simon BoccanegRra87 SIMON BOCCANEGRA Opera in a prologue and three acts. Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, revised by Arrigo Boito Based on the Spanish play by Antonio Gercia Gutierrez, "Simén Bocanegra’ First performed at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice on March 12, 1837 Revised version first performed at the Teatro Alla Scala in Milan on March 24, 1881 CHARACTERS Simon Boccanegra, a buccaneer in the service of the Genoese Republic, later Doge: baritone Jacopo Fiesco (also known later as Andrea): bass Paolo Albiani, goldsmith, later favorite courtier of the Doge: baritone Pietro, a citizen, later a courtier: bass Maria, Boccanegra’s daughter, also known later as Amelia Grimeldi: soprano Gabriele Adorno, a Geonoese noblemen, in love with Amelia: tenor ‘Acaptain: tenor A maid: mezzo-soprano or soprano Soldiers, sailors, townspeople, senators, courtiers of the Doge The time is 1339 in the prologue and 1363 in the following acts. The place is Genoa. THE PLOT PROLOGUE ‘A square in Genoa ‘The Prologue takes place in 1339. The church of San Lorenzo is in the background and to one side is the palace of the Fiesco family with a statue of the Madonna illuminated by a lente on its outside wall. It is dark, about to dawn. Paolo Albiani, political leader of the plebsian faction is found plotting with his cohort Pietro, A new Doge is to be chosen and they are determined to undermine the power and influence of the patricians by encouraging the election of a plebeian candidate. Paolo encourages Pietro to urge upon the people the name of Simon Boccanegra, a buccaneer who has found favor with the Genoese people by his maritime exploits in ridding the Genoese coast of African pirates. Pietro promises to get the people's vote in return for "gold, power and honor" from Paolo, whose motives to overthrow the patricians are not entirely selfless. Pietro leaves to organize the plebeians. Simon Bocanegra enters, having been summoned from Savona by Paolo who now asks him if he would like to be Doge. At first Boccanegra shows no interest but later agrees only after Paolo points out to him that as Doge he would be able to overcome the opposition of the wealthy and powerful Jacopo Fiesco to Boccanegra's merriage with Fiesco’s daughter. She has already had a child by Simon. Simon Teaves and Paolo disappears into the shadows, as workers and sailors begin to enter the square. Pietro returns and mingles among them conspiratorially, urging the cause of a popular plebeian candidate for Doge. When the crowd asks who the canditade is, Paolo steps forward and announces the name of Boccanegra. The people ask how the Fiesco patrician family is likely to react and Paolo says thet the Fieschi will do nothing. Pointing to their palace, he tells of the88 beautiful Maria, who for three months now has not been allowed out of the house. Suddenly, a flame appears in one of the windows of the Fiesco palace, an indication that someone has just died. Crossing themselves superstitiously, the crowd disperses, expressing their allegiance to Simon Boccanegra. Once the square is deserted, Jacopo Fiesco comes out, bidding a last farewell to his palace. His daughter Maria has just died and he utters a ferocious curse on Simon, her seducer. As he sings a lament for his lost daughter, a chorus of women can be heard chanting a Miserere from inside the palace. Simon enters again and is immediately confronted by the outraged, grief- stricken Fiesco. Simon begs the old man to forgive him but Fiesco is unmoved. His hatred for the man whom he considers responsible for his daughter's death is too great and he swears that there can be no peace between them until one of them dies. Simon urges him to slay him now, but the old man scoms this act as that of an assassin. He offers, instead, to forgive Simon if he will hand over Marie's child, a daughter. The unhappy Simon is now forced to confess that he cannot do this. He hed entrusted the child to the care of an old woman, but one day, when he went to visit them, he found the old women dead and the child gone. She had wandered off and even though he serached everywhere for her, she could not be found. Coldly repeating that if Simon cannot produce the child there can absolutely not be a reconciliation, Fiesco leaves. Simon tries to enter the palace to see Maria. Fiesco, who hed been lurking in the shadows intercepts him. This is the beginning of his revenge. "Go in and embrace a cold corpse" he tells Bocanegra. The latter rushes into the house and soon a cry of despair is heard from him as he discovers the dead Maria, Heartbroken, he staggers out into the squere while a crowd in the distance is heard accleiming him as Doge. The crowd bursts into the square, led by Paolo and Pietro, announcing that Simon had been elected, but the heartbroken Simon is in no condition to pay much attention to the cries of acclamation. ACTI A garden in the Grimaldi palace The first act of the opera takes place twenty five years after the Prologue. The action takes place in a garden of the Grimaldi palace on the coast not far from Genoa. The sea can be seen in the distance. It is dawn and Amolia Grimaldi (really the long-lost daughter of Simon Boccanegra and Maria Fiesco, as will be soon revealed) is awaiting the arrival of Gabriele Adorno, with whom she is in love. Adorno is a young nobleman who, together with Amelia's guardian Andrea (really old man Fiesco in disguise, not aware at this point that she is his grand-daughter) is engaged in plotting against Simon Boccanegra, now Doge of Genoa. Adorno arrives and Amelia tries to dissuade him of his political activities, which, she feels, can endanger his life and their love. Pietro enters and announces that the Doge, on his way back from the hunt in Savona wishes to visit Amelia. Amelia is convinced that the reason for his visit is to force her to marry one of his favorite courtiers, Paolo, and to forestall this, she urges Adorno to make immediate preparations for their wedding. She hurries off into the palace. As Adorno is about to leave, he runs into her guardian Andrea (Fiesco). Knowing of Gabriele Adorno's love for Amelia, Fiesco considers it his duty to inform the young nobleman that she is not really a true member of the high born Grimaldi family. The true Amelia Grimaldi had died years ago, and a foundling was brought up as Amelia Grimaldi in order to stop the Doge from confiscating Count Grimaldi's estate, Gabriele reaffirms his love for Amelia, whoever she may really be, and Andrea, (Fiesco) gives him his blessing. The distant blaring of trumpets announces the arrival of the Doge and the two men leave. The Doge enters, accompanied by a party of huntsmen and Paolo. Amelia comes out to meet him. Boccanegra dismisses his followers and completely disarms Amelia by presenting her with a document which pardons her exiled Grimaldi brothers. He asks her if sho is in love and she replies in the affirmative, stating however that she detests the attentions of Paolo, whom she accuses of merely coveting89 the Grimaldi fortune, She now confides in the Doge saying that she is not really a Grimaldi, and speaks of her childhood with an old woman in a cottage on the seashore near Pisa. Before the woman had died she had given her a locket containing the portrait of her real mother. Boccanegra, beginning to suspect Amelia's real identity, questions her, and she tells him that she remembers being visited on many occasions by a seafaring man. Bocanegra asks "was the old woman's name Giovanna?” Hearing from Amelia that it was, he now produces a locket, which Amelia compares with her own, They contain similar portraits. The Doge cries "Maria!" and tells Amelia that she is his long lost daughter. Here follows a scene of gentle, tearful reunion between father and daughter, after which Amelia goes indoors. Paolo enters, inquiring about Amelie’s reaction and the Doge curtly dismisses him, telling him to give up total hope of ever marrying Amelia. Bocanegra leaves and Paolo immediately enlists the help of his friend Pietro in planning to abduct Amelia. They plan to abduct her at dawn. Scene I The Council Chamber The Doge is seated on his throne. Twelve patrician and twelve plebeian councillors ere gathered at each side, Among the plebeian faction are Paolo and Pietro. At the beginning of the scene the Doge is accepting gifts and pledges of peace from the Emperor of Tartary. As the Tartar emissaries leave, Boccanegra addresses his Council on another matter. He has received a letter from the poet Petrarch urging that Venice be left in Peace. Paolo immediately shouts that Petrarch should stick to his verses and keep his nose out of politics. The councillors call for war on Venice. Bocanegra tries to convince them thet both Adriatic and Ligurian coasts are part of one homeland: Italy. The councillors reply that Genoa is their fatherland. The debate is interrupted by the noise of a rioting mob outside. Looking out the window, the Doge sees Adorno fighting an angry crowd. Pietro quietly suggests to Paolo that he flee, but Boccanegra, who has been watching Paolo orders all doors to be guarded. "Anyone who attempts to leave is a traitor", he says. The crowd outside is heard crying "death to the patricians’, and even "death to the Doge.” Soon the crowd bursts into the chamber, Gabriele ‘Adorno and Fiesco among them. Gabriele announces he has killed Lorenzino (a character who doesn't appear in the opera, but who is mentioned several times, once at the beginning by the subtitle of "Iusuriere" (the usurer), most probably a Jewish moneylender) who was attempting to kidnap Amelia. Before he died Lorenzino said that "he was in the service of a man of great power". When Simon asks Gabriele the name of this man, Gabriele replies that Lorenzino had died before he could reveal it, but implies that in his opinion it was the Doge himself. He raises his sword against Bocanegra but Amelia, entering suddenly, steps between the two men, Begging Boccanegra to forgive Gabriele she tells of how she was seized by three toughs and carried off to Lorenzino's house. She says she knows who was behind the plot. She is about to denounce Paolo when the patricians swear it must have been a plebeian and the plebeians swear it must have been a patrician. A fight now sooms imminent and Bocanegra intervenes with an appeal to reason. He makes an impassioned appeal for peace and brotherly friendship between factions and his words have en immediate effect. Gabriele gives himself up, and he and Fiesco are lead away as prisoners. Turning to Paolo, the Doge pretends he is unaware of the culprit's identity and commands him to join in uttering a curse on whoever the guilty party might be. The terrified Paolo has no choice but to obey and thus curse himself. He rushes off from the council chamber in terror.90 ACT A private apartment in the Doge's palace Determined to seek revenge on Boccanegra, Paolo empties a phial of poison into a jug of water in the Doge's apartment in the palace. In order to make doubly sure of Boccanegre’s death, he has Fiesco and Gabriele brought in from prison. He first attemps to bribe Fiesco into assassinating the Doge while he is asleep. The old man refuses such a dastardly act. He then dismisses Fiesco and tries other tactics with Gabriele, telling him that Amelia is the Doge's mistress, Left alone, Gabriele mulls over this latest bit of news and when Amolia enters he accuses her. Unable to divulge the real truth, Amelia merely says she loves Boccanegra but is true to Gabriele. The Doge is heard approaching and Gabriele vows to kill him. Amelia confesses to her father that she loves Gabriele, which appalls the Dogo, as the young man's name hed just appeared on a list of those trying to kill him. When Amelia convinces him of the depth of her love, Boccanegra agrees to try to find a way to pardon Gabriele. He now asks his daughter to leave, for he has work to do. Fearing that if she leaves Gabriele will return to kill her father, Amelia tries to refuse but he insists. Loft alone, he drinks some of the poisoned water and comments thet even spring water tastes bitter to him. He sits at his desk but is overcome by sleep. Gabriele re-enters and is about to stab him when Amelia reappears. The Doge awakens and accuses Gabriele of robbing him of his one treasure, his daughter. Astonished, Gabriele drops his daggr and begs Amelia to forgive him, which the Doge does as well. A commotion is heard outside, signalling the beginning of the patrician uprising. Boccanegra tells Gabriele he is free to join his friends, but the latter refuses to fight against the Doge. Instead he offers his services as a messenger of peace. In return, Bocanegra gives his consent to his marriage to Amelia. ACT I Another hall in the Doge's palace The plebeians have defeated the patricians and cries of "Long live the Doge" can be heard. Fiesco is released from prison and given back his sword by the Captain of the Archers. Under guard, Paolo enters on his way to be executed for having fought on the side of the rebels. He tells Fiesco as a parting shot that although Bocanegra has condemned him to die, he himself has condemned Simon to death by poisoning. Fiesco hides as he hears the Doge approaching. ‘AHerald announces that as a sign of respect for those who had died in the fighting, the city's lights are to be extinguished. Bocanegra enters walking unsteadily; the poison having begun to take its dire effect. Looking out to sea, he nostalgically recalls his sea-faring days. When Fiesco confronts him, he at first fails to recognize his old enemy but soon is overjoyed. At last he can give Fiesco his granddaughter, telling him who she really is and asking for the old man's forgiveness. The contrite Fiesco wars Simon that he is dying from poisoning. Amelia and Gabriele enter and Simon tells her daughter that the man she knew as Andrea is really her own grandfather. He blesses the newly married couple, names Gabriele as his successor, and dies with his daughter's name on his lips.91 AN HISTORICAL NOTE ‘The reader is advised to read some of the historical footnotes in the I DUE FOSCARI translation of this series, which will shed important light on the historically important details of the Venice-Genoa rivalries. To better understand the complicated plot of Simone Boccanegra, | take pleasure in quoting in its entirety (with his kind permission), a chapter from the highly informative book by that eminent historian and opera lover George Jellinek, "History Through the Opera Glass.” “Like Venice, Genoa became a great commercial power through its sea trade with the Byzantine empire, though its strength was frequently undermined by fratricidal wars with Venice and Pisa after the twelfth century. ‘There were civil fouds too, between the aristocracy - the families Spinola, Doria, Fieschi, Grimaidi - and people of humbler origins. As the wealth of the population increased the populists were able to attain a measure of solf-rule and keep aristocratic excesses in check. One of their leaders, Guglielmo Bocanegra, actually governed the city council as "primo capitano’ from 1257 to 1262. But he was unable to curb the power of the nobility, chose exile, and Genoa continued its ancient struggles: noblos against plebeians, Guelphs (Fieschi and Grimaldi) against Ghibellines (Spinola and Doria), brother against brother. ‘The