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There are 471 records in this group, with the predominant format being pamphlets and small volumes. Some librettos are bound together in one large volume.
Dates range from 1693 to 1938, with the bulk of the imprints coming from the nineteenth century. Hundreds date from the late eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries.
Of importance in this group are early librettos from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and groups of librettos by minor composers or little-known works by major composers. Many of the later libretti are published by Ricordi. A few pieces are very rare, such as an early libretto by Chierici, and a small volume of expert parodies of Metastasio’s librettos. Many of the pieces were published expressly for a performance, and give the names of the principal cast, directors, choreographers, and stage designers. Also included in this subject heading are oratorios and ballets, and any kind of “melodramma” with some music.
Individual composers and librettists represented include: Giovanni Gori Savellini, Vincenzo Bellini, Giuseppe Verdi, Felice Romani, Gaetano Rossi, Ettore Berlioz, Arrigo Boito, Lorenzo Da Ponte, Filippo S. Neri, Domenico Cimarosa, Richard Wagner, Josef Haydn, Gaetano Donizetti, Francesco Maria Piave, Gioacchino Rossini, and Pietro Metastasio (A and S). Many other major and minor composers and librettists can be found under this heading.
NOTE: The name in the “Author” field is the librettist, not the composer; the latter’s name usually appears in the first position in the “Other Names” field, with “Music” in parentheses after the name.