Verdi's Rigoletto: A New Age in Opera with Gil Harel

Hailed by musicologist Julian Budden as "revolutionary", Verdi's Rigoletto has been described as the first of Verdi's true masterpieces for the operatic stage.

Based on the 1832 play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo, and with a libretto written by Francesco Maria Piave, Rigoletto tells of a hunchbacked court jester who struggles to protect his daughter in the dangerous world of courtly intrigue. With many famous excerpts - including the celebrated tenor aria "La donna è mobile", Rigoletto was immensely successful from the beginning.

Join Professor Gil Harel as we go inside the score of the opera to better appreciate this gift that Verdi and Piave bequeathed to posterity. 

About Gil Harel

Gil Harel (PhD, Brandeis University) is a musicologist and composer whose interests include styles ranging from western art music to contemporary musical theater. Previously, he served on the faculty at CUNY Baruch College (where he was awarded the prestigious "Presidential Excellence Award for Distinguished Teaching").

Currently, he is Full Professor of Music at CT State Naugatuck Valley, where he has been presented with the AFT "Merit Award for Exemplary Service to the College" for 6 consecutive years. In 2020, he was honored with the coveted Connecticut Board of Regents (BOR) Teaching Award. At Naugatuck Valley, Dr. Harel conducts the college chorale, a cappella ensemble, teaches music history and theory, and serves as musical director of theater productions.

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