rule of the noble families continued well into the fourteenth century, but Genoa rarely enjoyed intemal peace. Eventually widespread discontent exploded into an uprising in 1339. It drove the patricians from power and created a new head of state with wide authority and the title of "doge’, following the Venetian model. It was specifically mandated that no one of noble birth could carry that high office. The first doge of the new Genoese Republic was Simone, nephew of Guglielmo Boccanegra. He was a reputable citizen and not a corsaro (buccaneer) as he is often referred to in the opera. It was actually his brother Egidio, who chose the sea for his career and distinguished himself in several sea battles against the pirates who threatened Genoa's commercial lifeline. Staying clear of the city's internal politics, Egidio Bocanegra eventually lent his services to Alfonso XI King of Castille, became an admiral of Spain and presumably died of natural causes. Not, alas, his brother Simone, the tragic hero of our opera. He ruled wisely and managed to curb excessive agitation on both sides while maintaining the city's defenses against her enemies. Nonothelsss, the nobles remained hostile to his rule, forcing Simone to relinquish his power in 1344 and to go into exile. Genoa soon found itself embroiled in wars against Venice and against the Turks - adventures that were draining the city's resources. Always devoted to causes of Italian unity, the poet Petrarch appealed to Doge Andrea Dandolo of Venice in 1351, calling for a cessation of hostilities. A year later he turned to the Genoese with a similar appeal, to no effect. In 1356, finally, Simone was returned to power. This time he resolved to use stronger measures against his enemies, all the while successfully containing the Visconti forces of Milan, who had been threatening the Ligurian coastline. Nonetheless, Boccanegra's enemies could not tolerate his rule. At an opportune moment - a banquet to honor a royal visitor - they poisoned him. On March 14, 1363, the doge died a slow death while his enemies gloated over his agonies. For all its faithfulness to the spirit of history, the Piave-Boito libretto had to be condensed to capture three turbulent decades of Genoese politics within the limitations of a three-hour opera. This, of course, necessitated several departures from historical fact. Combining the two Bocanegra brothers into one operatic character had already been acomplished by the Spanish playwright Antonio Garcfa Gutiérrez, whoso drama was the source for the libretto. To tighten the action, the opera simply ignores the two separate periods in the doge's reign. Petrarch’s appeal, which actually reached the Genoese during Boccanegra's exile, is read in the Council Chamber scene in the opera by the doge himself - an effective dramatic coup that creates a great emotional effect.92 Verdi's own love of the Ligurian coast enriches his music with several felicitous maritime allusions. The orchestral prelude to Act I is a musical seascape of shimmering delicacy. And in the final act, Boccanegra, already weakened by the deadly poison, longingly recalls his youthful adventures and wishes that he had found death in the sea's friendly bosom." As for Jacopo Fiesco, the exiled Grimaldi brothers and Gabriele Adorno - they are all historical characters logically and convincingly placed into the opera's action. Two footnotes may be added to the operatic events: Gabriele Adorno, who indeed succeeded Boccanegra, turned out to be a weak ruler and was forced to resign in 1370. Happier circumstances attended the family of his wife, Amelia Grimaldi. By the fourteenth century the Grimaldis were established as rulers of the tiny principality of Monaco. We have Boito's word for it (in La Gioconda) that their 17th century descendant Enzo Grimaldo was a most unwelcome visitor to Venice. But the family continued to rule Monaco in a luxuriant manner far beyond territorial modesty: today's Prince Rainier is a Grimaldi.”Simon Boccanegra, Prologue 93 PROLOGUE ‘A square in Genoa (in the background the church of San Lorenzo is seen. To one side is the palace of the Fieschi with a large balcony. In a niche on the wall is an image of the Virgin, in front of which burns a lamp. There are other houses on the other sides. Several streets lead to the square. It is night. Paolo and Pietro are in the middle of a conversation.) alionor ‘di ‘primo abate lorentsin —_luzujere Allonor — di_—primoabate Lorenzin _—'usuriere? What did you say? To the honor of first abbot’ Lorenzin? _ the usurer? (What did you say? Elect the usurer Lorenzin as Doge?) PIETRO ‘altro proponi ‘ui piu ‘denno Altro proponi = di_—s Iui_—pid)_—_degno! Another propose —than he —‘more_ worthy! (Then propose another candidate, worthier than he!) PAOLO ‘il ‘prode ke da ‘nostri_'mari katitfava ——_lafrikan pirata 1 prode che da’ nostri mari cacciava—'african _pirata, The braveman who from our seas routed the African pirate(s), e€ al tigure vessitlo 'reze rinsmantsa altera e a@l_ igure vessillo reso Finomenza _altera. and tothe Ligurian _ flag restored itsancient —_ glory proud. (The brave man who routed the African pirates from our seas and restored to the Ligurian’ flag its ancient proud glory.) *Primo abate literally means “first abbott’, It is just an expression meaning "principal leader", and, by extension, Doge. It does not imply that a person being considered for the position of Doge had to have ecclesiastical orders. The very word abate, derived from old Latin abbate is of an Aramaic etymology which has given modern Hebrew its word for "father", abba So we are talking about a father-like figure and, by extension a “father-of-the-country” connotation, like a Doge. The very word abbott, connotes a superior ecclesiastical figure, in charge of the lower order priests (or fathers), who aro themselves leaders in their congregations. *Lorenzin (or Lorenzino) never appears in the opera, but he is mentioned several other times, and later in connection with Amelia's abduction. It is important to know the bodies of water surrounding Genoa. In general terms, Italy is flanked on its eastern side by the Adriatic sea (where Venice is located - later on, in the Council Chamber scone, Simon will make his stirring appeal that Adria and Liguria be brothren and not engage in fratricidal wars) and on its western side by the Tyrhenian sea. The Ligurian shore, where Genoa is situated is at the northern extremes of the Tyrrhenian sea and is bathed by what was called the Ligurian sea. At this time in Italian history, the country was not as yet unified and that region where Genoa is located was called Liguria, and it had its Ligurian flag.94 Simon Boccanegra, Prologue PIETRO intezi e ‘il ‘premjo Intesi... e il_—_premio? Tunderstan and my reward? PAOLO ‘oro po'ssantza —‘onore Oro, possanza, —_onore. Gold, power, honor. PIETRO ‘vendo a ‘tal ‘pretiiso. ‘il popollar fa'vore Vendo a tal prezzo il popolar —favore. TM sell at sucha price the people's favor. (They clasp hands and Pietro leaves.) PAOLO (raising his voice a bit) abborriti —_pattrittsi ‘alle ‘ime ‘ove alberga ‘il vostro. orgokko Abborniti _patrizi, alle cime ove alberga il vostro _—_orgoglio, Abhored —_patricians, to the heights where dwells your pride, dispretisato _ple’beo salire ‘io ‘vokko disprezzato _plebeo, saliro io —_voglio. despised plebeian climb I wish. (Abhored patricians! I, a despised plebeian wish to climb to the heights where your pride dwells.) SIMONE (entering hurriedly) ‘un am'ples:so_ ‘ke a’v:ven:ne che avvenne? what has happened? ‘da sa'vona perke ‘kkwi mapppe'llasti Da Savona perch’ qui m’appellasti? From Savona why here you called me? (Why did you call me here from Savona?) PAOLO (mysteriously) Iba elet:to ‘esisere “vwoi ‘nwovo a’bate Alleba —_—_eletto essere vuoi nuovo abate? Atdawn lected be do you wish new abbott? (Do you want to be elected as the new Doge! at dawn?) “The title "Doge" comes from the Latin dux meaning "leader". It gives us the Italian Doge, Duca, (Duke) duce (meaning "leader", the title Mussolini gave himself during Italy's fascist regime in the 30's), and conducere, "to lead", among others. It also gives us the English words "Duke" and “conductor’, either a musical one, a trolley or subway one or an electrical wire that conducts electricity through it.Simon Boccanegra, Prologue 95 SIMONE ‘io no Io? No. No. PAOLO ‘ti tenta dukal korona Ti tenta ducal corona? Does it tempt you, (the) Doge's crown? SIMONE vaned:d3i Vaneggi? Are you raving? PAOLO e maria E Maria? And Maria? inmotfente ‘del_furnesto amor ‘mio innocente del _—_funesto amor mio! Oh victim innocent of the fatal love mine! (Oh, innocent victim of my fatal love!) ‘dim:mi ‘di Tei ke sai ‘le favelHlasti Dim di lei cho sai? Le favellasti? Tellme, of ‘her what do you know? Did you speak to her? PAOLO (pointing to the palace of the Fieschi) pridgonjera ‘dseme ‘in kwella ma‘dson Prigioniera geme in quella magion. (A) prisoner, she moans in that dwelling. {She languishes, moaning, as a prisoner in that dwelling.) SIMONE matia Mari PAOLO ne'garla ‘al ‘dodge ‘ki —potria Negarla al Doge chi __potria? To deny her tothe Doge who could? (Who could deny her to the Doge?) SIMONE ‘mizera Misera! Poor girl!96 Simon Bocanegra, Prologue PAOLO a'sisenti ‘Assenti? Do you assent? SIMONE ‘paolo Paolo... PAOLO ‘tutto dis'pozi e ‘sol ti'kjegigo Tutto disposi... © sol_ ti chieggo Everything Ihave arranged... and only [ask of you ‘parte ‘ai periAsi e ‘alla posisantsa parte ai perigli e alla Possanza, (tobea) part to your perils and to your power. (U have arranged everything... only ask to share in your perils and your power.) SIMONE ‘sia Sia... So be it... PAOLO ‘im vitae | im ‘monte In vitae in morte? In life and in death? SIMONE ‘sia Sia, So be it. PAOLO Sa'pipresisa_ alkun taskondi S'appressa _alcun... Trascondi... Iscoming someone... Hide yourself... ‘per ‘poko aykor misters ‘ne tfirkondi Per poco _ancor, mistero ne circondi, For the while still, mystery _ should surround us. (Let us keep this under our hats for the while.) (Simone goes away. Paolo stands aside, in the dark, in the shadows of the Fieschi palace. Sailors and workmen enter, led by Pietro.) ‘tutti ‘kwiverrrete tutti qui verrete? all of you here _will come?Simon Boccanogra, Prologue 97 CHORUS ‘tutti Tutti. All of us. PIETRO ‘njun ‘pei patrittsi Niun pei 2 No one for the (No one (will vote for) the patricians?) CHORUS ‘njuno a lorentsino ‘tutti ‘il ‘Voto da'rem Niuno. A Lorenzino tutti il voto darem. Noone. To _Lorenzino allofus the —_vote_will give. (No one. We will all vote for Lorenzino.) PIETRO veniduto © ai heski Venduto 8 ai_Fieschi. Sold heis tothe Fieschi (He has sold himself to the (patrician family of the) Fieschi.) CHORUS ‘dunkwe ‘ki ia leletto Dunque, chi_ fia Yeletto? Then, who should be the elected one? (Then whom should we elect?) PIETRO ‘um ‘prode Un __prode. A brave man. CHORUS ‘si Yes. PIETRO ‘um popolan Un _popolan. A man of the people. i nostri ‘sai ‘wom, i nostri sai Yuom? ourmen know you _the man? SHe is talking about one of the patrician families of Genoa, the Fieschi, of which Fiesco (the bass from whom we will soon hear) is a member.98 Simon Bocanegra, Prologue PIETRO ‘si Si. ‘Yes. CHORUS € ki ri'swoni ‘il ‘nome ‘suo E chi? Risuoni il nome suo. And who? Letitbeheard the namo his. (And who? Let his name be heard.) PAOLO (advancing) simone bok:kainegra Simone Boccanegra. CHORUS AND PIETRO simone ‘il korsar Simone, il corsar? Simone, the corsair? PAOLO ‘si il korsaro. aldalts ‘skran:no Si... il corsaro all'alto scranno... Yes... the corsair to the high chair of office... CHORUS e ‘kwi E qui? Ishe here? PAOLO vera Verra. He will come. CHORUS e i EB i And the PAOLO tatfe'ranno Taceranno. They will keep quiet. (Ho beckons them all around him. Then, pointing to the Fieschi palace, says mysteriously:) ‘Tatra ma‘dgon vedete ‘de ‘fieski e ‘lempjo ostel:lo Letra magion vedete? De Fieschi & Tempio ostello, The gloomy dwelling do you see?_Of the Fieschi itis the wicked abode,Simon Bocanegra, Prologue ‘una belta imfelitfe “dgeme sepolta in ‘kwello una belt infelice geme sepolta in quello; a beautiful girl unhappy moans. buried in it; ‘sono i la'menti ‘swoi ‘la ‘sola ‘votfe u'mana Sono ilamenti suoi_la sola voce umana Are thelaments hers the sole voice human ‘ke riswo'nar saskolta ne‘:lampja ‘tomba arkana che risuonar s'ascolta nell'ampia —_tomba arcana. that resounding one hears in that vast tomb mysterious. (Her laments are the only human voice one can hear coming from that vast mysterious tomb.) CHORUS AND PIETRO ‘ga ‘volgono ‘we ‘lune ‘ke la_—dgentil sembjantsa Gia volgono = tre-_—Ss lune che la —gentil sombianza Already passed three moons that her sweet face ‘non rallegro i vetroni ‘della romita ‘stants non ° i ——veroni della romita stanza. hasn't gladdened the balconies _of that, lonely room. pasando ‘omni pjetozo imjvan mirar devia Passando ogni _pietoso in van mirar desia When passing every pitying man in vain to see wishes Ja ‘bella pridsonjera ta mizera matia la bella prigioniera, la —misera Maria. the lovely prisoner, the unfortunate Maria. PAOLO ‘si'skjudon —‘kwelde ‘porte ‘solo ‘al —patrittsjo.—altero Sischiudon quelle porte solo al altero, ‘Are opened those doors only tothe patrician _ proud, (Those doors are only opened to the proud patrician (Fiesco),) ‘ke adante ‘si ravvoldge nel:lombre ‘del mistero che ad arte i ravvolge nell'ombre del mistero. who deliberately wraps himself inthe shadows of_—smystery. ‘ma vedi ‘in ‘notte ‘kupa ‘per Te devene ‘sale Ma vedi in notte cupa per le —_deserte sale But Isaw at night dark through the deserted halls evar sinistra ‘vampa ‘kwal ‘da imfernale errar sinistra vampa, qual d'anim: infornele. wander (a) _ sinister flame, asif ofaspirit from hell. CHORUS AND PIETRO e ‘vero 9 ‘Yfelo ‘gran E vero... Oh __cielol. Gran Dio! It’s true... Oh heaven! Great God!100 Simon Bocanegra, Prologue ‘par ‘lantro ‘de fantazmi ° Per Yantro de fantasmi! Oh Itseoms — thecave _—of the ghosts! Oh PAOLO gwardate Guardate. Look. ‘kwal orzor qual orror! what horror! (The reflection of a lamp is seen coming from the Fieschi palace.) ‘la feral ‘vampa a'p:pare La feral _vampa appare... The fatal flame appears... CHORUS AND PIETRO 9 tfel Oh ciel! Oh heaven! PAOLO val:lontainate ‘si katstfino i demoni Viallontanate. Si caccino i demoni Go away from here. Let's driveaway the demons CHORUS AND PIETRO Si caccino i demoni col segno della croce... PAOLO alilalba Allalba. At dawn, CHORUS AND PIETRO ‘wi Qui. Here. PAOLO simone Simone. CHORUS AND PIETRO simone aduna ‘votfe Simone ad una voce. Simone with one voice. ‘kol ‘senno ‘della ‘krotfe col segno della croc with the sign of the cross.. (We will all proclaim the name Simone as if with one voice.) (They all leave. Fiesco comes out of his palace.)Simon Boccanegra, Prologue 101 FIESCO atte —_estremo patladso alters A te _Testremo palagio altero, To you my last palace proud, se'polkro del:land3slo ‘mio ‘ne a proted:dgerti ‘valsi sepolcro _—dell'angiolo mio! nda proteggorti —valsi! grave of the angel mine! Nor to protect you was I able to! 2 maletdetto © ‘wile sedutttore Oh — maledetto! oh vile seduttore! Oh accursed one! ch vile seducer! (Turning to the image of the Virgin.) soffristi soffristi, didst Thou suffer, © tu ‘verdsin E tu, Vergin, And Thou, Virgin, rapita a ‘ei ‘la verdinal _ko'rona rapita a leila verginal corona? stolen from her her virginal crown? (And Thou, Virgin, didst suffer her crown of virginity to be stolen from her?) a ‘ke i a ‘mi perdona Ah! che dissi ah, mi perdona! ‘Ah! What have I said?... Ab, forgive me! ‘il latfe'rato spirito ‘del ‘mesto dgenitore 1 —lacerato —spirito del mesto genitore The torn spirit of the sad father ‘era serbato a ‘strattsjo dinjfamja = ‘di “ddolore era serbato a strazio dinfamia e di_ dolore. has been —_—kept for torment of infamy and of _—_ grief. ‘il ‘serto a ‘tei ‘de 'martiri pjetoz0 ‘il ‘tfelo ‘dje Tserto a = lei_—Ssde!