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[MUSIC] - “VERDI AND LA FORZA DEL DESTINO: THE HIDDEN STORY OF A REVISION” - VERDI Giuseppe - Autograph letter not signed (incomplete), not dated [but between December 1868 - January 1869] by the celebrated Italian composer. Addressed to the music publisher Giulio Ricordi. Very interesting musical letter all about the partial reworking wanted by Verdi after the first performance given in Petersburg on November 10, 1862 with great success of his opera “La Forza del Destino.” The librettist of the aforementioned opera had been Francesco Maria Piave, but since he for health reasons was unable to make the changes Verdi deemed necessary to the text, he resorted to the work of Antonio Ghislanzoni. The feverish work of remaking, both the text and the related music, took place through Giulio Ricordi, as indicated by Abbiati (vol. 3, p. 244 ff.), who mentions three letters exchanged on this affair between Ricordi and Verdi without indicating their contents. The changes reached the last act and Verdi thus mentions them at the beginning of the letter: “…Non mi piacerebbe mettere l’aria d’Eleonora nel principio dell’ultimo atto. Io ho tentato di trovare uno scioglimento che sottoporrete a Ghislanzoni…”and, as a further demonstration of the great importance Verdi gave to the text of his operas, here he was busy “suggesting” a new draft of Scene VII and the last of Act 4 of the opera. In fact, in its final text this Scene VII was divided into three Scenes (VII-VIII-IX) and the Maestro's words underwent further changes, in part certainly imposed by the librettist, but in part desired by Verdi himself as he proceeded to retouch the music. The letter ends with an interesting remark: “…Musicalmente vi e da far un pezzo, e non importa che la critica di bassa lega dica: e il Terzetto de Lombardi forse per la tunica del frate [alludes to scene V of Act 4 where Arvino, Gisella and a hermit appear] (…) ma la e un amore giovane, puro: qui e un amore sporco di molto sangue. Il carattere della musica sara molto molto differente…Ma drammaticamente e bello far morire in quel modo Leonora e bello…”. The letter has some holes at the central fold. It is certainly not complete in the text, which was presumably to continue for one or two sides in another half sheet. 4 pp. In-8.