Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio (Norma, or The Infanticide) by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the Bel canto tradition. "Casta diva" was one of the most familiar arias of the nineteenth century.
In a letter dated September 1, 1831, Bellini wrote the ...
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Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio (Norma, or The Infanticide) by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the Bel canto tradition. "Casta diva" was one of the most familiar arias of the nineteenth century.
In a letter dated September 1, 1831, Bellini wrote the soprano Giuditta Pasta that "Romani believes [that this subject] will be very effective, and absolutely ideal for your encyclopedic character, because that is the kind of character Norma has". Indeed, Pasta's vocal and dramatic range was encyclopedic: that March, she had created the very different Bellini role of Amina, the lyrically vulnerable Swiss village maiden, in La sonnambula.
In the 19th century, it was common for composers to interpolate arias of their own into other composers' operas. Richard Wagner wrote an aria for bass and men's...
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