Ernani Opened Jan. 28, 1903, as Eighth Verdi Opera at Met Opera

Summary: Ernani opened Wednesday, Jan. 28, 1903, as the eighth Verdi opera at New York's Metropolitan Opera.

Polish coloratura soprano Marcella Sembrich originated the Met Opera role of Ernani's Elvira in the opera house's eighth Verdi premiere, Jan. 28, 1903: The Sembrich @TheSembrich, via Facebook March 19, 2015

Ernani opened Wednesday, Jan. 28, 1903, as the eighth Verdi premiere staged at New York's Metropolitan Opera.

The dramma lirico in quattro atti (lyrical drama in four acts) by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901) received four performances, sung in Italian, in the Metropolitan Opera's 1902-1903 season. The Metropolitan Opera House was the venue for the Wednesday, Jan. 28, premiere as well as the second (Monday, Feb. 2) and fourth, closing (Saturday, Feb. 21) performances.

Luigi Mancinelli (Feb. 5, 1848-Feb. 2, 1921) conducted the premiere, second and fourth, closing performances. The Italian conductor, cellist and composer had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 27, 1893, in the opera house's 50th performance of Faust by French composer Charles-François Gounod (June 17, 1818-Oct. 18, 1893).

Maestro Mancinelli shared the conductor's baton with Philippe Flon (Feb. 21, 1861-March 1923), who conducted the third (Tuesday, Feb. 10) performance. The Bruxelles-born composer and conductor had made his Met Opera debut Friday, Nov. 23, 1900, in the opera house's 83rd performance of Les Huguenots by German Jewish opera composer Giacomo Meyerbeer (Sept. 5, 1791-May 2, 1864).

Emilio De Marchi (Jan. 6, 1861-March 20, 1917) appeared in all four performances in the title role of bandit Ernani, who is really Don Juan of Aragon, deprived of his title and wealth during a civil war. The Italian operatic tenor had made his Met Opera debut Friday, Oct. 18, 1901, as Radamès in the opera house's 62nd performance of Verdi's Aida.

Marcella Sembrich (Feb. 15, 1858-Jan. 11, 1935) appeared in all four performances as Elvira, who reciprocates Ernani's love but who also is troubled by matrimonial offers from her uncle, Don Ruy Gómez de Silva, and Don Carlo, King of Spain. The Polish coloratura soprano had made her Met Opera debut Wednesday, Oct. 24, 1883, in the title role in the opera house's first season premiere, Lucia di Lammermoor by Italian opera composer Gaetano Donizetti (Nov. 29, 1797-April 8, 1848).

Antonio Scotti (Jan. 25, 1866-Feb. 26, 1936) appeared in all four performances as Don Carlo, King of Spain, who is elected Holy Roman Emperor in the third act. The Italian baritone had made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 15, 1899, as the Count de Nevers in the opera house's 78th performance of Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots.

Edouard (Édouard) de Reszke (Dec. 22, 1853-May 25, 1917) appeared in all four performances as Don Ruy Gomez de Silva, Elvira's unscrupulous uncle, who eliminates his rival, Elvira's beloved Ernani, by tragically extracting a fatal promise. The Polish bass had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 9, 1891, as King Heinrich in the opera house's 65th performance of Lohengrin by German Romantic era composer-librettist Richard Wagner (May 22, 1813-Feb. 13, 1883).

Mathilde Bauermeister (1849-Oct. 15, 1926) appeared in all four performances as Elvira's nurse, Giovanna. The German, later British, soprano had made her Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 11, 1891, as Amore in the opera house's second performance of Orfeo ed Euridice by German classical composer Christoph von Gluck (July 2, 1714-Nov. 15, 1787).

Roberto Vanni (1860-1943) appeared in all four performances as Don Riccardo, King Carlo's squire. The Italian tenor had made his Met Opera debut Wednesday, Nov. 21, 1894, as the Fisherman in the opera house's 12th performance of Guillaume Tell by Italian composer Gioachino Rossini (Feb. 29, 1792-Nov. 13, 1868).

Bernard Bégué appeared in all four performances as Jago, Silva's squire. The French baritone had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 24, 1902, as the Herald in the opera house's 20th performance of Verdi's Otello.

Fernand Almanz directed the Metropolitan Opera's eighth Verdi opera. The French stage director and manager had made his Met Opera debut Monday, Nov. 24, 1902, in the opera house's 20th performance of Verdi's Otello.

With its Jan. 28, 1903, premiere, Ernani became the eighth Verdi opera in Met Opera's repertoire. Its predecessors were Il Trovatore (Friday, Oct. 26, 1883); La Traviata (Monday, Nov. 5, 1883); Rigoletto (Friday, Nov. 16, 1883); Aida (Friday, Nov. 12, 1886); Un Ballo in Maschera (Wednesday, Dec. 11, 1889); Otello (Saturday, Nov. 23, 1891); and Falstaff (Monday, Feb. 4, 1895).

The takeaways for Ernani as the eighth Met Opera Verdi premiere are that eight Verdi premieres took place within the Metropolitan Opera's first 12 seasons; that the tragic opera received four performances in its premiere season; and that Emilio De Marchi and Marcella Sembrich originated the opera house's roles of ill-fated lovers Ernani and Elvira, respectively.