—smartiri pietoso il cielo die... The crown to her of the martyrs pitying heaven gave her... (Pitying heaven bestowed upon her the crown of martyrs...) ‘reza ‘al fulgor de'Kandgeli_‘prega ma'ria ‘per ‘me Resa al fulgor dogl'angeli, prea, Maria, per me. Restored tothe radiance _—of the angels, pray, Maria, for me. WOMEN (offstage) e ‘morta a ei ‘sapron We sfere E morta! A lei ‘apron le sfere! She is dead! To her areopened the spheres!102 Simon Bocanegra, Prologue ‘mai ‘pju ‘la ve'dremo: ‘in ‘terra Mai pid la vedremo in terra! Never again will we see her on earth! MEN (offstage) mize'ere Miserere! (Several people come out of the Fieschi palace and sadly cross the square, going off.) SIMONE (returning exultantly) ‘swona ‘onpi ‘lab:bro ‘il 'mio ‘nome o ma'ria ‘forse ‘im ‘breve Suona ogni labbro il mio nome. O Maria, _ forse in breve Sounds every lip my name. Oh Maria, maybe soon potrai ‘dirmi ‘tus “spozo potrai dirmi tuo sposol... youll beable to call me your husbend!... alkum ‘veggo ‘ki fia Alcun voggol.. Chi fia’ Someone _I see! Who can it be? (He sees Fiesco.) FIESCO simon Simon? SIMONE ‘uw Tu. You. FIESCO ‘kwal ‘tfeko ‘fato a oltrad:dgarmi ‘ti tra'ea Qual cieco fato a oltraggiarmi ti traea?... What blind fate to insultme —_ brought you?... ‘sul tus ‘kapo io ‘kwi__kje'dea ‘ira ‘vinditfe ‘del ‘fel Sul tuo capo io qui chiedea —iira vindice del ciel. On your head I here askedfor the wrath avenging —_—_of Heaven. SIMONE ‘padre ‘mio pjetade imploro supsplikevole a woi pedi Padre mio, pietade imploro _supplichevole a tuoi_piedi. Father mine, mercy Ibeg for _supplicatingly at your feet... °Padre in this case does not imply that Fiesco is Simone's father. It is merely a title of respect, considering Fiesco’s seniority, and also that he is the father of his beloved Maria.Simon Bocanegra, Prologue 103 ‘il perdono a ‘me kon'tfedi perdono a me __concodi. Forgiveness to me concede. (Grant me forgiveness.) FIESCO ‘tardi e omai Tardi omai, Toolate itis now. SIMONE ‘non ‘si krudel sublimammi a tei spe'rai Non sii crudel. Sublimarmi a lei sperai Don't be cruel. To elevate myself to her (level) ‘I hoped ‘sovra ‘Ilali ‘della ‘glorja stratppai——‘serti ‘alla vittorja sovra I'ali della glori strappai —_sorti alla vittoria on thewings of _ glory, Isnatched wreaths of-_victory ‘per laltare del:la'mor per 'altare dell'amor. for thealtar of love. (Don't be cruel. I had hoped to raise myself to her level on the wings of glory by snatching wreaths of victory for the altar of love.) FIESCO (coldly) ‘io fea‘plauzo al tuo vallore ‘ma ‘le oftfeze ‘nom perdono To feaplauso all tuo valore ma leoffese _non perdono... I applauded your valor but the offenses _I don't forgive... ‘te vedes: a'ffezo ‘in trono. Te vedessi asceso in trono.., IfTever saw you elevated —_—to the throne... SIMONE ‘tatfi Tacit Bo silent! FIESCO ‘senno ‘mio e — allanatema di ‘ddio. Segno mio e all'andtema di Dio Atarget of thehate mine and ofthecurse of God © di ‘fjesko lofifen'sor & — di_Fiesco l'offensor. is of __ Fiesco the offender. (The offender of Fiesco shall be the target for my hate and for the curse of God.) SIMONE ‘patfe Pace. Peace.104 Simon Boccanogra, Prologue FIESCO ‘no ‘patfe ‘nom fora ‘se. ‘pria. sun ‘di. noi ‘nom ‘mora No! Pace nonfora se pra un di -—noi_ non mora. No! Peace can never be unless first one of us doesn't die. (No! There cannot be peace unless one of us dies.) SIMONE "vwoi ‘kol ‘sangwe ‘mio plakarti Vuoi col sangue mio _ placarti? Do you wish withthe blood mine appease yourself? (Do you wish to appease yourself with my blood?) (He bares his breast.) ‘wi feriffi Qui ferisci... Here wound. (Strike me here!) FIESCO (drawing back proudly) asisasisinarti Assassinerti? Murder you? SIMONE ‘si mutstfidi e almen sepolta ‘fia ‘kom me tantica Si, mluccidi, @ —almen sepolta fia con me tantira. Yes, kill me, and at least buried be with me — such wrath. (Yes, kill me, and may thus your great wrath be buried with me.) FIESCO askolta ‘se kon'tfedermi vorrai lotfente —_zventu'rata Ascolta; Se —_concedermi vorrai Tinnocente sventurata Listen: If give up to me you want the innocent luckless girl ‘ke natffea dimpuro amor che nascea dimpuro amor, who wasborn of your impure —_love, ‘ke aykor ‘non ‘la mirai che ancor non la mirai, L who still haven't seen her, ‘dguro ‘renderla be'ata € ‘wu a'vrai perdono atilor giuro renderla beatae = tu—avrai perdono _allor. swearto makeher happy and you shall have forgiveness _ then. SIMONE ‘nol po's:sio Nol poss‘io! I cannot!‘Simon Bocanegra, Prologue 105 FIESCO perke Perch? Why? SIMONE rubella ‘sorte ‘lei ra Rubella sorte ‘lei raph... Hostile fate her stole away... FIESCO fa'vel:la Favoll Speak. SIMONE ‘del mar ‘sul ‘ido ‘fra ‘dsente astile Del mer sul ido fra gente ostile Of the sea on the shore among people hostile kre'fJea nel:lombra ‘kwella dsenttile crescea nell'ombra quella gentile; grew up _in the shadow that sweet (child); (That sweet child grew up in hiding on the seashore among hostile people;) kre'ffea Ionitana dakhokiki —‘mijei Crescea lontana~—dagli occhi_—_ miei, She grew up far from the eyes mine, ve'kkava a'n:noza ‘donna ‘su ‘lei vogliava _annosa donna su lei. watched aged women over _her. (She grew up far from my eyes, an aged woman watching over her.) ‘di'‘la ‘una ‘notte varkando ‘solo Dila una notte varcando solo. Over there one night sailing alone ‘nave ‘ffezi a kwel_‘swolo dalla mia nave scesi a quel_suolo. from my ship I disembarked on that soil. ‘korsi ‘alla ‘kaza ‘nera ‘la ‘porta. se'rrata ‘muta Corsi alla casa... n'era la porta _ serrata, muta! Tran tothe house.. of it was the door bolted, silent! FIESCO ‘la ‘donna La donna? The woman?106 Simon Bocanegra, Prologue SIMONE ‘morta Morta, Dead. FIESCO e ‘la tua ‘fidKe E latua figli And your daughter? SIMONE ‘mizera ‘tista ‘tre ‘dsomi ‘pjanse ‘we ‘dsomi erro Misora, trista, tre giomi pianso, tre giomi err. Wretched, sad, three days she wept, three days she wandered. skom'parve ‘poffa ‘ne ‘fu 'pju ‘wista Scomparve poscia nd fu pia vista, She disappeared afterwards, not wasshe © any more _ soon. dallora indamo terkata ‘io tbo Dallora -indamo —_—cercata io Tho. Since then in vain looked for I have her. (Since then I have looked for her in vain.) FIESCO ‘se ‘il'mio dezir kom'pjer ‘nom 'pwoi Se _ilmio desir compier _non puci, i my wish grant you cannot, ‘patfe ‘nom pwote ‘esiser tra ‘noi atddio Pace non puote esser tra noi! Addio, Peace cannot be between ~—us!_—-Farewell, (He turns his back on him.) SIMONE kol:lamor ‘mio satpro ppla‘karti Coll'amor mio saprd placarti; With the love mine I will know how to placate you. FIESCO (coldly, without looking at him.) ‘no No. No. SIMONE ‘modi Modi. Hear me out. simone ‘modi Modi. Hear me.Simon Boccanegra, Prologue 107 FIESCO ad:dio Addio. Farewell. (He moves away, then stops to watch, unseen by Simone.) SIMONE 2 ‘de fjeski implakata ‘onda ‘rat:tsa Oh de’ Fieschi implacata, —orrida razza! Oh, of the Fieschi implacable, horrid race! (Oh, horrid, implacable race of Fieschi!) e ‘fra kotesti ‘ret:tili na'ffea E fra cotesti retti nascea And among these reptiles was born velderla ‘vokko ko'rad:dso Vederla voglio. coraggio! To see her I wish. courage! (Ho goes to the door of the palace and knocks three times.) ‘mae la_—smadgon ‘de ‘fheski Muta @ = la_—smagion de Fieschi’ Silent is the house of the Fieschi? diskjuze ‘son ‘le ‘kwale mister entrjam Dischiuse son le quale mistero!... _entriam. Opened are the what mystery!... Let me enter. (He goes into the palace.) FIESCO tinoltra e —‘strindsi “dselida ‘salma Tinoltra =e _stringi gelida salma. Goin and embrace (an) icy corpse. SIMONE (appearing on the balcony) nessuno—‘kwi ‘sempre silentsjo e—tenebra Nessuno! qui sompre silenzio @ ~—_tenebral Noone! Here always silence and — darkness! (He unhooks the small lamp hanging near the Virgin's image and goes in. A moment later his cry is heard.) matia Maria! FIESCO ‘lora swond ‘del ‘tuo kasttigo Lora suond del tuo castigo. The hour has sounded of your punishment...108 Simon Boccanegra, Prologue SIMONE (coming out of the palace) & —— ‘ssonno ‘si. spaventozo —_attrotfe ‘sonno ‘il ‘mio z sogno! Si; spaventoso, atroce sogno il mio! Its adream! Yes, frightful, atrocious. dream mine! VOICES (from far off) bok:katnegra Boccanegra! ‘SIMONE ‘kwai ‘votfi Quai voci! What voices! (What are those voices!) VOICES (nearer) bok:kanegra Boccanegra! SIMONE ‘ek dimfems © kwesto Eco dinfemo 8 questo! Anecho of hell is this! (Paolo and Pietro enter hurriedly, followed by sailors and workmen.) PAOLO AND PIETRO ‘dodge il ‘popol takcklama Doge il —_popol tacclama! Doge the people acclaim you! (The people are acclaiming you as Doge!) SIMONE fia fantazmi Via, fantasmi! Away, phantoms! PAOLO AND PIETRO ‘ke dit Che di tu? What say you? SIMONE ‘paolo ‘una 'tomba Paolo! una tomba... Paolo! a tomb... PAOLO ‘un trono Un —trono! A throne!Simon Boccanegra, Prologue 109 FIESCO (to himself) ‘dodge simon ‘marde linjfemo ‘im petito Doge Simoi Marde Yinfemo in _petto! Doge Simone It burns in me hell in my breast! (Simon the Doge?...All hell burns in my breast!) CHORUS ‘viva simon ‘del ‘popolo leletto Viva Simon, del —_popolo Veletto! Longlive Simone, _of the people the elected one! (Torches are raised, bells ring wildly...drums, etc. and amid shouts of "Long live Simon’, the curtain falls.) END OF PROLOGUE110 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ACTI Scene One ‘The garden of the Grimaldi, outside Genoa (The palace is to the left. The Ligurian sea can be seen on the other side. Dawn is breaking.) AMELIA (Looking towards the seq) ‘kome ‘in kwestora ‘bruna so’ ‘Kastri e ‘il “mare Come in questora buna sorridono _ gli astri e il mare! How in thishour dark aresmiling thestars © and the seal ‘kome ssuniffe o ‘tuna alilonda ‘il tuo kjaror Come stunisce oo luna, allonda il tuo chiaror! How itmerges, oh moon, with the water your brightness! (How your brightness, oh moon, merges with the water!) amante amplesso ‘pare. ‘di ‘due_—_virginei ‘kor Amante amplesso pare. di due _virginei cor! Loving embrace —itseems = of_-~—two_—virginal hearts!" ‘ma “Kastri e ‘la marina Ma gli astri e la marina But thestars and the sea, ‘ke ‘dikono ‘alla ‘mente del:lorfana meskina che — dicono alla mente dell'orfana moschina? what say they to the mind of the orphaned girl wretched? (But what do the stars and the sea say to the mind of that wretched orphaned girl?) ‘la ‘notte ‘tra krudel ‘kwando ‘la pia morente La notte atra, crudel, quando la pi morente The night dark, cruel, when the pious women dying sklamo ‘ti ‘gwardi sclamd: ti guardi exclaimed: "May it keep you, (That dark cruel night when the dying pious woman exclaimed: "May heaven keep you.") ° alters ostel so'd:dgomo ‘di ‘stirpe ankor ‘pju altera O —altero ostel, soggiomo di __stirpe ancor pit _altera, Oh proud abode, home of (a) race even more proud, ‘i ‘tettto diza'domo ‘non obli ‘per te il tetto disadomo non obliai_ per __ te! my roof humble Tdidn't forget for you! ‘A note for the absolute neophyte: The words for "heart" are cuore, core or simply cor in its apocopated form. However, it can also mean "hearts", as above. We know it is a plural poetic form because it is preceded by due, meaning "two’. That's how we know it is "two hearts’.Simon Boccanegra, Act I 111 ‘solo ‘in © 'tua_—‘pompa austera amor sotrride a ‘me Solo in tua pompa austera amor sorride a me Only in your pomp austere (does) love smile on me. sinalba ‘l'yfel ‘ma —_lamorozo ‘kanto ‘non 'sode aykora Sjinalba il cil ma T'amoroso canto nons‘ode _ ancora! Itdawns the sky _—but__ the loving song _isn'theard —_yet! (Dawn breaks in the sky but my lover's song is not yet heard!) ‘ei mi texdse ‘omni. ‘di ‘kome_Mlauirora Ei mi terge ogni di, come T'aurora He wipes from me every dey, as the dawn ‘Ya n'dgada ‘dei ‘fjor ‘del ‘tfikKo il ‘pjanto Ia rugiada «dei fior, del ciglio il _pianto. the dew from the flowers, frommy —eyes_ the _ tears. (Just as dawn wipes the dew from flowers, so does he wipe the tears from my eyes every day.) GABRIELE (his voice is heard from offstage as if in the distance) Yfelo ‘di ‘stelle. orbato ‘di for vedovo ‘prato Ciclo di stelle orbato, di fior vedovo? _prato, Sky of stars deprived, of + flowers bereft field, e ‘alma ‘sentsa_ amor @ — Yalma senza amor. is thesoul — without ~—_love. (A soul without love is like a sky deprived of stars or a field bereft of flowers.) ‘AMELIA. ‘tfel ‘la'sua ‘votfe © ‘desso ‘ei © savivitfina 9 ‘dgoja Ciel! lasua voce! E — desso! ei_~—s'avvicina!_ oh! _—_gioia! Heaven! His voice! Is he! He approaches! Oh joy! GABRIELE (still from offstage but sounding nearer) ‘se ‘manka ‘un ‘kor ke ‘tama Se manca un cor che tama, If therelacks a heart that loves you, nomempjono ‘tua —‘brama ‘oro posisantsa. = ono non empiono tua brama oro, possanzs, —_onor. won't satisfy your longing gold, power, (or) honors. (Without a heart to love you, neither riches, power nor honors can satisfy your longing.) 2A case of the normal stress being displaced in favor of a musical accent: The word is vedovo, but the musical line has shifted the stress to the second syllable thus: vedavo. My phonetic transcription reflects the change in stress.112 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ‘AMELIA ‘ei ‘jen lamor ma'v:vampa ‘in'sen —_ ‘spetitsa lan'sante ‘kor Eivien! amor m'avvampa in sen © spezza Tensante cor! Hecomes! Love burns in my heart and bursts thebonds —_ my yearning heart! (He's coming! My yearning heart burns with love and bursts its bonds!) GABRIELE (on stage) ‘anima ‘mia ‘Anima mia! My soul! (Beloved!) ‘AMELIA perke ‘ssi tardi“dgundsi Percha si tardi_giungi? Why so late do you arrive? GABRIELE perdona ——o'kkara ‘i ungi indudsi Pordona, ocara... -‘Ilunghi_—_indugi Forgive me, ohdear.. thelong —_ delays. talp:prestano grandetitsa tapprestano grandezza... will bring you ‘greatness. AMELIA. pa'vento Pavento.. Tm afraic GABRIELE ‘ke Che? What? AMELIA larkano ‘tuo Larcano tuo The secret yours I learned. a ‘me ‘il se'polkro appresti a me il _—sepolcro. —_appresti, for me the grave you prepare, ‘il patibolo a te il patibolo = a_— tel the scaffold for you! (I know your secret...You are preparing a grave for me and the scaffold for yourself.) GABRIELE ‘ke ‘pensi Che _ pensi? What are you thinking? (What do you mean?)Simon Boccanegra, Act I 113 AMELIA ‘io ‘amo andrea kwal ‘padre ‘sai To amo Andres? —qual_ padre, il sai; I love Andrea asa father, you know it; ‘kupa ‘notte ‘nom ‘vi mirai cupa notte non vi mirai dark night haven't I seen you ‘pur matiterrriffe Pur m'atterrisce... Yet it terrifies me... ‘sotto ‘le tetre ‘volte ernrar sovente ‘torbidi inrekwieti sotto le tetre volte errar sovente _torbidi, irrequieti? under the dark vaults wander often troubled, _restless? GABRIELE ‘ki Chi? Who? AMELIA ‘tu e andrea e lorentsino edaltri Tu, @ Andrea, @ _—Lorenzino ed alltri... You, and Andrea, © and Lorenzino _and other: GABRIELE a ‘uatfi ‘il ‘vento ‘ai tiran:ni potria rekar ‘tai ‘votfi Ah il vento ai —_tiranni potria recar tai voci! Ah besilent.. the wind _ to the tyrants could carry such words! ‘parlan ‘le ‘mura ‘un delator saskonde —adoppi ‘pasiso Perlen le = mura... un delator stasconde _ad ogni Passo. Speak the walls... an informer _ hides atevery step. (The walls speak...