Overture: The Force of Destiny

Many of Verdi’s overtures have a thriving concert-hall life quite independent of the operas for which they were originally conceived. One of the most popular of all is La Forza del destino (The Force of Destiny) which was written in 1869 as a prelude to a story of thwarted love, family vengeance and highly unlikely coincidence inexorably determined by the force of destiny. Verdi’s genius for scoring for strings is evident almost from the start, in the tragically persecuted theme introduced between two sets of deliberately paced and grimly fateful chords. A lyrical episode on flute, oboe and clarinet is interrupted by another inspiration in scoring - a radiant prayer this time rising high on violins over dull echoes of the persecuted theme on lower strings. The prayer is heard again later, this time on a searingly passionate trumpet, before the whole orchestra gets involved in the dramatically eventful coda.

Verdi is one of the few composers who wrote nothing at all for solo violin. Like Rossini, he was interested mainly in vocal music, opera above all, and the only work of any length which has nothing to do with opera and which has no words attached is the String Quartet he completed in 1873. He does, however, have a secure place in the orchestral repertoire by virtue of his opera overtures, several of which have a thriving concert-hall life quite independent of the operas for which they were originally conceived.

One of the most popular of all is La Forza del destino (The Force of Destiny) which was written in 1869 as a prelude to a story of thwarted love, family vengeance and highly unlikely coincidence inexorably determined by the force of destiny. Verdi’s genius for scoring for strings is evident almost from the start, in the tragically persecuted theme introduced between two sets of deliberately paced and grimly fateful chords. A lyrical episode on flute, oboe and clarinet is interrupted by another inspiration in scoring - a radiant prayer this time rising high on violins over dull echoes of the persecuted theme on lower strings. The prayer is heard again later, this time on a searingly passionate trumpet, before the whole orchestra gets involved in the dramatically eventful coda.