The Cambridge Verdi Encyclopedia

Verdi's enduring presence on the opera stages of the world and as a subject for study by scholars in various disciplines has placed him as a central figure within modern culture. His operas, including La traviata, Rigoletto and Aida, are among the most frequently performed worldwide and his popularity from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day is undisputed. The Cambridge Verdi Encyclopedia covers all aspects of Verdi's life, his music and his world. Appendices list Verdi's known works, both published and unpublished, the characters in his operas and the singers who created them, and a chronology of his life. As a starting point for information on specific works, people, places and concepts associated with Verdi, the Encyclopedia reflects the very latest scholarship, presented by an international array of experts and will have a broad appeal for opera lovers, students and scholars.

Preface and acknowledgements; Guide to using the Encyclopedia; A-Z general entries; Appendix A. Worklist; Appendix B. Opera casts/characters tables; Appendix B1. Role creators/roles/operas; Appendix B2. Roles/operas/role creators; Appendix B3. Operas/roles/role creators; Appendix C. Chronology of Verdi's life; Bibliography and further reading.

Roberta Montemorra Marvin is co-editor of several books, most recently Music in Print and Beyond: Hildegard von Bingen to The Beatles (forthcoming) and Fashions and Legacies of Nineteenth-Century Italian Opera (2010). She is author of Verdi the Student – Verdi the Teacher (2010), Verdi and the Victorians (forthcoming) and The Politics of Verdi's 'Cantica' (forthcoming). Her scholarship focuses on issues of social history, text criticism, reception history, censorship and performance practices, related to the works of Verdi and Rossini. Marvin has edited two volumes in the critical edition of Verdi's works. She has received prestigious fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Bogliasco Foundation, the Howard Foundation, the US Fulbright Commission and the American Philosophical Society. She serves on the faculty of the University of Iowa.