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The Sound of Opera

Bella figlia dell'amore (Quartet)

Rigoletto is an opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi, based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. It premiered on 11 March 1851 in Venice and has become a staple in today's opera repertoire.

Rigoletto is a jester at the court of the Duke of Mantua, a womanizer with low moral standards who has laid his eyes on a mysterious beauty, not knowing that she is in fact Rigoletto's daughter Gilda. Gilda, in turn, doesn't know that the man she met is the Duke, but believes him to be a poor student.

This famous quartet from Act 3 is set near Sparafucile's tavern, an assassin hired by Rigoletto to kill the Duke for having abducted Gilda. Inside the tavern the Duke is flirting with Sparafucile's sister Maddalena. Rigoletto and Gilda are in the street and overhear what is happening inside. Gilda laments the Duke's unfaithfulness while Rigoletto assures her that he will take revenge.

  • Gilda
  • Maddalena
  • Duca
  • Rigoletto