AIDA, grand opera in four acts by Guiseppe Verdi (libretto by Camille du Lode and Antonio Ghislanzoni), first produced at Cairo, Egypt, on 24 Dec. 1871. Verdi was in his 59th year at the time, but, as the event showed, not yet in the full maturity of his powers. He was still later to astound the musical world with and (Falstaff)— the latter a unique exhibit of the ultimate flowering of genius. Aida typifies Italian opera at its best. Never has there been a richer or more breathless outpouring of melody that carries the listener on its very crest from beginning to end. Written to order and for an honorarium of six figures, the work defies tradition in its spontaneity and torrential vigor. The libretto, founded upon a motif of ancient Egyptian his tory, affords full scope for brilliant pageantry, contrasted scenic effects and emotional in tensity. Rhadames, the warrior hero, betray ing his country for love of the captive Ethiopian princess, Aida, Amneris, daughter of the King, whose love for Rhadames is unrequited, Amonasro, the enemy King, energized by un dying hate of his successful adversary, and Ramfis, the vengeful high-priest, are all operatic characters in the finest sense. The music individualizes them in a masterly way. Local color is used sparingly, but the composer's richly flowering fancy endues the pages with glowing, sensuous colors, admirably contrasted with impressionistic mood-painting, as in the famous Nile scene, with its pale moon-tinted flute introduction. Verdi's orchestra becomes
a far more expressive instrument than ever before. It rarely dominates the voices, but the accompaniment is never stereotyped and it always adds dramatic point to the scene. There are many instances, too, of matchless skill in the handling and the language is eloquent throughout. Among the finest numbers in the opera — selection is difficult—may be men tioned the opening tenor romance, Celeste Aida, the pompous but brilliant finale of the second act, full of varied contrasts, brought to an in tensely dramatic close, the judgment scene with its solemn pauses and the final love duo, 0 terra addio, blending with the overhead strains of the sacred dance of the priestesses and Amneris' final wail.
With all the remarkable development of music in the last four decades, Aida has re mained as fresh and as vivid as when it was first produced. Its influence on modern Italian opera is unmistakable, its pages a constant source of inspiration to Verdi's successors.