loss of the First Temple in Jerusalem. The opera with its powerful chorus established Verdi as a major composer in 19th century Italy.

Role in the Italian political history

Some scholars initially regarded the chorus as an anthem for Italian patriots, who were seeking to unify their country in the years up to 1861 and free it from foreign control (the chorus's theme of exiles singing about their homeland, and its lines like O mia patria, si bella e perduta / "O my country, so lovely and so lost" was thought to have resonated with many Italians). Some modern scholarship has refuted this concept and it fails to see connections between Verdi's 1840s and 1850s operas and Italian nationalism, with the exception of some of the sentiments expressed in his 1843 opera, I Lombardi

Other recent research has discussed several of Verdi's works from the 1840s (including Giovanna d'Arco and Attila) emphasising their ostensible political meaning. Work by Philip Gossett on choruses of the 1840s also suggests that recent revisionist approaches to Verdi and the Risorgimento may have gone too far in their thorough dismissal of the political significance of "Va, Pensiero".

Initial reception

Verdi composed Nabucco at a difficult moment in his life. His wife and small children had all just died. He had contracted with La Scala to write another opera and the director forced the libretto into his hands. Returning home, it happened to open to "Va, pensiero" and seeing the phrase, he heard the words singing. At first rehearsal "the stagehands shouted their approval, then beat on the floor and the sets with their tools to create an even noisier demonstration". As he was subsequently to note, Verdi felt that "this is the opera with which my artistic career really begins. And though I had many difficulties to fight against, it is certain that Nabucco was born under a lucky star".
Upon Verdi's death, along his funeral's cortege in the streets of Milan, bystanders started spontaneous choruses of Va, pensiero.

Libretto

Italian

Translation in English

Va, pensiero, sull'ali dorate; va, ti posa sui clivi, sui colli, ove olezzano tepide e molli l'aure dolci del suolo natal! Del Giordano le rive saluta, di Sionne le torri atterrate... Oh mia patria sì bella e perduta! Oh membranza sì cara e fatal! Arpa d'or dei fatidici vati, perché muta dal salice pendi? Le memorie nel petto raccendi, ci favella del tempo che fu! O simile di Sòlima ai fati traggi un suono di crudo lamento, o t'ispiri il Signore un concento che ne infonda al patire virtù.

Fly, thought, on wings of gold; go settle upon the slopes and the hills, where, soft and mild, the sweet airs of our native land smell fragrant! Greet the banks of the Jordan and Zion's toppled towers... Oh, my country so beautiful and lost! Oh, remembrance so dear and so fatal! Golden harp of the prophetic seers, why dost thou hang mute upon the willow? Rekindle our bosom's memories, and speak to us of times gone by! Mindful of the fate of Jerusalem, give forth a sound of crude lamentation, or may the Lord inspire you a harmony of voices which may instill virtue to suffering.

References

Notes

Cited sources

• Gossett, Philip, in Victoria Johnson, Jane F. Fulcher, and Thomas Ertman,(Eds.), “Le ‘edizioni distrutte’ e il significato dei cori operistici nel Risorgimento”, Saggiatore musicale, 12 (2005). [English translation, "Edizioni distrutte and the Significance of Operatic Choruses during the Risorgimento" Opera and Society in Italy and France from Monteverdi to Bourdieu, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. ISBN 0521124204 ISBN 0-521-12420-4
• Parker, Roger, "Verdi and Milan", lecture including details about Nabucco, given at Gresham College, London 14 May 2007.
• Phillips-Matz, Mary Jane (1993). Verdi: A Biography (1st ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 0193132044. 
• Werfel, Franz and Stefan, Paul (trans. Edward Downes), Verdi: The Man in his Letters, New York: Vienna House, 1973. ISBN 0844300888

Other sources

• Budden, Julian. The Operas of Verdi, Vol. 1. London: Cassell Ltd, 1973. pp. 89–-112. ISBN 0304310581
• Parker Roger, (ed), "Nabucodonosor": Dramma Lirico in Four Parts by Temistocle Solera (the works of Giuseppe Verdi), Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988 ISBN 9780226853109 ISBN 0226853101

See also

Italian Neoclassical and 19th century art

External links

• Roger Parker, "Verdi and Milan", lecture on Verdi's relationship with Milan, including details of Nabucco, given at Gresham College, London on 14 May 2007 (text, audio, & video files; available for streaming & download)
• YouTube video of the Israeli Opera performs "Va, pensiero" in Hebrew on Israel's Independence Day 2010 at Mount Herzl, Jerusalem.