Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901) was the Shakespeare of opera, the composer of Rigoletto, Il Trovatore, La Traviata, Aida and Otello. The Chorus of Hebrew slaves from Nabucco (1842) is regarded in Italy as virtually an alternative national anthem – and the great tragedian rounded off his career fifty years later with a rousing comedy, Falstaff.When Verdi was born, much of northern Italy was under Napoleonic rule, and Verdi grew up dre...

The Gilded Stage is a comprehensive tour of the world of opera. From its origins in the courts of northern Italy, to its internationally recognised position in modern culture, Snowman explores the social history of opera houses and impresarios, composers and patrons, artists and audiences.Even the most flamboyant composers could scarcely have imagined the global reach of opera in our own times. More opera is performed, financed, seen, heard, filmed and broadcast than ever ...

Daniel Snowman is a social and cultural historian. His latest book is a collection of some of the more provocative essays he has published over many decades that examine how we use and abuse ‘history’.If the past is everything that has ever happened, he asks, why does what we call ‘history’ keep changing? What (or who) causes historical change? Could aspects of the past itself have been different? What do we choose to retain as our ‘heritage’ and why? Are ‘the arts’ part of history ...