The last piece of the so-called trilogia popolare is a work of complete inner life and is rightly regarded as one of the masterpieces unsurpassed in the Romantic genre. Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) used the famous novel “La dame aux camélias” by the French writer Alexandre Dumas as his literary model; only the names of the protagonists were changed.
Although the opera was a great success from a musical point of view, at the same time the moral, overly permissive and liberal attitude of the work was criticized. With the “traviata” (= the Fallen woman) Verdi drew a highly sensitive main character on whom his whole attention is focused - like a psychological study of human nature with all its vices, hardships and desires, but also the ability to renounce for the sake of loved ones.
From the first note there is a suggestion of a soul drama that begins with an intimate prelude instead of the usual overture in the classical style. As an autobiographical element, the theme certainly includes the fact that Verdi’s partner Giuseppina Strepponi suffered from a serious illness and that Verdi, who had lost his first wife at an early age, also feared for her life. In addition, the composer’s relationship with Strepponi caused him slander, so that he used this theme artistically in the figure of his father, Germont, who was a well-behaved man.
The premiere in 1853 at the Teatro La Fenice turned out to be a farce due to several factors. On the one hand, certainly because Verdi held up an unwanted mirror to Italian society with this subject, on the other hand because of the vocal deficits of the interpreters. One year later, however, also in Venice and only slightly modified, the worldwide, unbroken triumph of “La traviata” began. Today the tragic love story around the courtesan Violetta is the most popular opera of Verdi and one of the most frequently performed works ever.