Opera Scotland

Force of Destiny 1955Glyndebourne Opera

Read more about the opera Forza del Destino

The 1955 Edinburgh season by the Glyndebourne Opera consisted of three masterpieces of the Italian repertoire. Rossini's Barbiere di Siviglia and Verdi's Falstaff were generally acknowledged as such. Perhaps the jury was still out on an earlier Verdi piece, La forza del destino, but this revival certainly helped to establish it.

The Glyndebourne production had been seen with a largely different cast in 1951 (only the previous tenor and baritone returning). Carl Ebert was clearly fully occupied with Falstaff and Barbiere, so direction of this revival was entrusted to his son Peter, who within a few years would become an important figure in the early years of Scottish Opera.

When first announced, the conductor was scheduled to be an as yet unfamiliar Carlo Maria Giulini. However Vittorio Gui, who was due to conduct the other two operas, had to withdraw for the summer due to illness, so Giulini switched to the new Falstaff.

Glyndebourne has always been a training ground for notable young singers. This year was no exception, with names including Heather Harper, Patricia Kern, Kevin Miller, Leon Green and David Kelly.