(The walls have ears) and an informer lurks at every step.) AMELIA ‘tu ‘emi Tu tremi? You tremble? GABRIELE i funesti fantazmi ——_skat:tfa I funesti fantasmi _scaccia! The dismal phantoms dispel! (Dispel the dismal phantoms!) AMELIA fantazmi —_—_ditfesti mirar ‘la ‘tferula marina tremolante Fentasmi _—_dicesti? mirar cerula marina tromolante; Phantoms did you say? Come to see the azure sea shimmering; °She is talking about Fiesco, whom we met in the Prologue twenty five years ago. He is now assuming the name Andrea, and is, without knowing it, Amelia's grandfather.14 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ta ‘dgenova torred:dga ‘sul ‘talamo spu'mante La Genova —torreggia. ©=sul_—talamo spumante; There Genoa towers above the (ocean) bed foaming; ‘la itwoi_ nemitfi imperano ‘vintferli indamo 'speri La ituoi_nemici imperano, —_ vincerli indamo _ spat. There your enemies rule, (and) to vanquish them in vain you hope... ripara ‘itwoi penisjei ‘al ‘porto del:lamor Ripara ituoi pensie —al__—porto dell'amor. Shelter your thoughts in the harbor of love. GABRIELE ‘and3ol ‘ke —dalslempire_pjegasti a ‘terra ‘tale Angiol che dall'empireo piegasti a terra I'le, Angel who from heaven bent towards earth _ your wings, © ‘kome ‘far ‘sfolgori ‘sul ‘tramite mortale © come faro sfolgori sul tramite mortale, and as abeacon _shine over the course mortal, (You angel, who bent your wings towards earth and as a beacon shine over the mortal course,) ‘non ritferkar de':lodjo i ‘funebri misteri non ricercar dellodio = i funobri misteri; do not seek to fathom of hate the dismal mysteries; ripara itwoi_pensjeri ‘al porto del:lamor Ripara ituoi pensieri al_—_—porto dell'amor. Shelter your thoughts in the harbor of love. AMELIA (looking to one side) a Ah! GABRIELE ‘ke ‘fia Che fia? What is it? AMELIA ‘vedi ‘la kwel:lwom = ‘kwal_‘ombra ‘omi ‘di appar Vedi 1a quell'uom? Qual ombra ogni di appar. Do you see there thatman? Asa shadow every day he appears. GABRIELE ‘forse ‘un ti'val Forse un rival? Maybe a rival?Simon Boccanegra, Act I 115 SERVANT (entering) ‘del ‘dodge ‘um = mesisa'd:dser ‘dite. = kjede Del Doge un messager di te _—chiede. From the Doge a messenger for you asks. (A messenger from the Doge is asking for you.) AMELIA sapres'si S'appressi. Let him approach. GABRIELE (starting to leave) ‘ki ‘sia ve'der 'vokko Chi sia veder voglio. Who it might be to see I want. AMELIA (stopping him) tarresta Tarresta. Stay. PIETRO (entering and bowing to Amelia) ‘il ‘dodge ‘dal:le ‘kattfe tornando ‘di sa'vona 1 Doge dalle caccie tomando — di_—‘ Savona The Doge, fromthe hunts returning from Savona ‘kwesta ma‘dgon vizitar ‘brama questa magion visitar brama. this house to visit desires. (The Doge, returning from the hunt at Savona, desires to visit this house.) AMELIA ‘il pwote Il puote. He may. GABRIELE ‘il ‘dodze ‘kwi 1 Doge qui? The Doge here? AMELIA ‘mia ‘destra a ‘kjeder ‘vjene Mia destra a chieder viene. My righthand to —_ask for he comes. (He is coming to ask for my hand.) GABRIELE ‘per ki Per chi?116 Simon Bocanegra, Act I AMELIA ‘pel favorito ‘suo ‘dandrea ‘vola in tferka Pol favorito suo, Dandrea vola in _—_cerca. For the favorite his‘. Of Andrea fly in search. (For his favorite. Go fly and search out Andrea (Fiesco).) prepara tito alllara Prepera = il_—srito all'ara. Prepare the rite to the altar. (Propare for our marriage! AMELIA, GABRIELE ‘si'ssi deliara ‘il “dgubilo konitrasti ‘il Tato aviverso Si, si, dell'ara il giubilo contrasti il fato avverso, Yes, yes, of thealtar the joy may it contrest fate adverse, (Yes, may the joy of our marriage be in contrast to adverse fate,) e tutto Iuniverso ‘lo sfide'ro_-— kon te e tutto Tuniverso lo sfiderd con te. and thewhole universe —I will defy with you. inmamorato—atnelito © del destin ‘flone Innamorato anelito & del destin pit forte; Loving desire is than destiny more strong; (Our loving desire is stronger than destiny:) amanti ‘oltre ‘la ‘morte ‘sempre vivrai ‘kom ‘me Amanti oltre la morte sempre vivrai con me. Lovingly beyond death always you shall live with me. (Amelia goes into the palace. Gabriele is about to leave when he meets up with Fiesco.) GABRIELE (aside) propittsjo ‘ei Propizio ei Propitious he : (He comes at the right moment!) FIESCO ‘uw ‘si mat:tu'tino ‘kwi Tu si___mattutino You so carly in the morning here? 2 GABRIELE a ‘ddirti A dirti To tell you... “This is, of course, Paolo, who has been pursuing Amelia since we last saw him in the Prologue, twenty five years ago.Simon Bocanegra, Act I FIESCO ‘kami amelja Ch'ami Amelia. That you love Amelia, GABRIELE tu ke lei ‘VekKi ‘kom patema ‘kura Tu che lei —_vegli con patema cura You who her watches with paternal —_care a hostre ‘notitse a'ssenti @ —_nostre nozze assenti? to our marriage —_—_do you consent? 117 (You who watches her with such paternel cere, will you consent to our marriage?) FIESCO ‘alto. mistero ‘sulla ‘verdsine ——_inykombe Alto mistero sulla vergine incombe. Deep mystery over that maiden —_weighs. (A deep mystery weighs upon that maiden) GABRIELE © ‘kwal Equal? And what? (What is it?) FIESCO ‘se 'parlo ‘forse ‘wpju ‘non Se parlo forse tu pia non If I speak maybe you any longer not GABRIELE ‘non ‘teme ‘obra darkani lamor Non teme ombra darcani amor Doesn't fear shadow of secrets _the love (My love doesn't fear the shadow of secrets! I am listening.) ‘wa ‘dumile ‘stitpe ‘nak:kwe tua dumile _stirpe nacque. Amelia yours of humble lineage ‘was born. (Your Amelia was born of humble lineage.) GABRIELE la ‘fikka ‘dei grimaldi La figlia dei Grimaldi! The daughter _of the Grimaldi! FIESCO ‘no la fikka ‘dei grimaldi = mori ‘tra No. La figlia dei Grimaldi = mori_ tra No. The daughter of the Grimaldi died among lame'rai Tamerai. will love her. ‘mio. taskolto mio! Trascolto. mine! I am listening. konsa‘krate consecrated118 Simon Bocanegra, Act I ‘verdsini ‘im ‘pizawnorfana rakkolta nel “Kjostro vergini in Pisa. Unorfana raccolta -nel_—_chiostro virgins in Pisa, Anorphan girl — picked up _in the cloister il ‘di ‘ke ‘fu damelja estremo eredi ‘sua ‘Yella il di che fu = d'Amolia_~—estremo ~—erediitd sua cella, the day that was of Amelia last inherited her cell. (No, the true daughter of the Grimaldi died (in convent) among nuns in Pisa, An orphan girl was then picked up in the cloister the day that Amelia died and put in Amelie's cell.)* GABRIELE ma ‘kome ‘de grimaldi —‘ankoil_~—‘nome__prentdea Ma come de! Grimaldi anco il _—_nome prendea? But how ofthe Grimaldi also the name she took? (But how did she also take the name Grimaldi?) FIESCO ‘de fworuffiti persegwia le_~—rikikettse = il. “dodge De fuoriusciti perseguia le —ricchezze.—il_~——( Dogo} Of the exiles pursued the _ riches the Doge; (The Doge was after the riches of the exiles;) © ‘la mentita amelja P ralpatfe ‘man E la —mentita «= Amelia. alla apace man And the false Amelia from his rapacious hand sottrarle potea sottrarle potea. rescue it could. (and the orphan girl whom they called Amelia thus could rescue the riches from the Doge's rapacious hands.) GABRIELE ‘forfana adoro Lorfana adoro! The orphan girl ‘I adore! FIESCO ‘di ei sei ‘denno Di lei soi degno! Of her you are worthy! GABRIELE a ‘me fia “dunkwe A me fia dunque To me meyshebe then “This may cause confusion. Amelia was the name of the real Grimaldi girl, who died in the convent in Pisa as Fiesco is recounting. Our present soprano heroine's name is really Maria (just like hor mother's in the prologue), but she goes by the name Amelia. All of this will be made clear in the coming confrontation with Bocanegra.Simon Bocanegra, Act I 119 FIESCO ‘in terrae ‘in Yel Ih terra e@ in ciel! On earth and in heaven! GABRIELE ‘mi ‘dai ‘la ‘vita Mi dai Ja vita, You give me life. FIESCO ‘yeni a 'me_—'tibenediko ‘nella ‘patfe ‘di kwestora Vieni a me, tibenedico nella pace di quest'ora, Come to me, bless you inthe peace of this hour, ‘Ijeto vivi ec —fido adora lieto vivi e — fido adora heppy live and faithfully adore ‘landsol ‘tuo la fpatrja ‘il Yel Tangiol tuo, la patria, il ciel! the angel yours, your homeland, heaven! GABRIELE ‘eko ‘pio ‘del ‘tempo antiko Eco pio del _ tempo antico, Echo pious of the times ancient, Jatua ‘vote © ‘uy ‘Kasto_ingkanto Latua voce @ un casto incanto; Your voice is a _chaste enchantment; serbe'ra ritkordo ‘santo Serbera ricordo santo Will keep a remembrance sacred ‘di kwestora ‘il ‘kor fedel di questora.=il’_~—scor_fadel. of thishour my —_heart_ faithful. (Your voice has a chaste enchantment like a pious echo of ancient times, and my faithful heart will keep a sacred remembrance of this hour.) (There is an off-stage blaring of trumpets.) ‘il ‘dodge ‘vjen partjam ‘kei ‘non ti 'skorga Doge _vien. Partiam. Chi non ti scorga. The Doge iscoming. Let usleave. Lethim not _see you. FIESCO a presto il «= di ella. vendetta —‘sorga Ah! Presto il di_— della. vendetta —sorga! Ah! Soon the day of vengeance may it dawn! (Ah! May the day of vengeance dawn soon!)120 Simon Bocanegra, Act I (They leave and the Doge (Simone) enters with Paolo, followed by hunters.) SIMONE* ‘paolo Paolo. PAOLO sippor Signor. Lord. SIMONE ‘Yfi‘spronano Ajeventi ‘di kwa partir komvjen Ci spronano glievent, di qua partir convien. We are being spurred (by) events, from here (to) leave is necessary. (Events are pressing. We must leave here.) PAOLO ‘kwando Quando? When? SIMONE ‘allo ‘skwil:lo dettlora Allo squillo dell'ora. At the stroke of the hour. (At a signal from the Doge, his followers leave.) PAOLO (catching sight of Amelia as he is leaving) 2 ‘kwal belta Oh qual belta! Oh, what a beauty! SIMONE (to Amelia) fa'vel:la il ‘dodge adamelja grimaldi Favella il Doge ad Amelia Grimaldi? Speaks the Doge to Amelia Grimaldi? AMELIA kozi nnomata ‘io ‘sono Cosi nomata io sono. Thus named 1 am. (That is my name.) “Even though Simone is now the Doge and the score calls him so, marking every one of his lines with a D I have opted to continue calling him Simone for clarity’s sake,Simon Boccanegra, Act I 121 SIMONE e ‘Kjezuli frattel:li ‘twoi E — gliesuli _fratelli tuoi And the exiled —_ brothers yours ‘nom ‘pundge fi ‘patrja non punge di patria? not pricks them —_ desire of homeland? (And aren't your exiled brothers desirous of returning to their homeland? AMELIA possente ‘ma Possente. ma... Powerful... but... (Yes, they have a powerful desire of returning...but...) SIMONE intends a ‘me inkinarsi "zdeppano i grimaldi Intendo... a me __inchinarsi sdegnano i Grimaldi. I understand. to me bowthemselves —_disdain the Grimaldi. (I understand...the Grimaldi disdain the thought of bowing to me...) koi risponde =a tanto of goxKo ‘il ‘dodge Cosi risponde a _— tanto orgoglio —il_~—‘Doge. Thus answers to somuch _ pride the Doge... (This is how the Doge answers such pride...) (He hands her a paper.) AMELIA (reading) "ke ‘wved:d30 ‘illorperdono Che _veggio! il lor _perdono? What doIses! Their pardon? SIMONE e ‘denmoa te ~—‘dela_Kklementsa ‘il, ‘dono E denno a te della clemenza il dono. Is due to you of clemency the __ gift. (This gift of clemency is due you.) ‘dinne perke ‘in kwesteremo Dine, perch’ in quest'eremo Tellme, why in this seclusion ‘tanta belta kjudesti tanta belta chiudesti? somuch beauty you hid? (Tell me, why did you shut your beautiful self in this secluded place?)122 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ‘del ‘mondo ‘mai le —‘fuldgide Iuzinge ‘nom pjandsesti Del mondo mai le —_fulgide lusinghe —_non piangesti? Of the world ever the glittering attractions __did you not weep for? (Did you not ever long for the glittering attractions of the world?) ‘il'tuo ro's:sor ‘mel ‘ditfe I tuo rossor mel dice... Your blushing gives me the answer... AMELIA tiggan:ni jo ‘som felitfe Tingenni, io son _felice. You are wrong; =! am __ happy. SIMONE a'kKan:ni ‘twoi lamore Aglianni tuoi, amore... At the years yours, love... (At your age, love...) AMELIA a —mileddsesti ‘il kore Ah, mileggesti il core! Ah, you've read my heart! ‘amo ‘uno ‘spirto anfdseliko ‘ke ~—ardente ‘mi rama Amo uno che ardente —miriama... Ilove a who ardent loves me back... (love an angelic soul who ardently returns my love...) ‘ma ‘di 'me_—attitfezo ‘um —‘perfido Ma di me acceso un perfido But by me inflamed’ a _perfidious man ‘tor ‘de grimaldi_ = ‘brama Yor de! Grimaldi brama... The gold (of) the Grimaldi desires. (But an evil man who covets the gold of the Grimaldi family is lusting after me...) SIMONE ‘paolo Paolo! ‘AMELIA. ‘wel ‘vil noimasti Quel vil nomasti! That villain you have named! (You've named the villain!) 7Inflamed in the sense of "being consumed by the fire of passion.”Simon Boccanegra, Act I 123 e poike ‘tanta pjeta ti'mwove ‘dei destini ‘miei E __ poicha tanta pista timuove dei destini miei, And since somuch pity moves you overthe destinies ~—mine, (And since you show such concern for my my future,) ‘vo zvellarti se’greto ‘ke ma'mmanta Vo! svelarti il segreto che m‘ammanta... Iwant to reveal to you the secret that cloaks me... ‘non ‘sono ‘una grimaldi Non sono una Grimaldi! Temnot a Grimaldi! SIMONE ofl Kissel Ociel.. chi soi? Oh heaven... who are you? AMELIA orfanelia ‘il_—tetto._umile makkoX4ea ‘duna_ meskina Orfanella il_—tettoumile mlaccogliea d'una meschina, Orphen the roof humble sheltered me ofa _ poor woman, (The humble roof of a poor women sheltered me as an orphan.) ‘dove ‘presiso ‘alla marina ‘sordse ‘piza dove presso alla marina sorge Pisa... where near the soa rises Pisa... (where Pisa rises near the sea...) ‘SIMONE ‘im piza tu In Pisa tu? In Pisa, you? (You were in Pisa?) AMELIA ‘grave ‘dan:ni ‘kwellla ‘era ‘solo a ‘me _sostepno Grave d'anni quella cra solo a me __sostegno; Heavy with years that pious woman was alone to me _ support; (That pious woman, heavy with years, was my only support;) ‘io provai ‘del ‘tfel ‘lo ‘zdeppo imvolata ‘ella ‘mi ‘fu To provaidel ciel lo sdegno, involata lami fu. I felt of heaven the anger: taken away she was from me. (felt heaven's anger: she was taken away from me.) ‘kolla ‘tremula ‘sua efifidse ‘mi pordgea Colla tremula = sua_— mano pinta offigio mi porgea, With trembling her _ hand _ painted picture she gave me, (With her trembling hand she gave me a painted picture,)124 Simon Bocanegra, Act I ‘le sembjantse ‘esiser ditfea ‘della ‘madre ippota a ‘mme le sombianze —esser_dicoa della madre ignota ame. the features being she said of the mother unknown to me. (saying that the features were of the mother I had never known.) ‘mi ba'tfo ‘mi bene‘dis:se le'vo ‘al ‘tfel pre'gando Mi bacid, mii benedisso, leva al cial, pregendo, She kissed me, she blessed me, _—ilifted to heaven, praying, ‘kwante ‘volte ‘lakjamai —‘leko ‘sol risposta Quante volte lachiamai, T'eco sol —_risposta How many times Icalled her, theecho only answer SIMONE (to himself) a ‘se la_—s‘speme o'tfel klemente Ah! so la _—_speme ociel clemente, Ah! If the hope ochheaven clement, ‘kor ‘mia ch'or mia, that now upon the soul mine, ‘fosise ‘sonno estinto io sia fosse sogno! estinto io sia were adream! Dead I be ‘della ‘larva ‘al dispar della larva al disparir! ofthe delusion the _disappearance! (Merciful heaven, if the hope which now smiles upon my soul be a dream, may I dio if that delusion should vanish!) atkun ‘la ‘nom vedesti alcun 1a non vedesti? someone there _ did you not see? ‘di mar ‘noi di mar noi Man of sea us. (A seaman used to visit us...) SIMONE © dsovanna nomava lei ke ate —rapir E — Giovanna sinomava lei che ate rapir? And Giovanna was called she whom fate from you _ stole? (And was the women who was taken from you by fate, named Giovanna?) AMELIA ‘si Si. Yes.Simon Bocanegra, Act I 125 SIMONE (taking out a locket and handing it to Amelia, who does likewise) e ——_lefifidse ‘non somissa ‘kwesta E _ Ieffigie non somiglia questa? And the portrait doesn't it resemble this one? AMELIA ugwali ‘son Uguali son! The same _they ere! SIMONE AMELIA ‘il ‘nome ‘mio 1 nome mio! The name mine! (That is my name!) SIMONE ‘sei ‘mia Sei mia Yousre my AMELIA ‘i ‘padre Padre.. father. SIMONE matxbrat:fa_ 0 ‘fikha ‘mia a ‘fifa ‘il ‘kor ‘ti 'kjama Mibbraccia, 0 figlia mia, Ah, figlia il cor ti chiama. Embrace me, oh daughter ~—mine. Ah, daughter, my heart _calls to you. AMELIA ‘strindsi ‘al ‘sen matia ‘ke tama Stringi al sen Maria che t'ama. Clasp to your bosom Maria who loves you. SIMONE ‘fikka a tal ‘nome ‘io ‘palpito Figlia! A tal nome io _palpito Daughter! At sucha name I tremble ‘kwal ‘se malprissse i Yeli qual se maprisse i cieli.. as if were openedto me the heavens... ‘um ‘mondo dineffabili —_ letinsje a me_—riveli Un mondo dineffabili letizie ame _—sriveli; a world of ineffable joys to me __you reveal;126 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ‘um para'dizo l ‘tenero ‘padre ‘ti skjude'ra Un paradiso -—il_tenero padre ti schiudera... A paradise your tender father will open to you... ‘dis mia_—korona ‘i rad:dgo ‘Ja ‘glorja ‘ua sara Di = mia corona il raggio Ja gloria tua sara. Of my crown the gleam the glory yours will be. (The gleam of my crown will be your glory.) AMELIA ‘padre veldrai Ta ‘vidgile Padre, vedrai la _vigile Father, you will see your watchful ‘fikkaa te ‘sempre ak:kanto figlia a te sempre accanto; daughter to you always by the side; nekiora melankonika affuge'ro —il'tuo_‘pjanto Nell'ora melanconica asciugherd il tuo _pianto... In your hour melencholy Iwilldry your tears... (( will dry your tears when you are sad...) avrem ‘dsoje_romite soltanto ‘note ‘al Avrem gioie romite soltanto note. al We will have joys insolitude only known to ‘io la_—skolomba = mite sara ‘del tedso_ostel Io la colomba~— mite sar del regio ostel. 1 the dove gentle I willbe of the royal palace. (will be the royal palace’s gentle dove.) SIMONE, AMELIA Avrem gioie romite note soltanto al ciel. SIMONE ° “fikka O — figlia! Oh — daughter! ‘AMELIA ‘padre Padre! Father! (Amelia goes into the palace accompanied by her father up to the threshold. The Doge watches her ecstatically as she disappears. Paolo rushes in.) PAOLO ‘ke ris'poze Che rispose? What did she answer?Simon Boccanegra, Act I SIMONE rinuntfa a ‘onpi spe'rantsa Rinuncia —_a ogni speranza. Renounce all hope. PAOLO ‘dodge ‘nol ‘posiso Doge, nol posso! Doge, I can't do it! SIMONE (going into Amelids rooms) “il ‘vokko 1 voglio! It is my will! PAOLO a wwoi ‘ke mi devi ‘il ‘Soko 11 vuoi! che mi devi il soglio? You wish it! Do you forget that you oweme the throne? PIETRO (entering) ‘ke ‘disse Che disso? What did he say? PAOLO a ‘me —_negol:la A mo __negolla.* To me _he denied her. (He denied her to me.) PIETRO ‘ke ‘pensi ‘tu Che pensi tu? What think you? PAOLO rapirla Rapirla. Abduct her. PIETRO ‘kome Come? How? 127 °As observed somewhere before in this series, according to the rules of raddoppiamento sintactico (phrasal doubling - see "Notes on the Italian Transcriptions’ at the beginning of this book), all polysyllabic words in Italian with an actual written accent on the final vowel, will cause the following consonant in the word group to be doubled. Therefore the past tense of the verb "to deny" is negd. Once the la particle is appended causing it to mean "denied her’, the initial | of Ja gets doubled and the accent is dropped, thus negolla Of course, this is strictly poetic language. In normal Italian the phrase would be said me la nego.128 Simon Boccanegra, Act I PAOLO ‘sul ido a ‘sera ‘la trove'rai solinga Sul lido a sera Ja troverai solinga... Atthe seashore inthe evening -—you will find her _ alone... ‘si wag:ga ‘al mio Si tragga als mio Let her be carried to my ‘di —_lorentsin ‘si ‘teki Di Lorenzin _si rechi 7 Of Lorenzino _let her be taken to the house. (Let her then be taken to Lorenzino's house.) PIETRO ‘sei ‘nega Sti nega? Ifhe objects? ‘ke ‘so ‘sue ‘trame © preste'ram:mi_ aiita che so sue trame,e _presterammi alta. that I know his plots, and he will lend me his aid. ‘tu ‘gram_ mertfede a'vrai Tu gran mercede —_avrai.. You great recompense will have... (You will be greatly rewarded...) PIETRO ‘ella sa'ra rapita Ella sara rapita. She will be abducted. (They both leave.) ‘Scene Two The Council Chamber (The Doge is seated on his throne. To one side are twelve noblemen Councillors and on the other side are twelve plebeian Councillors. Seated apart, are four Maritime Consuls and the Constables. Paolo and Pietro are seated in the last row with the Plebeians.) SIMONE messeri ile “di_—tartatria ‘Vi pordse Messeri, il re di_—Ss‘Tartaria ~—vi porge Gentlemen, the King of Tartary sends you ‘penni ‘patfe € ki ‘doni © © anmuntja pegni di pace e@ —ricchi doni e —annuncia tokens of peace and rich gifts and announcesSimon Boccanegra, Act I 129 ‘skjuzo leuzin ‘alle ‘liguri ‘prore ak:konsentite schiuso ——‘'Eusin’ ~— alle _liguri prore. Acconsentite? opened the Black sea to the Ligurian _prows. Do you accept? (...that they have permitted passage on the Black Sea to our Ligurian ships.) COUNCILLORS, PAOLO, PIETRO ‘si Si. Yes. SIMONE ‘ma ‘daltro ‘voto ‘pju_dseneroz0 io Ma dialtro voto pid generoso io But fora vote more generous (But now I ask you for a more generous vote.) SOME COUNCILLORS, PAOLO, PIETRO ‘parla Parla. Speak. SIMONE ‘Ta ‘stesisa ‘votfe ‘ke twono ‘su rjentsi vatitfinjo ‘di ‘glorja La stessa voce che tuond su Rienzi vaticinio = di The same voice that thundered over Rienzi" aprophecy of glory eppoi ‘di morte or = ‘su “dgenova. = twona eppoi di morte, or = su_—Genova tuona. andthen of -~— death, now over Genova thunders. (He shows a document.) ‘ekko ‘um — me'sssad:djo_ “del romito ‘di ‘sorga Ecco un messaggio del romito di Sorga. Here's a message ~=—= fromthe ~=—hermit of Sorghes” °The Ponto Euxino (in Italian, Eusino, or its truncted pootic form Eusin) was the name given to the Black sea in those times, from the Greek euxinus "hospitable", ergo: “hospitable sea". The region in Asia Minor called Ponto in those days of the Roman Empire was a very rich agricultural tract. In my next series of Mozart libretti, we will encounter a Mozart opera dealing with king Mitridate, of Ponto. (Mitridate, Re di Ponto.) "Cola di Rienzi (1313-1354), Italian patriot who had great influence on Roman politics. He drove out the aristocratic senators and was invested with dictatorial power. The people soon tuned against him and Pope Clement VI refused to support his policy of territorial expansion. He was finally put to death by his own people. Richard Wagner wrote one of his first operas, "Rienzi" about this man. ‘This refers to Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch, in English) (1304-1374), Italian poet and humanist. His perfection of the sonnet later influenced such English poets as Chaucer, Shakespeare and Sponsor. Possibly as a result of his travels thoughout Europe he developed a strong belief in a unified Italy, of which cause he was a lifelong champion. In the recent Metropolitan Opera production of this opera the line romito di Sorga was changed to Francesco Petrrea to make the text clearer.130 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ‘ei per venettsja. == ‘suppplika ——patfe Ei per Venezia -—supplica—_pace. He for Venice pleads for peace... PAOLO (interrupting him) atttenda ‘akle ‘sue ‘rime Attenda alle sue rime Let him attend to his rhymes ‘i kantor ‘del:la ‘bjonda avinnoneze il cantor della bionda Avignonese. the singer of the blonde girl from Avignon. (Let the singer of the blonde Avignonese look to his rhymes rather than politics.)* COUNCILLORS, PIETRO (ferociously) ‘gwerra a ——_-velnettsja Guerraa — Vednezia! Wer on Venice! SIMONE e ‘kon kwesturlo —_atrotfe ‘erdsekaino E con questurlo—_atroce erge Caino And with thiscry hideous —_— raises Cain ‘ra ‘due iti ditalja ‘la‘sua ‘Klavaknventa fra due iti diltalia sua clava_cruenta! betwoon (the) two shores of Italy his club bloody! (And with this hideous cry (of War on Venice) Cain raises his bloody club between the two shores of Italy!) ‘adrja itgurja ‘anno. ‘patrja komune Adria e Liguria hanno patria comune. Adria and Liguria have ahomeland common. (Adria and Liguria have a common homeland.)"* COUNCILLORS, PAOLO, PIETRO € ‘nostra ‘patrja ‘dgenova E nostra patria Genova. Is our homeland Genoa. (Our homeland is Genoa.) (There is a far off tumult.) *A further note on Petrarch. In 1312, when barely eight years old, his family moved to Avignon, in the Southeast of France. Years later, in 1330 he took minor orders in the church. On Good Friday in 1327 he first saw Laura, a blonde Frenchwoman whose name he was to immortalize in his lyrics and who inspired him with a passion that has become proverbial for its constancy and purity. The title romito di Sorga used above refers to the fact that he spent a lot of time in solitude in Sorghes (Sorga, in Italian) a little village barely a few kilometers north of Avignon. Paolo's snide remark of course, refers to his blonde lady love from Avignon. “The eastern shore of Italy is bathed by the Adriatic Sea. In those days most of that coast was referred to as AdriaSimon Boccanegra, Act I PIETRO ‘ewal Kla'mor Qual clamor! What uproar (is that)? COUNCILLORS, NOBLES ‘donde ‘tai ‘grida Dionde i Whence those cries? PAOLO (who leaps up and runs to the balcony) ‘dalla ‘pjattsa ‘dei ‘fjeski Dalla piazza dei Fieschi. From the piazza of the Fieschi. (From Fieschi squere.) COUNCILLORS (rising) ‘una sommossa Una sommossa! A rebellion! PAOLO (still at the window, where Pietro has joined him) ‘ekcko ‘una turba‘di_—_futdsdgenti Ecco una turba di fuggen! Thereis a crowdof _ fleeing men. SIMONE askolta Ascolta. Listen. (Tho tumult becomes louder.) PAOLO (trying to listen) ‘si'sperdon Te parole Si sperdon lo parole... Are being lost the words... (cannot catch what they're sayin, VOICES WITHIN ‘morte Morte! Death! PAOLO (to Pietro) & ‘Ti EB hui! Itis he! SIMONE (who has overheard this and is near the balcony) ‘ki Chi? Who? 131132 Simon Boccanegra, Act I PIETRO ‘gwarda Guarda. Look. SIMONE (looking) ‘Yelo gabriele —_a'domo ‘dalla ‘plebe insegwi Cielo! Gabriele Adorno —_— dalla _plebe_insoguito... Heaven! Gabriele Adorno —iby the mob pursued... aikcckanto, ades:so komibatte ‘uy ‘gwelfo ‘Accanto —_ ad ess0 combatte un —_Guelfo. Next to him fights a Guelph."* a‘me una'raldo: Ame un araldo. Summon me a herald. PIETRO (quietly ‘paolo ‘fuddsiio sei “kolto Paolo, fuggi o —sei_—céllto. Paolo, flee or you're caught. SIMONE (watching Paolo who is leaving) ‘Konsoli ‘del ‘mare kustodite le ‘sokke Consoli del = mare, custodite le soglie! Consuls of the sea, guard the thresholds! (Maritime Consuls, guard the doors!) ola ‘ki ‘fud:dse e ‘un traditor Ola! Chi fugge a un __traditor! Ho there! © Whoever _ flees is a traitor! (Paolo stops, confused.) VOICES (in the square) ‘morte ‘ai _patrittsi Morte ai _patrizi! Death to the patricians! COUNCILLORS, NOBLES (drawing their swords) ailslarmi All'armi! To arms! *4A note about Guelphs anad Ghibellines: These were Italian names given to two German political parties that kept Italy and Germany in a state of turmoil during the Middle Ages. Their rivalry involved cities, rulers and popes. Guelfo, one of the names, is Italian for Welf, the name of a ducal family that ruled Bavaria and Saxony in the Middle Ages. Ghibellino, the other name comes from Waiblingen, a little village near the castle of the great Hohenstaufen family, whose most famous member was Fredrick Barbarossa, a character in Verdi's "La Battaglia di Legnano". The Ghibellines wanted a strong monarchy and imperial rule over Italy. The Guelphs advocated the independence of the Italian cities.Simon Bocanegra, Act I 133 VOICES (in the square) ‘viva ‘il popolo Viva il popolo! Longlive the _people! PLEBEIAN COUNCILLORS (drawing swords) eviviva Ewvival Hurrah! SIMONE e'kke ‘voi ‘pure ‘voi ‘kwi ‘vi provokate E che? Voi pure? Voi, qui, vi provocate? What? You too? You, here provoke one another? VOICES (in the square) ‘morte ‘al dodge Morte al Doge! Death to the Doge! SIMONE (rising with groat dignity) ‘morte ‘al ‘dodge ‘sta ‘ben uw aralds Morte al Doge? Sta ben... Tu, araldo, Death to the Doge? Very well... You, herald ‘skjudi Te ‘porte ‘del palladso e — anmuntfa ‘al ‘volgo schiudi le porte del _palagio e annuncia al_—_volgo open the doors of the palace and announce _to the crowd gentilesko ¢ —_plebeo ‘kio ‘non lo temo gentilesco e —_plebeo chiio non lo temo, noble and plebeian, _— that I_ do not fear them, ‘ke Te minat:tfe wudi ‘ke ‘kwi i nds che le minaccie —_udii che qui__liattendo. thet their threats Theard (and) thet here I await them. (To the Councillors, who obey.) ‘nelle gwaiine i ‘brandi Nelle guaine ! Inthe sheaths your _ swords! (Put your swords back in their sheaths!) VOICES (in the square) ‘ami sakiked:dgo —‘fwoko ‘alile ‘kaze ‘ai —trabokcki ‘alla ‘gonna Armi! saccheggio! Fuoco alle caso! Ai trabocchi! —_ Alla gogna! Arms! Booty! Fire to the houses! To the ballistas!" To the pillory! *®pallistas were ancient war machines, shaped like big crossbows, used to catapult heavy stones onto the enemy.134 Simon Boccanegra, Act I (A distant trumpet is heard. All stand waiting, listening.) SIMONE ‘skwil:la ‘la tromba dellaralds ‘ei parla Squilla la tromba dell'araldo... ei parla... Blares the trumpet _of the herald... he is spoaking... (Total silence.) ‘tutto © silentsjo VOICES (nearing) evviva ‘il Evviva il Long live the SIMONE ‘ekcko te plebi Ecco le plebi! Here comes the mob! (The mob bursts into the chamber. The nobles remain separated from the people. Adorno and Fiesco are being seized by the people.) POPULACE vendetta ‘spargasi_ «il, ‘sangwe ‘del “fjero utt{itzor Vendetta! Sparg: il sangue del fiero uccisor! Vengeance! Let us spill the blood ofthe arrrogant murderer! SIMONE (ironically) kweste ‘dunkwe ‘del ‘popolo la ‘votfe Quest’a dunque —del_—_—popolo la voce? Is this then of the people the voice? ‘da ‘lundsi_ ‘twono dura'gan Da —lungi tuono duragan, From far, a thundering of a hurricane, ‘da ‘presiso ‘grido ‘di ‘donne e di fantful:li da —_presso, grido di donne e di-_fanciulli. from close by, shout of | women and of children. adomo perke latstfar Adomo, —_perch Vaccier? Adorno, why do you seize your sword?Simon Bocanegra, Act I 135 GABRIELE ° trutfidato _lorentsino Ho trucidato —Lorenzino. Thave killed Lorenzino. POPULACE asisas'sin Assassin! Murderer! GABRIELE ‘ei = 'la_—grimaldi_ = a'vea_rapita Ei la_—Grimaldi_—avoa_rapita. He the Grimaldi girl had abducted. SIMONE (to himself) orror Orror! Horror! POPULACE ‘menti Menti! ‘You lie! ‘pria ‘di morir pria dimorir disse. before dying said ‘ke un'wom po'sisente ‘al ‘krimine ‘la ‘spinto che unuom possente al —crimine Tha spinto. thet aman powerful to the crime had pushed him. (Before he died, that coward Lorenzino said that a powerful man had pushed him into comitting the crime.) PIETRO (softly to Paolo) a ‘sei skoperto Ah! sei scoperto! Ah! Youere —_found out! SIMONE (agitated) e il ‘nome ‘suo E il nome suo? And the name his? (And his name?) GABRIELE (glaring at the Doge with terrible irony) twkkweta il reo ‘si'spense —'pria_ ‘di zvellarlo Tacqueta! 