Verdi Treasures from Milan’s Ricordi Archive make U.S. debut

Verdi Treasures from Milan’s Ricordi Archive make
U.S. debut

• New York’s Morgan Library & Museum and archive owner Bertelsmann combine
  their Verdi collections for a unique exhibition: “Verdi: Creating Otello and Falstaff –
  Highlights from the Ricordi Archive"
• Valuable original documents and artefacts provide deep insights into the creative
  process of one of the greatest opera composers

New York/Milan, August 27, 2019 – Rare testimonies to the history of Italian opera from the
Milan-based, Bertelsmann-owned Ricordi Archive will now be shown in the United States for
the first time. Fans of classical music and literature can look forward to the exhibition “Verdi:
Creating Otello and Falstaff – Highlights from the Ricordi Archive”, which will be on view at
the renowned Morgan Library & Museum in New York from September 6, 2019 to January 5,
2020.

The exhibition traces the genesis and realization of Verdi’s last two operas, Otello and
Falstaff, using original scores, libretti, selected correspondence, set and costume designs,
and more. Giuseppe Verdi – alongside Giacomo Puccini, Gaetano Donizetti, Vincenzo
Bellini, and Gioachino Rossini – is one of the five great names of 19th century Italian opera
whose works were published by Casa Ricordi and documented in its Archivio Storico Ricordi.
The Ricordi Archive is regarded as one of the world’s foremost privately owned music
collections. The Morgan Library & Museum complements the exhibition with rarities from its
own collection, including early editions of texts by William Shakespeare, whose
dramaturgical material served as the basis for the operas Otello and Falstaff.

This combination of materials from the two great institutions under the guidance of curators
Fran Barulich and Gabriele Dotto gives visitors a unique opportunity to gain first-hand
insights into the European cultural scene of the late 19th century. The supporting program of
the exhibition also includes a concert with Verdi arias, a screening of Franco Zeffirellis Otello,
and a lecture with experts from the Ricordi Archive.

Colin B. Bailey, Director of the Morgan Library & Museum, said: “We are delighted to present
these highlights from the Ricordi Archive, showing how Italy’s pre-eminent composer shaped
what would become two of his crowning achievements, Otello and Falstaff. A collection of set
designs, costumes from Milan’s Teatro alla Scala, autograph manuscripts, contracts,
publications, publicity, video excerpts from recent productions, as well as objects from the
Morgan’s collection enable visitors to experience the tremendous collaborative efforts behind
an operatic production.”

Thomas Rabe, Chairman & CEO of Bertelsmann, said: “The name Ricordi stands for 200
years of Italian opera and music history. As the owners of the Ricordi Archive, we are very
aware of the importance of this European cultural asset and take responsibility for its
sustained preservation, care and development. Exhibitions like the one in New York, in
partnership with the Morgan Library, are a great opportunity to keep the creative work of earlier generations alive and to reach audiences beyond the musicological community.”
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A formative influence on European cultural history

The richly textured exhibition “Verdi: Creating Otello and Falstaff - Highlights from the Ricordi
Archive” describes the creative process of the two world-famous operas – from initial
deliberations about commissioning the celebrated composer to the premieres of Otello in
1887 and Falstaff in 1893. The idea for Otello first arose in 1879, when Verdi was 65, but he
did not begin to work on the project in earnest for several more years, when he was in his
70s. There was almost a 16-year hiatus between the 1887 premiere of Otello and the 1871
premiere of Aida. His Milanese publisher Giulio Ricordi teamed up with the librettist Arrigo
Boito to develop a diplomatic strategy for luring “the old bear” out of retirement at his country
home in Sant’Agata. Their plan worked, and applying his mature compositional skills to two
brilliant libretti by Boito, Verdi created two of the greatest operas ever composed.

Giulio Ricordi was ultimately responsible for marketing and managing the two large-scale
productions. The exhibition thus provides a deep insight into the work of three geniuses who
formed a kind of “business community.”

The partnership with the Morgan Library & Museum offers additional material that enriches
the Ricordi exhibition: Shakespeare’s First and Second Folios, rare editions of scores and
libretti, contemporary publicity material, an autograph letter from Verdi’s wife, and autograph
sketches for Otello.

The New York exhibition represents a new milestone in the presentation of the Ricordi
Archive to the public: In Verdi Year 2013 – the composer’s bicentennial – the archive’s
treasures were first presented in Germany as the curtain-raiser to a traveling exhibition that
toured Europe. At the time, the “Enterprise of Opera: Verdi. Boito. Ricordi” exhibition was
shown in Berlin and Gütersloh and subsequently in Brussels, Milan and Vincenza. It now
forms the basis for the forthcoming exhibition in New York.

The Ricordi Archive houses a total of some 7,800 original scores from more than 600 operas
and hundreds of other compositions; approximately 10,000 libretti; an extensive iconographic
collection with precious original stage and costume designs; and a vast amount of historical
business correspondence of Casa Ricordi. Founded in 1808 by Giovanni Ricordi in Milan, the
Italian music publisher had a fundamental influence on the cultural history of Italy and
Europe. Bertelsmann, the international media company which also includes the BMG music
group and the New York-based trade publishing group Penguin Random House, bought
Casa Ricordi in 1994, but sold the music company and Ricordi’s music rights in subsequent
years. Only the associated Ricordi Archive remained within the group. Since then,
Bertelsmann has had the archived items comprehensively indexed, digitized and, in many
cases, restored. The company also organizes concerts and exhibitions to keep Casa
Ricordi’s cultural heritage alive and make it accessible to as many people as possible.

“Verdi: Creating Otello and Falstaff – Highlights from the Ricordi Archive”
September 6, 2019 to January 5, 2020
The Morgan Library & Museum
225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street
New York, NY 10016

Programs:

Gallery Talks
“Verdi: Creating Otello and Falstaff – Highlights from the Ricordi Archive”
Friday, September 13, 6pm
Friday, November 15, 1pm

Films
“Otello”
Friday, September 20, 7:00 pm
“Tosca’s Kiss”
Friday, October 18, 7:00 pm

Family Program
Curtain’s Up! Theatrical Design at the Morgan
Saturday, September 21, 11:00 am
Dance: Inspired by Verdi
Saturday, November 9, 2:00 pm

Concerts
George London Foundation Recitals
Sunday, October 20, 4:00 pm

Lectures and Discussions
“Verdi and the Ricordi Archive”: An Evening with Pierluigi Ledda and Gabrielle Dotto
Wednesday, October 2, 6:30 pm

“Le Conversazioni: Films of My Life”
Thursday December 5, 7:00 pm

For more information about the exhibition, hours, and admission, please visit
www.themorgan.org.

For more information about the Ricordi Archive please visit
https://www.archivioricordi.com/en or https://www.bertelsmann.com.

Organization and Sponsorship
“Verdi: Creating Otello and Falstaff – Highlights from the Ricordi Archive“ is organized by the
Morgan Library & Museum, New York in collaboration with the Bertelsmann/Ricordi Archive.
Lead funding for this exhibition was generously provided by Marina Kellen French and the
Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation.