Diss.--Mainz, 2000--Johannes Gutenberg-Univ. / Sources et bibliogr. p. 391-453. Index.

The leading baritone roles in the operas of Giuseppe Verdi, known as Verdi baritone roles, presented new challenges for the singers who first interpreted these roles. Their demanding tessitura and complex characterizations tested the skill of a generation of singers who began their careers singing the roles of Gioacchino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, Saverio Mercadante, Vincenzo Bellini and Giovanni Pacini in the lighter, bel canto style. The purpose of this study is to examine the careers of singers active in Italy between 1830 and 1845 and to provide insight as to which roles written before the premiere of Verdi's Nabucco contained similar vocal and characterization demands. Through examination of available Italian opera house annals, ten singers were identified by the author as precursors to the Verdi baritone, and are categorized into three groups: the pre-Verdi baritones, the transitional baritones and the established Verdi baritones. A brief biography of each singer is included, as well as an appendix for each singer that includes roles performed, dates and locations of the performances. The title role in Donizetti's Torquato Tasso and the role of Manfredo in Mercadante's Il giuramento were determined to be the roles most similar to Verdi's Nabucco. Each role is analyzed in terms of characterization and tessitura demands, and is compared using tessitura charts that account for the frequency and duration of individual pitches. The roles are divided into sections, and each section is designated by its overall range, primary tessitura, secondary tessitura, and weighted pitches. These designations provide quantifiable evidence that each role presents similar challenges for the baritone.

Horn players can improve their abilities to play artistically in a lyrical legato style, with a light mechanism, and employ a beautiful sound throughout the range of the horn through the study of bel canto vocal technique. No better singing model exists for horn players than that of the great bel canto singers of the early nineteenth century who were known for their refined technique, perfect legato, even tone, sparkling agility, and beautiful musical expression. Mastery of the expressive bel canto melodic style is a means for horn players to achieve artistry in performance. Pedagogical principles of nineteenth- and twentieth-century bel canto teachers, vocal exercises related to development of bel canto technique, and recorded performances of singers who have specialized in bel canto repertoire are examined. This study culminates in performer's guides to repertoire chosen from the few existing early nineteenth-century solo horn with piano pieces (by Balfe, Mercadante, and Rossini), with bel canto-informed horn technique explained.

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In diesem Jahr gedenkt die Musikwelt des hundertfünzigsten Todestages Saverio Mercadantes. Der Autor dieser Zeilen nimmt dies zum Anlaß, ein Systematisches Verzeichnis der Werke Saverio Mercdantes vorzulegen, nachdem er vor einigen Jahren schon ein summarisches Werkverzeichnis veröffentlicht hat. (Artikel Saverio Mercadante in: The New Groves Dictionary of Musik 2000 und erweitert in: Neue MGG 2008). Es verbindet sich damit die Hoffnung, die weitere musikwissenschaftliche Erforschung dieses Komponisten zu befördern und auf eine solide philologische Grundlage zu stellen. Vorliegendes Verzeichnis beruht auf einer Auswertung aller derzeit zugänglichen bibliographischen Findmittel. Ein Anspruch auf Vollständigkeit wäre vermessen bei einem Komponisten wie Saverio Mercadante, der zu den schaffensfreudigsten Meistern des 19. Jahrhunderts gehört hat. Auch in Zukunft ist damit zu rechnen, daß weiter Abschriften oder bislang unbekannte Werke im Antiquariatshandel auftauchen oder im Zuge der fortschreitenden Katalogisierung kleinerer Bibliotheken aufgefunden werden. Gleichwohl dürfte (mit Ausnahme des nicht vollständig überlieferten Frühwerks) mit dem jetzigen Forschungsstand der größte Teil seiner Werk greifbar sein.