International Journal of Music and Performing Arts

Hermeneutics of Religious Symbolism in the Opera Giovanna d’Arco – Giuseppe Verdi.
Edith Georgiana ADETU

Abstract
This study proposes a distinct approach to Italian lyrical theater, by means of an analysis of musical hermeneutics, which correlatively debates on the religious symbols identified in the music of the opera „Giovanna d‟Arco‟ and the socio-political setting in which this opera was written. Inspired by Friedrich Schiller‟s tragedy, Verdi will incorporate the topic of the opera within the music in such a manner as to reflect the drama of the contemporary man of the19th-century Italian society. In full swing of the revolution, the Italian society of that time, more and more eager to find spiritual identity, is turning to the old religious legends. Joan of Arc, this religious symbol, will come to life in the pages of Verdi‟s opera, revealing numerous musical moments of sheer beauty, characteristic of the Italian style of the first half of the 19thcentury. At the same time, this opera brings together a series of religious symbols (divine apparitions), whose subliminal messages we will elucidate in this study.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/ijmpa.v8n2a2