Read on to discover the unlikely link between Verdi’s 'Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves' and climate change…
Since its composition in 1841, Verdi’s Nabucco has attracted love and admiration in equal measure. It was, after all, the opera Verdi himself claimed ‘with which my artistic career really begins’.
Undoubtedly the opera’s most famous and frequently-performed section is the powerful ‘Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves’. This begins ‘Va, pensiero, sull'ali dorate’, meaning ‘Go, thought, on wings of gold…’
Different interpretations of 'Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves'
Over the years the chorus has inspired many interpretations – encompassing far more than the opera’s Old Testament plot of Hebrew captivity at the hands of the Babylonians.
Some believe Verdi composed his ‘Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves’ in support of Italian patriots, seeking to unify their country. And such is the feeling of hope and pride it inspires that several leading figures over the years have suggested it should replace Italy’s official national anthem.
Riccardo Muti even used the work’s patriotic message to appeal to Italian authorities proposing arts budget cuts in 2011.
A message for the planet...
But at the 2024 Savonlinna Opera Festival in Finland, Nabucco’s power to move audiences is supporting a thoroughly modern cause... climate change.
Director Rodula Gaitanou’s new production remakes an ancient struggle for the modern age. Here, the Babylonian oppressors represent ‘the cold world of machines and technocrats who disregard the value of nature’. And the oppressed Israelites are ‘eco-warriors who defend nature and human values’.
If such recent concerns are at times a little awkwardly draped over the work’s ancient setting, in the 'Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves' Gaitanou’s message is suddenly, vibrantly clear. ‘Now, as it has always done, "Va pensiero" has a strong symbolic meaning,' she says
It’s testament to the work’s strength – that wonderful synthesis of idealistic lyrics and uplifting music – that it so easily speaks for multiple causes.
And it’s a reminder that the test for all great art – from Bach to Shakespeare – is its ability to speak to the heart, regardless of time or culture.