1 reo sispense pria_ di svelarlo. Don't worry! The evil-doer died before revealing it.136 Simon Bocanegra, Act I SIMONE ‘ke ‘wwol ‘dir Che vuol dir? What do you mean? GABRIELE (fiercely) ‘pel tfelo. ‘wom po'sisente ‘sei tw Pel cielo! Uom possento sei tu! By heaven! © Man powerful are—_you. (By heaven! You are a powerful man!) SIMONE ribaldo: Ribaldo! You ruffian! GABRIELE (hurling himself at the Doge) audatfe rapitor ‘di fanitfutsle Audace —_—rapitor di fanciulle! Audacious abductor of _—_-young girls! COUNCILLORS ‘si dizarmi Si disarmi! Disarm him! GABRIELE (breaking free and rushing to kill the Doge) ‘empjo korsaro, inkoronato ‘mwori Empio corsaro incoronato! muori! Wicked pirate crowned! —_Die! (You wicked crowned pirate! Die!) AMELIA (placing herself between Simone and Gabriele) feriffi Ferisci GABRIELE, SIMONE, FIESCO amelja Am ALL Amelit °Forire means "to wound". Feria means "a wound". In poetic libretto language, when someone exhorts someone else to kill them, or strike them, or pierce them with a pointed weapon, they usually use the verb Ferire. Other words used to signify the act of killing are svenare, trucidare, uccidere, assassinare, ammazzare.Simon Bocanegra, Act I 137 AMELIA ° a ‘salva la'domo ‘w o ah, salva 'Adomo tu. Oh _ Doge... ah, save Adomo —_you. (Oh Doge, please save Gabriele) SIMONE (to the guards, who have seized Gabriele to disarm him) ne'sssun Iofifenda —‘kade _lorgoxso Nessun Yoffenda. © Cade l'orgoglio (Let) no one harm him. Falls my pride e ‘al ‘swon ‘del ‘suo dolore e al suon del suo dolore and atthe sound of —her_—_ grief ‘tutta ‘lanima ‘mia ‘parla damore tutta T'enima mia parla d'amore. all thesoul mine speaks of love. (Let no one harm him. My pride falls away at the sound of her grief and my entire soul speaks of love.) amelja ‘di ‘kome _‘ffosti rapita Amelia, di come foste rapita Amelia, tell how youwere abducted e ‘kome ‘al pe'rié£o potesti skam'par e come al periglio potesti scampar. end how fromthe — danger you were able to escape. AMELIA nellora, solave ‘ke injvita Nell'ora —soave che all'estasi._-—invita Atthe hour sweet that to ecstasy _ invites soletita ‘men ‘dsivo ‘sul ido ‘del mar soletta men givo sul ido del mar. quite alone I was walking on the shore of the sea. ‘mi ‘tfingon ‘we = ‘zgersri mak:kokke ‘un na'vikko Mi cingon tre sgherni m'accoglie un naviglio. T'm seized (by) three armed men... [am broughtto a _ ship. softfo'kati ‘nom ‘valsero. i Soffocati non valsero i Stifled were of no avail my (My stifled cries were of no avail...) ‘io 'zvenmi e ‘al novella diskjuder ‘del tfikfo To svenni e al_novello dischiuder del _ciglio 1 fainted and atthe new opening of my eyelid ([ fainted and when again I opened my eyes)138 Simon Boccanegra, Act I Iorentso ‘in ‘sue ‘stantse prevente ‘mi Vidi Lorenzo in sue_stanze presento mi vidi. Lorenzo” in his rooms present I saw myself, (I saw myself in Lorenzo's rooms.) ALL Iorentso Lorenzo! AMELIA ‘mi i pridgon Mi vidi prigion dell'infame! Isaw myself (a) prisoner _of that infamous man! io = ‘ben ‘di_~—skwelllalma~—saipea ‘la viltta To ben di quell'alma_—sapoa la_—vilta. 1 well of — thatsoul knew the cowardice. (I knew very well that he was a coward.) ‘al ‘dodge ‘Ki ‘dis:si ‘fen ‘note ‘tue ‘vame “al Doge,” glidissi, “fien note tue trame, "To the Doge,” I said to him, "be known. your plots, ‘se a ‘mme - sul:listante ‘non ‘dai liberta se a me sull'istante non dai liberta." if to me__this instant you don't give freedom.” (1 said to him: "If you don't release me this very instant, I will tell the Doge of your plots.") ‘komjfuzo ‘di tema ‘mi ‘skjuze le ‘porte. Confuso di tema _ mi schiuse le porte... Confounded by fear heopenedtome the doors... sal'varmi laudatfe potea Salvarmi —_audace potea. To save me thebold throat was able to. (My bold threat was able to save me.) ALL ‘ei ‘ben meritava kwel‘lempjo ‘la ‘morte Ei ben moritava, —quell'empio, 1a morte. He well deserved, that villain, death. (Lorenzino, that villain, more than deserved to die.) AMELIA ve ‘un ‘pju—nefando ‘ke aykor ‘sta va un pi’ nefando che ancor sta. There is one more infamous © who unpunished still is. (There is one man still more infamous who goes unpunished.) "Lorenzo, Lorenzino, Lorenzin, it's all the same person: that ubiquitous personage so far mentioned over a half dozen times in this opera, but who never appears. He was mentioned in the Prologue, called L'usuriere ("the usurer’ - probably a money lender), and now he is very much involved in Amelia's abduction in league with Paolo.Simon Boccanegra, Act I ALL ‘ki ‘dunkwe Chi dunque? Who then? AMELIA (staring at Paolo, who is concealed behind some people) ‘ei. maskolta diffemo le ‘zmorte ‘sue Ei m'ascolta.., discemo le. smorte. sue He ishearingme.. —_I see the ashen his SIMONE, GABRIELE ‘ki ‘dunkwe Chi dungu Who is it? POPULACE (menacingly) ‘um _patrittsjo Un __patrizio! A patrician! NOBLES (menacingly) ‘um plebeo Un __plebeo! A plebeian! POPULACE (to the nobles) a'bibas:so Te Abbasso le Down with your swords! ‘grid gridi! Terrible cries! NOBLES (to the populace) abibasso le ‘skuri Abbasso le_—scuri! Down with the axes! ‘AMELIA pjeta Picta! Pity! (For pity’s sakes!) SIMONE (powerfully) fratritfidi Fratricidi! (You) Fratricides!! (Addressing with great majesty the Council and all assembled.) ‘lab:bra labbra. lips. 139140 Simon Bocanegra, Act I ‘plebe patrittsi ‘popolo ‘dalla ferotfe istorja Plebe, patriz popolo dalla feroce istoria! Plebeians, patricians, people of the fierce history! erede ‘sol dellodjo ‘dei ‘spinola ‘dei ‘dorja Erede sol del'odio dei Spinola, del Doria, Inheritors only of the hatred of the Spinola, (and) the — Doria,"* ‘mentre vinvita estatiko ‘il tepno ‘ampjo dei ‘mari mentre vinvita estatico il regno ampio dei mari, while it invites you ecstatically the kingdom — vast of the sea (while the vast kingdom of the seas invites you,) ‘voi ‘nei fratemi ‘lati ‘vi latferate kor voi nei _—_frateni Jeri vi lacerate il con you inthe brotherly homes you tear each other your heart. (you tear each other's brotherly hearts apert in your own home.) ‘pjango ‘su ‘voi ‘sul 'platfido ‘rad:d3o_ ‘del ‘vostro ‘klivo Piango su voi, sul __placido raggio del vostro clivo, T weep for you, forthe tranquil © sunbeam of _—your hillside, ‘a ‘dove imjvan dgermokéa ‘il ‘ramo deklulivo la dove invan germoglia il ramo doll'ulivo. there where in vain blossoms the —_ branch of the olive tree. ‘piango ‘sul! mendatfe festa. ‘dei vostri_‘fjor Piango sulla mendace festa dei vostri_ fior, I weep over the deceptive gaiety of +—-your flowers, e ‘vo gridando ‘patfe e ‘vo gritdando amor E vo gridando:~—_pace! e vo gridando: amor! And I keep crying: "peace"! And I keep crying: "love"! CHORUS (looking at the Doge) ‘il’suo kom:mos:so —att:tfento ‘sa ‘Tira ‘in ‘noi kalmar Tl suo commosso —accento sa Tira in noi calmer; His moving words can the ire in us calm; ‘vol ‘di so'ave ‘vento ‘ke Fasiserena ‘il ‘mar Vol di soave vento che rasserena il ~— mar. Flight of (a) soft wind that becalms the —_ sea. (as the breath of a soft wind becalms the sea.) AMELIA. (to Fiesco) ‘patfe ‘lo ‘zdenno imimenso —naskondi_ ‘per. Pace! Lo —_sdegno immenso _nascondi_—_—per Peace! Your wrath immense _ hide for “Two of the powerful Ghibelline families. (See quote from "History Through the Opera Glass" by George Jellinek appended to the synopsis.)Simon Bocanegra, Act I 141 ‘patfe ‘un ‘senso ‘di patrja karita Pace! un senso di patria carita. Peace! May it inspire you a sense of homeland charity. (Peace! May your homeland inspire in you a sense of charity.) PIETRO (to Paolo) ‘tutto fal ‘la ‘fuga ‘sia Tata salvettsa amen Tutto falli, a fuga sia latua salvezza —almen. All has failed, (let) flight be your safety at least. (All hes failed. Your only remaining safety is running away.) PAOLO (to Pietro) ‘no ‘Tangwe ‘ke ‘mi ‘fruga e ‘gomfjo ‘di velen No, T'angue che mi fruga & —— gonfio di velen. No, thesnake that _is eating at me is swollen with venom. GABRIELE (to himself) amelja © ‘salva. ‘mama ‘sia ringrattsjato ‘il ‘fel Amelia 8 salva @ —sm'ama! Sia ringraziato il ciel! Amelia is saved and lovesme! Be thanked —_ heaven! dizdeppa —oppaltra_—‘brama ‘lanimo ‘mio fede! Disdegna —ogn’altra. ~—_brama l'animo mio _fodel. Disdains every other desire the soul mine _ faithful. (My faithful soul knows no other desire.) 2 a ‘kwal ‘mi ‘serba vergonna ‘il'mio spe'rar oO a qual misorba —vergogna __il mio sperar! Oh homeland! To what haveled me shame my hopes! (Oh homeland! To what shame my hopes have led me!) GABRIELE (offering his sword to the Doge) ‘ekkko ‘la ‘spada Ecco la —_spada. Here's my sword. SIMONE ‘kwesta_ ‘notite sa'rai Questa notte _prigione sarai, This night @ prisoner you will be, fin'ke ‘lla ‘ama ‘tutta ‘si dis'kopra finchd la trama tutta si discopra. until the plot entire is revealed. ‘no laltera ‘lama ‘serba ‘non'voffo ‘ke ‘la 'tua_patrola No, T'altera lama serba, non voglio che la tua parola. No, your proud sword keep, Idon't want but your word.142 Simon Bocanegra, Act I SIMONE (with terrible force) ‘paolo Paolo! PAOLO ‘mio ‘dutfe Mio Duce! My — Lord! (With great majesty and an ever increasing violence Simone now addresses Paolo.) SIMONE ‘inte risjede laustero ‘dritstopopolar In to risiede Taustero dritto_popolar; In you isvested —thestrict_ += law —_of the people; € ak:kolto lonore tfitsta'din ‘nella ‘tua ‘fede gE accolto Yonore cittadin nella tua fede: Is gathered © thehonor of thecity in your faith: ‘bramo Iauziljo ‘two Bramo Tausilio tu Ineed the help yours... "ve ‘in ‘kweste ‘mura um vil ‘ke 'mmode ve in queste mura un vil che mode There is within these walls @ coward who hears me e impal:lidiffe ‘im ‘volto © impallidisce in volto. and grows pale in his face. ‘dsa ‘la'mia ‘man lefiferra ‘per ‘le —_‘kjome Gia lamia man Yafferra per_le—chiome. Already my hend seizeshim by the _ hair. io ‘so. il'suo ‘nome € —‘nebla ‘sua pa'ura lo so ilsuo nome... E nella sua paura, I know his name. Heis in his fear. (Iknow his name...ho is already afraid.) ‘uw 'al_——_kos'petito ‘del tfel Tu al _—_cospetto. ~— del’_— ciel You inthe presence of +—_—heaven © al mio. kospetto —‘sei_—_testimon e al_— mio cospetto —sei_testimon. and in my presence are_—_a witness.Simon Boccanegra, Act I 143 ‘sul manigoldo —impuro ‘pjombi Sul menigoldo impuro piombi On the scoundrel impure may it fall il twon ‘del ‘mio detto il tuon del mio detto: the thunder of += my _ word: (May the thunder of my words fall on that impure scoundrel:) ‘sia maletdetto © ww ripeti il ‘duro Sia maledetto! E tu, mipeti il giuro. May he be accursed! ‘And you, repeat the oath. PAOLO (terrified and trembling) ‘sia maleddet:to meledetto! May he be accursed! (Horvified, to himself.) orror Orror! Horror! ALL ‘sia maledeto Sia maledetto! May he be accursed! (Paolo flees in horror.) END OF ACTI144 ACT IL A Room in the Doge's palace Simon Bocanegra, Act It {Inside the room are doors off to the side and through the balcony doors the sea can be seen. There is a table with a jug and a goblet on it. It is getting dark.) PAOLO (to Pietro, leading him to the balcony) ‘kwei ‘due vedesti Quei due vedesti? Those two did you see? (Did you see those two?) PIETRO ‘si Si.Yos. PAOLO Wi'traddsi ——tosto ‘dal ‘kartfer loro ‘per ‘Tandito askoz0 Litraggi —_tosto dal carcer loro per T'andito ascoso, Bring them at once from their cell _by the passage hidden, ‘ke ‘kwesta ‘kjave skjude'ra che questa chiave schiudera. that this key will unlock. PIETRO tintezi Tintesi. Tunderstand you. (He exits.) PAOLO ‘me 'stes:so_ ° male‘detito Me stesso ho —_maledetto! Myself Thave cursed! (I cursed myself!) € — lanatema —minsegwe = ankor € — Taura an’kor ‘ne trema e Yanatama © miinsegue —_ancor... e Taura ancor ne trema! And thecurse pursues me still. and the air still trembles from it! vilipezo reljet:to ‘dal se'nato e ‘da ‘dsenova Viliposo... _reietto dal Senato e@ da _— Genova, Despised... rejected by the Senate and by Genoa, ‘kwi'vibro ‘lultimo ‘stral 'pria ‘di fud:d3ir qui vibro ultimo stral pria di fuggir; here [hurl my last arrow before flesing; "He is referring to Gabriele and Fiesco.Simon Boccanegra, Act II 145 ‘kwi libro ‘la ‘sorte tua “dodge in-—kwestansja_—estrema Qui libro la sorte tua, Doge, in quest'ansia —_estrema. Here I weigh the fate yours, Doge, in my anxiety extreme. (Doge, at this moment of extreme anxiety I am weighing your fate.) tu ke mofffend) = © = ke. mi devi ‘il trono Tu, che moffendi e che mi devi il trono, You, who offendme and who owe me your throne, ‘kwi_tabsban'dono ‘al ‘tuo destino in —_kwestora qui tabbandono al tuo destino in quest’ora here abandon you to your destiny in this hour (He takes out a phial and pours its contents into the goblet.) ‘kwiti'stillo ‘una lenta“atra agonia Qui tistillo una lenta tra agonia... Here I distil for you a slow, hideous —_ agony... ‘la tarmo un assa'sssino La tarmo un assassino. There I'm arming for you an assassin. ‘Jelga ‘morte ‘sua ‘via ‘fra ‘il ‘tosko dil pupnale Scolga morte sua via fra tosco ed il pugnale. Let it choose death its path between the poison andthe — dagger. (Let death choose its path either by means of poison or the dagger.) (Pietro leads in Gabriele and Fiesco and then leaves.) FIESCO pridsonjero in ‘kwal ‘loko matdsdutfi Prigioniero in qual loco m’adduci? Aprisoner to what place do you lead me? (To what place have I been led as a prisoner?) PAOLO ‘nelle ‘stantse ‘del ‘dodge € ©=——fa'veltla ate —paslo Nelle stanze del Doge, ¢ _favella a te_—~Paolo. To the rooms of the Doge, and speaks to you Paolo. (To the Doge's rooms. And I, Paolo, am speaking to you.) FIESCO i'twoi ‘zgwardi ‘son Ituoi sguardi son Your looks are PAOLO o's lado. ‘ke tfelasi ‘in te tus maskolta To so odio che —celasi in te. Tu mascolta. I know the hate that ishidden inside you. You _ listen to me.146 Simon Boccanegra, Act It FIESCO ‘ke ‘brami Che brami? What do you went? PAOLO ‘al tfimento preparasti ‘de ‘gwelfi ‘la ‘skjera Al cimento preparasti dé Guelfi la schiera? For the dangerous test did you prepare of the Guelphs _the group? (Have you prepared the group of Guelphs for the rebellion?) FIESCO ‘si Si. Yes. PAOLO ‘ma ‘vano ‘fia ‘tanto ardimento Ma vano fia tanto ardimento! But vain may be such daring! (But your daring may be in vain!) ‘kwesto ‘dodge ab:borrrito ‘da ‘me ‘kwanto ‘voi lab:borrite Questo Doge abborrito da me quanto voi l'abborrite, This Doge, hated by me asmuches you hate him, valpppresta ‘nwovo ‘fJempjo vappresta nuovo scempio. is readying for (a) new slaughter. FIESCO ‘mi tendi ‘un aigrgwato Mi tendi un agguato, You're settingme a trap. PAOLO ‘un ag:gwato ‘fesko ‘la testa. ‘il'tiramno —_se'ppata nona Un agguato? §=sdDi'_—SsFiesco la — testa illtiranno —_sognata non ha? A trap? Of — Fiesco the head the tyrant — marked has he not? (Hasn't the tyrant marked (for beheading) Fiesco's head?) ‘io tin'senno To _tinsegno I amshowing you _victory. FIESCO a ‘kwal ‘patito A qual_patto? On what terms?Simon Boccanegra, Act It 147 PAOLO ‘trutfi'darlo ‘kwi‘mentre "eAKi Trucidarlo qui, mente egli Killhim here, while he FIESCO ‘o2i a 'fjesko proporre Osi a _Fiesco proporre You dare to_‘Fiesco propose (You dare propose a crime to Fiesco?) PAOLO tu rifjuti Tu —rifiuti? You refuse? FIESCO 'si Si. Yes. PAOLO ‘al tus kartfer ‘tem ‘va Al tuo carcer