Edouard (Édouard) de Reszke sang Don Ruy Gomez de Silva, Elvira's unscrupulous uncle; portrait of Édouard de Reszke in The Marie Burroughs Art Portfolio of Stage Celebrities (1894): Public Domain, via Internet Archive

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Polish coloratura soprano Marcella Sembrich originated the Met Opera role of Ernani's Elvira in the opera house's eighth Verdi premiere, Jan. 28, 1903: The Sembrich @TheSembrich, via Facebook March 19, 2015, @ https://www.facebook.com/TheSembrich/photos/p.811634498902076/811634498902076/

Edouard (Édouard) de Reszke sang Don Ruy Gomez de Silva, Elvira's unscrupulous uncle; portrait of Édouard de Reszke in The Marie Burroughs Art Portfolio of Stage Celebrities (1894): Public Domain, via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/marieburroughsar00chic/page/n231/mode/1up

For further information:

Arakelyan, Ashot. "Emilio De Marchi (Tenor) (Voghera 1861 – Milan 1917)." Forgotten Opera Singers. March 30, 2015.
Available @ https://forgottenoperasingers.blogspot.com/2015/03/emilio-de-marchi-tenor-voghera-1861.html

Arakelyan, Ashot. "Roberto Vanni (Tenor) (Milan 1861 – ? 1941)." Forgotten Opera Singers. May 22, 2012.
Available @ http://forgottenoperasingers.blogspot.com/2012/05/roberto-vanni-tenor-milan-1861-1941.html

"Debut: Antonio Scotti." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 22450 Les Huguenots {78} Chicago, Illinois: 11/15/1899.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=22450

"Debut: Bernard Bégué, Fernand Almanz." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 30000 Otello {20} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/24/1902.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=30000

"Debut: Emilio de Marchi." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 27640 Aida {62} Buffalo, New York: 10/18/1901.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=27640

"Debut: Jean de Reszke, Emma Eames, Giulia Ravogli, Antonio Magini-Coletti, Edouard de Reszke, Enrico Serbolini." MetOpera Datase > [Met Performance] CID: 10000 Lohengrin {65} Chicago, Illinois: 11/09/1891.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=10000

"Debut: Libia Drog, Francesco Tamagno, Roberto Vanni, Maria Giuri, Miss Ryan." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 13380 New production Guillaume Tell [William Tell] {12} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/21/1894.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=13380

"Debut: Olimpia Guercia, Luigi Mancinelli, Armand Castelmary." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 11500 New production Faust {50} Metropolitan Opera House: 11/27/1893. (Opening Night {10} Abbey, Schoeffel & Grau, General Managers.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=11500

"Debut: Philippe Flon." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 25150 Les Huguenots {83} San Francisco, California: 11/23/1900.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=25150

"Debut: Sofia Ravogli, Mathilde Bauermeister, Rebecca Salmoiraghi." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 10010 Orfeo ed Euridice {2} Chicago, Illinois: 11/11/1891.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=10010

"Debuts: Marcella Sembrich, Giuseppe Kaschmann, Achille Augier, Amadeo Grazzi, Imogene Forti, Vincenzo Fornaris." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 1010 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Lucia di Lammermoor {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 10/24/1883.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=1010

The Marie Burroughs Art Portfolio of Stage Celebrities. A Collection of Photographs of the Leaders of Dramatic and Lyric Art. Chicago : A.N. Marquis & Company, 1894.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://hdl.handle.net/2027/njp.32101073370700
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/marieburroughsar00chic/

Marriner, Derdriu. "Manru Opened Feb. 14, 1902, as First Polish Opera Staged at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 22, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/02/manru-opened-feb-14-1902-as-first.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Marcella Sembrich Made Last Met Opera Appearance Feb. 6, 1909." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 15, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/02/marcella-sembrich-made-last-met-opera.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Marcella Sembrich Sang Mozart's Susanna as Last Met Role Feb. 4, 1909." Earth and Space News. Monday, Feb. 8, 2021.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2021/01/marcella-sembrich-sang-mozarts-susanna.html

May, Thomas. "Program Note." The Metropolitan Opera 2011-12 Season Giuseppe Verdi's Ernani: 35-37.
Available @ https://www.metopera.org/globalassets/user-information/nightly-opera-streams/week-11/playbills/feb-25-ernani.pdf

"Metropolitan Opera Premiere Ernani." MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 30710 Metropolitan Opera Premiere Ernani {1} Metropolitan Opera House: 01/28/1903.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=30710

Music History @today_classical. "#Today in 1917 Death of #tenor Emilio De #Marchi #MusicHistory #classicalmusic." Twitter. March 20, 2016.
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Owen, H. (Henry) Goddard; and Philip Lieson Miller. A Recollection of Marcella Sembrich, With a New Introduction. Da Capo Press Series in Architecture and Decorative Art. New York NY: Da Capo Press, April 21, 1982.

Rous, Samuel Holland. The Victrola Book of the Opera: Stories of One Hundred and Twenty Operas With Seven-Hundred Illustrations and Descriptions of Twelve-Hundred Victor Opera Records. Fourth revised edition. Camden NJ: Victor Talking Machine Company, 1917.
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The Sembrich @TheSembrich. "Marcella Sembrich as Elvira in ERNANI!" Facebook. March 19, 2015.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/TheSembrich/photos/p.811634498902076/811634498902076/