Name: Otello: Act II, Credo: Credo in un Dio crudel [baritone]
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 36-A313402
Price: 40.00 USD
Availability: OutOfStock

Otello: Act II, Credo: Credo in un Dio crudel [baritone]

$40.00 USD

Otello: Act II, Credo: Credo in un Dio crudel [baritone]

By Giuseppe Verdi/ Libretto by Arrigo Boito, after Othello by William Shakespeare.

Item: 36-A313402

$40.00

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Otello marked Giuseppe Verdi's (1813-1901) return to composing following his first retirement after writing Aida. This retelling of Shakespeare's classic revenge tale was originally titled Iago, after the Moorish general's villainous subordinate, so as to prevent confusion with Rossini's Otello. Iago, upset with Otello's decision to promote the younger soldier Cassio over him, devises a plot to convince Otello that his wife Desdemona has been unfaithful to him while implicating Cassio in her infidelity. The jealous Otello strangles his wife just before learning the truth about Iago's plot, after which he kills himself. The notoriously difficult title tenor role has been played by such luminaries as Ramon Vinay, Placido Domingo, and more recently, Russell Thomas. The opera premiered on February 5, 1887, at La Scala in Milan. Act II, the baritone aria "Credo in un Dio crudel," occurs shortly after Iago has begun setting his plot against Otello in motion. Alone, Iago reveals the nihilistic philosophy underlying his actions, declaring his belief in a cruel God who created him wicked, rejecting conventional morality, and asserting that death is followed only by oblivion. The aria, which has no direct counterpart in Shakespeare and was created by librettist Arrigo Boito to deepen Iago's characterization, establishes him not merely as a jealous schemer but as a figure of deliberate and profound malevolence before he resumes manipulating Otello. Today, "Credo in un Dio crudel" stands among the most celebrated dramatic baritone arias in the operatic repertoire and is frequently heard both within complete performances of Otello and independently in recitals, concerts, recordings, auditions, and competitions. Instrumentation: 2+1(Picc).2.2.4: 4.2+2(Crnt).4.0: Timp.Perc(1-2): Str (4.4.3.3.3 in set). Reprint edition.