ten va. To your cell go back. (Then go back to your cell.) ‘dorme dorme. sleeps... ‘um misfatto un misfatto? a misdeed? (Fiesco exits. Gabriele starts to follow him but Paolo stops him.) udisti Udisti? Did you listen? (Did you hear that?) GABRIELE ‘vil dizeppo vil disogno! Cowardly plan! PAOLO amelja ‘dunkwe mai tu Amelia dunque = mai tu ‘Amelia then never you (Have you then never loved Amelia? GABRIELE ‘ke — ‘dditfi Che dici? What are you saying? ‘non amasti non amasti? not loved?148 Simon Boccanegra, Act IT PAOLO © kwi E qui. She's here. GABRIELE ‘kwi amelja Qui Amelia? Here Amelia? PAOLO e ‘del ve'Kardo ‘seo € ‘akle — injfami dilettantse E — del_—vogliardo = segno 8 ~— allo. infami dilettanze. And ofthe oldman target sheis tohis infamous dalliance. (And sho is intended for the old man's infamous pleasures.) GABRIELE astuto demon ‘Yessa Astuto demon, cossa... Crafty devil, stop. (Paolo runs to lock the door.) ‘ke ‘ffai Che fai? What are you doing? PAOLO ‘di ‘kwi‘onpi‘varko te kon'tezo Di qui ogni varco t conteso. From here every exit toyouis closed. ardiffi ‘il ‘kolpo Andisci il colpo Dare to (strike) the blow 2 sepoltura = avrai ‘tra ‘kweste ‘mura ° ‘sepoltura avrai fra queste: mura. or (a) grave you will have between _— these. walls. (or you will be buried within these walls.) (Ho rushes off by one of the doors, which closes behind him.) GABRIELE ° ——imfemo amelja ‘lama ‘ll O — infemo!... Amelia Tama il Oh hell... Amelia Loves her the (Oh hell!...Amelia is here and the old man loves her!...) e ‘il furor ‘ke ~—matttfende_— ‘me konitezo e il furor che m'accende _m'e conteso and the fury that inflamesme I'm forbiddenSimon Bocanegra, Act II 149 wu muttfidesti ‘il ‘padre ‘tu minjvoli ‘il mio te'zoro Tu muccidesti il —_padre. tu minvoli__—_il mio tesoro. You killed my father... -you__ steal my — treasure. ‘ema inikwo ‘da ‘tropipa ‘era unofifeza Trema iniquo.. gid troppa era _un'offesa, Tremble, wicked one... already too much — was _one offense, ‘doppia veridetta ‘ai ‘sul tuo ‘kapo attfeza doppia vendetta hai sul tuo capo _accesa! adouble revenge © youhave over your head ignited! (You have provoked upon your head a double revenge.) ‘sento av:vam'par ne‘:lanima fu'rente dgelozia Sento avvampar nell'anima __furente gelosia; Ifeel flaming up in my soul a furious _jealousy; ‘tutto il ‘mis ‘sangwe ‘spepnere ‘nom potria Tutto il mio sangue spegnere non potria; All my __ blood put out could not. (All of my blood could not put out this fire:) ‘sei ‘mil avesse Sti mille vite avesse Ifhe athousand lives had (if he hed a thousand lives) e —‘spennerle potesise ‘dun ‘kolpo il mio furor e _spegnerle potesse dun colpo il mio furor, and snuff them out —_ could with one blow my fury, (and if my fury could snuff them out with one blow.) ‘no a momsarei—_‘sattsjo aykor no, ah! nonsarei_—sazio ancor. no, ah! _I wouldn't be satisfied still. (no, ab! I still wouldn't be satisfied.) ‘ke ‘parlo aime ‘io ‘pjango Che parlol... imi io _piango! What am I saying... Alas! 1 am weeping! pjeta ‘gran ‘ddio ‘del ‘mio martiro Pieta, gran Dio, del — mio i Pity, great God, on my ‘Yfelo pjetoz rendila a ‘kwesto ‘kore Cielo pietoso rendila questo core, Heaven pitying restore her to this heart, (Merciful heaven restore her to my heart,) ‘pura. sikikome —Tandselo. «ke. ‘Vea ‘al ‘suo puidore pura siccome T'angolo che _voglia al suo pure as the angel thet watches over her chastity;150 Simon Bocanegra, Act II Ki il ‘varko Chi il varco tapria? Who the passage opened for you? (Who opened that (secret) passage to you’) GABRIELE € ‘wu ‘kome ‘kwi Et come qui? And you, how here? (And you, how come you're here?) AMELIA io Io. 1. GABRIELE dle'ale Sleale! Faithless one! AMELIA 2 knidele Oh —crudele! Oh, cruel one! GABRIELE ‘il tiran:no: fe'rale pi tiranno ferale... The tyrant savage... (That savage tyrant...) impura ‘tanto andor moskura impura tanto candor mioscura, impure such innocence virtu ‘Kio non ‘la ‘veg:ga ‘pju virta, chiio non lavegga —_—ipid. virtue, mayI not — see her any more.Simon Bocanegra, Act II damor ‘santo Damor santo... With love _ saintly... (With a pure love...) GABRIELE e ‘tu E tu? And you? ‘AMELIA ‘lamo ‘del ‘pari L'amo del pari. Tlove him the same way. GABRIELE e taskolto e ‘non tut:tfido: E __ tascolto e non tuccido? ‘And I'm listening to you and I don't kill you? (hear you and do not kill you?) ‘AMELIA imfellitfe ‘mel‘kredi ‘pura. ‘io. — ‘son Infelico! mel credi, pura io son... Unhappy one! Believeme, pure I am.. GABRIELE faivelila Favella... Speak... ‘AMELIA kontfedi ke 'il_—se’greto nonaprasi arykor Concedi che il___—_sogreto non aprasi ancor! Allow that the — secret not be revealed —_yet! GABRIELE ‘parla ‘in tuo ‘kor virdsineo fede ‘al diletto Parle, in tuo cor virgineo —fede al diletto Speak, in your heart virginal _—faith to your beloved (Speak, restore faith in your innocent heart to your beloved,) ‘rendi restore, 151152 Simon Boccanegra, Act I ‘luo silentso =e funebre ‘vel ke ‘sume distendi Ituo silenzio 8 — funebre = vel :~sche=«ssu Ss mo_—_distendi, your silence is(a) mournful veil which over me —_you cast. ‘dammi javitao il feretro “zdenno ‘la tua pjeta Dammi lavitao —il_—_‘ferotro, sdegno la tua pieta. Giveme life or a coffin, Idisdain your pity. AMELIA “zgombra da':lalma il ‘dub:bjo Sgombra _—dal'alma il dubbio. Banish from your soul the _—_doubt ‘santa ‘nel ‘petto ‘mio lim:madgin ‘tua saktkokfe Senta nel petto mio Timmagin tua __s‘accoglie Sacred in the breast mine the image yours is held (Your image is held sacred in my breast) ‘owale ‘nel tempjo quale nel tempio asin church God. (as God is in church.) GABRIELE Dammi Ja vita o il feretro, AMELIA ‘no protfelliloza_—tenebra ‘un tfel.— da'mor nona No, procellosa __tenebra un ciel d’amor non he. No, stormy darkness a sky _of love has not. (No, a sky of love has no stormy darkness.) GABRIELE Dammi la vita o il foretro, sdegno la tua pista. AMELIA il “dodge 'vjen ‘skampo noinai taskondi Doge _vien. Scampo _ non hai. Tascondi. The Doge iscoming. Escape you have not. Hide yourself, GABRIELE ‘no No. No. AMELIA ‘il patibol taspetta 1 patibol taspettal The scaffold —_awaits you!Simon Bocanegra, Act It GABRIELE jo ‘non ‘lo temo To _non Jo temo. 1 do not fear it. AMELIA altlora istesisa ‘teks avo ‘mmorte Alora istessa teco avr morte... Atthe hour same with you Iwill have death... (I will die with you at the same time...) ‘se non ti_=— move “di =me_—opjeta se non ti move di me iota. if not you move for me __ pity. (if you are not moved to pity for me.) GABRIELE ‘dite pjetade Di te _pietade? For you _ pity? (Pity for you?) (To himself.) ‘To 'vwol ‘la ‘sorte ‘si kompja “ekki (Lo vuol Ja sorte... egli (It wishes it destiny... let it bo fulfilled _ fate! He (Destiny wills it...let fate be fulfilled!... He will die!) AMELIA ei ‘viene Hi__viene... He's coming... taskondi t'ascondi. hide yourself. GABRIELE Egli morra! AMELIA Di me pieta, etc. 153 mora mori!) will die!) (Amelia hides Gabriele in the balcony. The Doge enters reading a document.) SIMONE “fikKa Figlia. Daughter. ‘padre ‘mio padre mio? So anxious, _—father mine?154 Simon Bocanegra, Act It SIMONE tigganzi ‘mam —_pjandsevi Tinganni... ma tu _piangevi. You're mistaken... but you have been weeping. SIMONE ‘la ka'dgom ‘me ‘nota ‘delle ‘lagrime ‘tue La cagion m’s nota delle lagrime tue... The reason isknown tome _of the tears yours... ‘da ‘mel ditfesti ‘ami Gia mel dicesti.. ami; Already you have told me... you are in love; ‘or bene ‘se ‘denpo ‘dite leletto ‘del tuo ‘kore Orbene, s' degno di te Teletto del tuo core. Well then, if he is worthy of you the chosen one —of your heart... (Well then: If the man you have chosen in your heart is worthy of you...) AMELIA 2 padre ‘fra i tiguei ‘i pju ‘prode ‘il 'pju dgentile Opadre! Fra i Liguri il pia prods, il pit gentile... Oh father! Among the Ligurians the most brave, the most kind... SIMONE ‘il ‘noma noma. Tell me his name. ‘AMELIA aidomo Adomo. SIMONE il mio_nemiko I mio nemico! My — enemy! SIMONE (pointing to the document he is holding in his hand) ‘vedi ‘kwi‘skritto il ‘nome ‘suo kondgura_— ko ‘gwelfi Vedi: qui scritto il nome suo?... Congiura co’ Guelii... You see: here written the name his?... He plots withthe Guelph... (You see his name on this list?...He's plotting with the Guelphs...)Simon Boccanegra, Act It AMELIA ‘Yel perdonasi Ciel! perdonaglil... Heaven! —_—Forgive him!... SIMONE ‘nol ‘posiso Nol posso! I cannot do it! AMELIA ‘kon ‘lui morro Con lui mor. With him Iwill die. ‘SIMONE ‘ami kottanto Lami cotanto? Do you love him _that much? AMELIA ‘lamo dardente dimfinito Lamo dardente, _diinfinito Tlove him with ardent, with endless 2 ‘al tempjo. ‘kon ‘lui O al _tompio con lui Either to the church with him ° sovra entrambi ‘kada ‘la © sovra entrambi cada_ la or upon bothofus let fall the SIMONE (in despair) ° krudele destino 2 O — crudele destino! =O Oh cruel destiny! Oh ‘una fikka fitrovo edun Una figlia ritrovo ed un A daughter —‘I find again and an askolta ‘sei Ascolta: sei Listen: if he ‘AMELIA ‘il fia fie. He must... amor amor. love. ‘mi ‘gwida mi guide, lead me, ‘skure ‘del scure del karnefitfe carnefice.. exe of the executioner... dilegwate mie dileguate mie vanished my ne'miko nemico enemy spe'rantse speranze! hopes! ‘me ‘la injvola me la invola! steals her from me! 155156 Simon Boccanegra, Act II SIMONE ‘forse ‘il perdono = aatlor Forso il perdono _allor... Maybe the pardon then... ‘AMELIA ‘padre ado'rato Padre adorato! Father adored! SIMONE ‘tiritraddsi attender wi de'ddsio.-«——lauirora Tiritraggi... Attendor qui deggio Yaurora... Withdraw... To await here I must the dawn... AMELIA ‘taffa ‘kio ‘veski ‘al tuo fanko Lascia chiio vegli al tuo _fianco. Allow me (to) watch at your side. (Allow me to watch over you by your side.) SIMONE ‘no ‘ti eitrad:dgi No, _ ti ritraggi. No, withdraw... AMELIA (leaving by ono of the doors) ‘gran ‘dio ‘kome ssal'varlo (Gran Dio! come salvarlo?) (Great God! How to save him?) SIMONE ‘dodge anjkor prove'ran la 'wa klementsa i traditori Doge! Ancor proveran _latua clemenza i traditori? Doge! Again will know your clemency the _traitors? (Doge! Will the traitors again experience your clemency?) ‘di Ppaura ‘sepno ‘fora il kastigo Di —_paura sogno fora il castigo. Of fear asign couldbe the _ punishment. (Yet, punishment could be a sign of fear on my part.)Simon Boccanegra, Act IT 157 ‘mardono ‘le ‘fautfi Maerdono le _fauci. Itburns my __ throat. (My throat is burning.) (He pours from the carafe into the goblet and drinks.) perfin ‘lak:kwa ‘del ‘fonte e& amara Perfin l'acqua del fonte @ — amara Even the water fromthe — spring is _ bitter ‘al labibro‘del_ wom ‘ke ‘rena 2 el labbro del uom che —regna... ° tothe lips of the man who reigns. oh ‘la ‘mente € la mente @ my mind is (He sits down.) ‘stanke le 'membra. aime ‘mi vintfe ‘il ‘son:no stanche le. = membra... ahi’... —mivince _ il sonno. tired (are) my limbs... alas... I'm overcome by sleep. (He falls asleep.) 2 amelja ‘un nemiko Oh! Amolia... un nemico... Oh! Amalia... youlove.. an enemy... GABRIELE (entering cautiously, approaches the Doge and gazes at him) ‘ei ‘dorme ‘kwale ‘sento ritenno € —reverentsa 0 tema Ei dorme! quale sento ritegno’ reverenza o tema? He sleeps! What feel reluctance?... Isit reverence or _fear? vatfil:la ‘il'mio voler ‘dormi Vacilla il mio voler! Dormi, . Falters my will! Yousleep, oh old man. ‘del ‘padre ‘mio karnefitfe ‘tw ‘mio rival Del padre mio camefice, tu mio rival! Ofthe father mine murderer, you my rival! ‘fikko da'domo: ‘la paterna ‘ombra ‘ti ‘kjama ‘vinditfe Figlio d'Adomo! la —patema_ = ombratichiama _vindice. Son of Adorno! Your father's shade calls you —_avenger. (Son of Adorno! Your father's ghost calls on you for vengeance!) (He draws a dagger and is about to stab Simone when Amelia rushes in and interposes herself between the two men.)158 Simon Boccanegra, Act IT ‘AMELIA insenisato —_‘velckjo inerme ‘tuo ‘brattfo kotpiffe Insensato! Vecchio —_—inerme il tuo braccio colpisce? Madman! Anoldmen unarmed your arm strikes? GABRIELE twa ditfeza ‘mio ‘2denno rattfende Tua difesa mio sdegno raccende. Your defenso my —_ anger rekindles. ‘AMELIA ‘santo ‘il dsuro © lamor ‘ke Yi uniffe Santo, ilgiur, = @ ~~ Tamor che ci unisce, Sacred, Iswearit, is thelove —that _ unites us, ‘ne ‘ale ‘nostre spe'rantse kon'tende nd alle nostre speranze —_contende. nor to our _ hopes. does he oppose. (nor does he oppose himself to our hopes.) GABRIELE ke fa'vel:li Che —favelli? ‘What are you saying? SIMONE (waking) a Ah! ‘AMELIA askondi ‘il puppale ‘kei toda Nascondi il ~—_pugnale! ch’ei toda... Hide the dagger! let him hear you... GABRIELE prostrarmi ‘al ‘suo’ pede Prostrarmi al suo_piede? Prostrate myself at his _ feet? SIMONE (going towards Gabriele) ekko ‘il ‘petito kolpiffi deale Ecco il petto. colpisci, __sleale! Here's my — breas strike, disloyal one! GABRIELE ‘sangwe il ‘sangwe dadomo ‘ti kjede Sangue il sangue dAdomo i chiede. Blood the blood of Adomo asks you. (The blood of the Adorno cries for blood.)Simon Bocanegra, Act II 159 SIMONE e fia ver ‘ki tapria ‘kweste ‘ponte E fia ver? Chi tapria queste porte? ‘And is that true? Who opened to you these doors? AMELIA, nonio Non io. Not I. GABRIELE ‘njun kwestarkano — saipra Niun quest'arcano sapra. No one this secret will know. SIMONE ‘il dirai ‘fra tormenti D dirai fra__i tormenti... You'll reveal it under torture... GABRIELE ‘Ja'morte —twoisuipplittsi_ ‘non ‘temo La morte, tuoi supplizi_ —_non temo. Death (and) your tortures ‘I do not fear. ‘AMELIA a pjeta Ah pictal Ah pity! SIMONE a ‘kwel ‘padre tu = ‘ben_—_vendikasti ‘Ab, quel padre tu ben —_vendicasti ‘Ab, that father you well _ have avenged ‘ke ‘da ‘me kontristato ‘da ‘fu che da me contristato gid fu... who by me grieved already wa: (for whom I already have grieved...) ‘un Yelleste te'zor mimvolasti ‘la ‘mia “fikha Un celeste tesor minvolasti. lamia figlia... A heavenly treasure = you have stolen from me... my GABRIELE ‘suo ‘padre ‘sei wu Suo padre sei tu? Her father ere you? perdon amelja indomito dge'lozo amor ‘fu Perdon, Amelia. —Indomito, —_geloso amor fu Forgive me, Amelia, Untamed, _ jealous love was160 Simon Boccanegra, Act II ‘dodge il vellame 'skwartfasi ‘un asisa's:sin sonio Doge, il volame squarciasi... un assassin —_—son io. Doge, (let) the veil betomaside.. an —_ assassin ‘dam:mi ‘la morte ‘il tfikKo a te nonozo altsar Dammi lamorte, —ilciglio a te nonoso _—alzar. Giveme death; myeyes to. ~—-you_Idon'tdare raise. SIMONE (to himself) de'd:dsio sal'varlo: e ‘stendere ‘la ‘mano al:linimiko (Degg'io —salvario © @~_—stendere, «= Ia._—smanoall'inimico? (ShouldI —sparehim and extend my hand to my enemy? ‘si ‘patfe ‘splend ‘aii Si, pace splenda ai Liguri, Yes, peace must shine on the — Liguriens, ‘si ‘plaki ‘lodio antiko siplachi odio antico, be placated the hate ancient. (Yes, lot peace shine on the Ligurians and let ancient hates be placatod.) ‘sia damistanze —_ italike ‘il'mio sepolkrs altar Sia damistanze italiche il mio sepolcro _altar.) May itbe of friendship Italian my tomb (the) alter.) (May my tomb be the altar of Italian friendship.) AMELIA (to hersel) ‘madre ‘ke —dalilempireo proted:dsi_-— ‘la tua “Tika (Madre, che dall'empireo proteggi —ia tua figlia, (Mother, who frombheaven protects your daughter, ‘del dsenitore —a:lanima_~—‘meco Pjeta kon'sikka del genitore —all'anima_~—meco pietd consiglia. of the father tohis soul withme pity _ counsel... (recommend pity together with me to my father's heart...) ‘ei ‘siren'dea kolpevole ‘solo ‘per ‘troppo amor Ei sirendea —colpevole solo per troppo amor.) He wasmade guilty only because of too much _love.) (His only crime was too much love.) CHORUS al:larmi 0 ‘liguri ‘sakro do'ver va'p: Allarmi, —o Liguri,_sacro dover vappella, Toarms, oh Ligurians, a sacred duty calls you, skoppjo ddellira_ = l_—folgore © notte “di protfeliia scoppid _—deli'ira il folgore @ notte di —_procella, has flared of rage the lightning, it'sa night of storm. (the lightning of our rage has flared; it is a night of storm.)Simon Bocanegra, Act II 161 le ‘gwelfe ‘spade ‘Yingano di taranmia. = to ‘spalto Le — guelfe spade cingano = di_—tarannia. = lo._spalto; The Guelph swords surround of _~— tyranny ~—the _bastion; ‘del koronato ‘demone ‘su ‘alla ma‘dgon a's:salto, Del coronato demone, _—su,_ alla’ magion, _I'assalto. Of the crowned demon, arise, to his palace, assault it. (Arise and assault the palace of the crowned demon.) AMELIA (runs to the balcony) ‘ewai ‘gti Quai gridi? What cries? GABRIELE viwoi_nemitfi Ituoi_nomici. Your enemies... SIMONE ‘il'so Iso. T know it. CHORUS ‘gwerra sterminio venidetta Guerra! sterminio! —_ vendetta! War! Annihilation! Vengeance! AMELIA (still at the balcony) ‘sempre said:densa ‘il_——popolo Sempre s'addensa il popolo. Always is getting denser the _ people. (The crowd is always getting larger.) SIMONE (to Gabriele) ‘va tuiniffi a twoi Va.. Tunisci a’ tuoi... Go... Join your people... GABRIELE io ‘puppi ‘kontro ‘ddite ‘mai ‘pju Chiio pugni contro di te?. mai pitt That I should fight against you. never. SIMONE ‘dunkwe messaddso ‘ti 'reka ator diate Dunque _—messagio.—_ti reca a lor di_— pace, Then (a) message _—take to them of peace, © il'sole ‘di domani ‘non ‘sorga e ilsole di domani _non sorga and thesunof tomorrow —_may it not rise162 Simon Boccanegra, Act II ariskjarar — frateme i arischiarar fratene —_stragi. to illuminate fraternal bloodshed. GABRIELE ‘teko a ‘punnar Teco a —_—pugnar With you to_—_fight ‘elas Kle'mentsa. tua so la clomenza_— tua if the clemency _yours does not disarm them. (ll return to fight at your side if your clemency doesn't disarm them.) SIMONE (indicating Amelia) sara kkostei ‘two ‘premjo Sera costei tuo premio. Will be she your reward. (She will be your reward.) GABRIELE, AMELIA 2 inaspettata —“‘dgoja O —inaspettata _gioia! Oh unexpected joy! AMELIA ‘padre Padre! Father! SIMONE, GABRIELE, CHORUS (drawing their swords) alitarmi Allarmi! To arms! END OF ACT ILSimon Boccanegra, Act III 163 ACT I Interior of the Doge's Palace (Through large apertures Genoa and the sea in the background can be seen.) CHORUS (from within) eviviva il ‘dodge vitorja Ewviva il Doge! ‘Vittoria! Longlive the Doge! _ Victory! CAPTAIN (giving back to Fiesco his sword) ‘libero ‘sei ‘ekcko ‘la ‘spada Libero sei: ecco la spada. Free youare: here is your sword. FIESCO e i ‘gwelfii E i Guelfi? And the Guelphs? CAPTAIN skomfitsti Sconfitti. Defeated. FIESCO ° ‘triste liberta O triste _liberta! Oh sad _—_ freedom! (Poolo is brought in flanked by four guards.) FIESCO (to Paolo) ‘ke ‘paolo ‘dove ‘ssei ‘tratsto Che? Paolo? Dove sei tratto? What? Paolo? Where are they taking you? PAOLO (stopping) alilestremo —_suppplittsjo All'estremo To my last (To my death.) ‘i demonjo ‘ra tari ‘dei rivoltozi 1 —_demonio fra armi dei rivolt The devil droveme into thearms _of the rebels © la fui ‘kolto edora ‘mi konidanina simone e la fui_—célto; ed ora mi condanna Simone; and there Iwas caught; and now Simone condemns me;164 ‘ma ‘da mme Ma da me But by me FIESCO ‘ke ‘vwoi ‘dir Che vuoi dir? What do you mean? Simon Boccanegra, Act Ill ‘prima ‘fu prima fu first was Bocanegra ‘il bok:kanegra kondanmato a ‘morte il Boccanegra condannato a —_—morte. condemned to death. PAOLO ‘um —_vellen ‘piu ‘nulla ‘io temo ‘la vita Un velen... (pit nulla io temo) glidivora la vita. A poison... (nothing more 1 fear) eatsaway his i FIESCO injfame Infame! Villain! PAOLO ci da “forse ‘mi pretfede nelia'vel Ei gia forse mi precede nell'avel. He already maybe precedes me into the grave. CHORUS (from within) ‘dal ‘som:mo ‘delle ‘sfere proted:d3ili_—_sippor Dal sommo delle sfere proteggili, Signor; From the summit of the spheres, _ protect them, Lord; ‘di ‘patfe ‘sjen forjere ‘le ‘nottse deklamor Di pace sien _foriere le nozz dell'amor. Of peace be harbingers the nuptials —of love, (May the nuptials of love be harbingers of peace.) PAOLO a orzore ‘una kantson nuttsjal ‘ke ‘mi persegwe Ah! orrore! Una canzon nuzial che mi persegue, Ah! Horror! A song nuptial that pursues me, ‘lod ‘in ‘kwel_‘tempjo gabriele domo Lodi? In quel_tempio Gabriele Adomo Do youhear it? In that church Gabriele Adorno ‘spoza kollei ‘kio trafgava sposa colei_ chiio marries her whomI carried off. FIESCO amelja tu fost il rapittor Amelia? = Tu_—fosti_ il_—_rapitor? Amelia? © You were the abductor? (He draws his sword.)Simon Bocanegra, Act Il 165 mostro Mostro! Monster! PAOLO feriffi Forisci Kill me. FIESCO (restraining himself) ‘non ‘lo spe'rar ‘sei ‘sakro ‘alla bipen:ne Non lo sperar; Sei sacro Don't hope for that; Youare promised PAOLO orrore Orrore! Horror! (The guards drag Paolo away.) ‘no simone ‘non ‘kwesta venidetta ——‘kjezi No, Simone, non questa vendetta _—chiesi; 1am horrified! No, Simone, _not this vengeance _ | asked for; (1am horrified! No, Simone, this is not the vengeance I had asked for:) ‘daltra ‘meta ‘depno ‘era ‘il'tuo ‘fato. ‘ekkolo Dialtra meta degno era il tuo fato. Eccolo... Ofanother end deserving was your fate. There he i ‘il ‘dodge alfine © ‘dgunta ‘ora ‘di ro'vartfi a ‘fronte Tl Doge. Alfine ® _—giunta Tora di trovarci a fronte! The Doge. At last has arrived thehour of ~— esting —_—_face to face! (He withdraws to a corner in the shadows.) CAPTAIN (at the balcony) tfitsta'dini ‘per ‘ordine ‘del ‘dode sestingwano ‘le ‘ati Cittadini! per ordine del Doge s‘estinguano le faci Citizens! By order of the Doge extinguish the _ torches € ‘non sofifenda ‘kol klamor ‘del triomfo i prodi e non soffenda col clamor del trionfo i prodi and do not offend with the —_noise of triumph _—the valiant dead. (He exits, followed by the trumpeter. The Doge enters.) SIMONE ‘mardon ‘Je ‘tempja—unatra ‘vampa Merdon —letempia..._un'atra vampa Are burning my temples... a dreadful fire166 ‘Simon Boccanegra, Act II ‘sento serpe'd:dsar_ ‘per Te ‘vene sento serpeggiar per le —_vene... I feel creeping through my veins... a ‘Kio respici Yaura be'ata ‘del ‘libero tfelo Ah! Chiio respiri Teura beata del libero cielo! Ah! _ Let me breathe the air blissful of the free sky! (Ah! Let me breathe the sweet air of the open sky!) marina "bredidza ‘mare marina brezza! mare! sea breeze! sea! ‘di glote © © di sutbimi rapimenti Quale in rimirarlo = di_—sglorie. © = di_—sublimi rapimenti How in seeingit, of glory and of sublime _—deeds. a'ffattfan tikordi ‘il ‘mare mi si affaccian ricordi! 1 mare! brings back tome memories! The seal (How the memories of glory and of sublime deeds are brought back to me when I look at it! The sea!) a perke ‘in ‘suo ‘grembo ‘non trovai ‘la_—s'tomba Ah! perche suo grembo non trovai la —_tomba? Ah! Why in its bosom did I not find my grave? FIESCO (drawing close to him from the shadows) ‘fora ‘mekko ‘per te Fora meglio per te! It would have been better for you! SIMONE ‘ki 929 inoltrarsi Chi osd__inoltrarsi? Who dared to enter? FIESCO Ki te ‘non ‘teme Chi te non teme... Who you does not fear... (Someone who doesn't fear you...) SIMONE (calling out to one side) ‘gwardje Guardi Guards! FIESCO imjvan le alppelili Invan le appelli... In vain you call them...Simon Boccanegra, Act III 167 non ‘son, ‘kwi i “agerxi ‘twoi Nonson qui. i-—sgherri tuoi. They are not here, the cutthroats yours. muttfiderai ‘ma 'pria ‘modi Mucciderai, ma pria modi... You will kill me, but first hear me out... SIMONE ke "wwoi Che vuoi? What do you want? FIESCO ‘delle ‘fatfi festanti ‘al barlume Delle faci festanti al'_—~—sbarlume Of the torches rejoicing _at the gleam (By the gleam of the rejoicing torches) “‘tfifre arkane furnebri ve'drai cifro arcane, funebri vedrai. portents mysterious, _ fatal you will see. (you will see mysterious and fatal portents.) ‘tua sententsa. -la‘mano-— del nume Tua sentenza lamano del nume Your sentence thehand of God ‘sovra ‘kkweste pareti_ vergo sovra queste pareti vergd, on these walls has written. ‘di twa ‘stelila seklisisano i ‘rai Di tua stella s'eclissano i rai; Of your star areeclipsed the rays; (The radiance of your star is fading;) ‘la ‘tua ‘porpora ‘im brani ‘dga ‘kade latua porpora in brani gid cade; your purple in pieces already _is falling; (Your purple (mantle of royalty) is already falling in pieces; ‘wa ‘le ‘larve motrrai Vincitor tra le larve morrai Avictor amid the ghosts you will die ‘kui ‘la ‘tomba ‘wa —‘skure_ ne'go cui la tomba tua scure nego. of those to whom the —_ grave your exe — denied. (You, the victor, shall die amid the ghosts of those to whom your (headsman's) axe denied burial.)168 Simon Bocanegra, Act II SIMONE ‘wale attfento Quale accento? What voice? (What voice is that?) FIESCO ‘lo wdisti unaltra ‘volta Loudisti un‘altra_ volta, You heard it another _ time. (You've heard it once before.) SIMONE ‘fia ‘ver risorgon ‘dalla tomba i Fia ver? Risorgon dalla tomba i Could itbe true? Rise again fromthe grave the FIESCO ‘nom mi ralvivizi tw Non mi rawvisi tu? Not me recognize —_you? (Don't you recognize me?) SIMONE ‘fjesko Fiesco! FIESCO simone i ‘morti_ ti sa‘lutano Simone, i _morti_ ti salutano! Simone, the dead greet you! SIMONE gran ‘dio kompito © ~— afin. ‘di_—_kwestalma Gran Dio! Compito 8 afin di quest'alma Great God! Fulfilled is at last of my soul FIESCO ‘kome ‘um fantazima _—‘fjesko_ta'p:par Come un fantasima _Fiesco appar, Like a phantom —_Fiesco appears before you, antiko oftrad:39 a vendi'kar antico oltraggio a ~—vendicar. anancient outrage to avenge. SIMONE ‘di ‘patfe ‘nuntsjo ‘fjesko satra Di pace nunzio Fiesco sara... Of peace a messenger Fiesco shalll be... ‘i il the de'zio desio! desire!Simon Boccanegra, Act III 169 suddgella —wnandgelo ‘nostra amista suggella —un'angelo nostra amista. seals anengel our friendship. (Fiesco shall be a herald of peace, for an angel shall seal our friendship.) FIESCO ‘ke ‘dditfi Che dic ‘What are you saying? SIMONE ‘un ‘tempo ‘il perdon mofifristi Untempo il___perdon moffrist... Once your forgiveness you offered me... FIESCO io To? r ‘SIMONE ‘sea te orfatnelta kontfedea Se a te _‘orfanella concedea If to —_-you__ the little orphan girl I gave up ‘ke perduta ‘per'sempre —a'l:lor_pian'dsea che perduta --persempre allor_piangea. who (as) lost forever then I wept for. (If I gave up to you the little orphan gir] whom I then mourned as lost forever.) in amelja grimaldi = @ =e fu ‘reza In Amelia Grimaldi a me fu resa, As Amelia Grimaldi to me shewas _ returned, © il ‘nome ‘porta ‘della ‘madre estinta e il nome porta della madre estinta, and the name shebears of her mother dead. {and she bears the name of her dead mother.) FIESCO ‘Yel perke ‘mmi ‘splende ‘il ver si tard Ciel! Percha mi splonde il ver si_—tardi? Heaven! Why does it shine on me the truth so late? (Heaven! Why does the truth shine on me so late?) SIMONE ‘tu '‘pjandsi a perke ‘wwoldsi altrove i "YfixKo Tu piangi? Ah! percha volgi altrove il ciglio? You are weeping? Ah! Why do youturn elsewhere your eye? (You are weeping? Why do you turn your gaze away from me?)matia Mari Maria: tapiresto tapprestd. has given you. vo bene'dirla benedirla. vo’ 170 Simon Boccanegra, Act Il FIESCO pjango perke ‘mmi ‘parla Piango perchd mi parla I weep because _—it speaks to me in te ‘dal tfel la votfe in to dal_— ciel la voce; in you from heaven the voice; (weep because the voice of heaven speaks to me through your voice.) ‘sento ram/popna _attrotfe ‘fin ‘nella ‘tua pjeta Sento rampogna _atroce fin nella tua _pieta. I feel reproof terrible even in your pity. SIMONE ‘vjen ‘kio ti'stringa = al pets 9 ‘padre ‘di Vien, chio tistringa al _—petto, 0 —padre di Come, let me clasp you tomy breast, oh —_ father of ‘balsamo —ailalma_=—— mia “il tuo_perdon sara Balsamo —all'alma —mia_il' tuo_perdon sara. Abalm tothe soul mine your forgiveness will be. FIESCO aime ‘morte so'vrasta ‘un traditore ‘il vellen Ahima! Morte sovrasta.... un traditore il velen Ales! Death threatens... a traitor _the poison SIMONE ‘tutto favella ‘il'sento ‘im ‘me letemita Tutto favella, il sento in me Teternita. Everything speaks, feel it tome etemity. (feel that everything speaks to me of eternity...) FIESCO knudele “fato Cridele ato! Cruel fate! SIMONE ella ‘vjen Ella vien. She is coming... ‘non ‘dirle ‘ako ‘una ‘volta non dirle. anco una volta don't tell he still one (more) time Iwantto bless her.Simon Boccanegra, Act III a (He lets himself fall in an armchair. Amelia (Maria), and Gabriele enter followed by ladies and gentlemen of the court, Senators, pages with torches, etc.) AMELIA (seeing Fiesco) ki ‘veg:go Chi ‘veggo? Whom do I soo? GABRIELE (to himself) ‘fjesko Fiesco! AMELIA (to Fiesco) ‘tw ‘kwi Tu qui? You here? ‘SIMONE de'poni ‘la mera'vikka ‘im ‘fjesko ‘il ‘padre ‘vedi Deponi la —meraviglia. ‘In Fiesco il —_—padre vedi Dismiss your marvel. In Fiesco the father you see deltipnsta matia ‘ke —ti'dje ‘wita dellignota Maria che ti did vita, ofthe unknown Maria who gave you _—life. (Marvel no longer. In Fiesco you see the father of the unknown women Maria, who was your mother and brought you into this world.) AMELIA ‘ekki ‘fia ‘ver Egli? Fie ver? He? Could itbe true? FIESCO matiia Maria!" AMELIA ° ‘ddgoja a'l:lora “KKodi funesti ‘am ‘fine Oh gio’ gli odii funesti hen fine! Oh joy! Then the hatreds dire have an end! *Piesco is calling his granddaughter (Amolia) by her real name of Maria, which was also her mother's name. The text will continue to use AMELIA for the remaining text of Maria.172 SIMONE (gravely) ‘tut:to finiffe Tutto finisce, Everything is ended, AMELIA ‘owal fe'rale pen'sjer Qual ferale pensier What dire thought SIMONE matia koraddso a Maria, coraggi a : aw tO ‘kwali attfenti ° Quali accenti! oh What words! Oh SIMONE ‘per ‘me _—_lestrema Per me Testrema For me the last (There is general surprise.) MARIA, GABRIELE ke ‘parli Che parli? What are you saying? SIMONE ‘ma Ietemo Ma I'Eterno But the Eternal One Simon Boccanegra, Act III ° ‘fikka o — figlia. oh daughter... tatttrista 'si se'reni istanti Vattrista si sereni istanti? saddens such serene moments? ‘gran dolore ta'pipresta gran dolore t'appresta... great grief prepare yourself... terror terror! terror! ‘ora’ swo'no ora suond! hour has struck! in we bratstfa ‘mi kontfedea spirar in tue _braccia mi concedea spirar.. in your arms allowed me to die MARIA, GABRIELE (falling at Simone's feet) SIMONE (rising and raising his eyes to heaven, he places his hands on their heads) Possibil fia? Can this be true? ‘gran ‘ddio ti beneditfi Gran Dio li benedice Great God, bless them, a lor del mio A lor del_— mio To them of my pjetozo dal:lempiro pietoso dall'empiro; pitying one, from heaven; martiro ‘kandga te ‘spine im {jor martiro cangia lo spine in _fior. suffering change the thorns into flowers. (For their sake change the thorns of my suffering into flowers.)Simon Bocanegra, Act Il 173 AMELIA ‘no ‘nom morrai la'more ‘vinka ‘di ‘morte ‘il ‘dgelo. No, non moma, Yamore vinea di morte il gelo; No, you won't die, love (may it) conquer of -— death the chill; rispondera ‘dal_—tfelo pjetade ‘al ‘mio. dolor Rispondera dal cielo pietade =

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