What question did this study set out to answer?

The research investigates Giovanni Pascoli's efforts in lyric theatre and his collaboration with Marco Enrico Bossi.

March 27, 2026

From Verse to Voice to Silence: Giovanni Pascoli, Enrico Bossi, and the Pursuit of Lyric Drama

Key Points

The research investigates Giovanni Pascoli's efforts in lyric theatre and his collaboration with Marco Enrico Bossi.
Analyzed Pascoli’s works with Bossi, including 'Il cieco' and Anno Mille.
Reviewed premieres, critical responses, and subsequent revivals.
Explored collaborations with Bossi and his son Renzo Bossi.
Identified tensions between poetic autonomy and musical authority.
Demonstrated broader debates over the hierarchy of music and text.
Highlighted Pascoli's struggles in realizing a modern Italian Literaturoper.

Abstract

Abstract: Giovanni Pascoli’s ventures into lyric theatre, particularly with composer Marco Enrico Bossi, reveal his attempt to transcend poetry’s expressive limits through la parola fatta musica . Focusing on Bossi’s setting of ‘Il cieco’ and the unfinished Anno Mille , the article examines premieres, reviews, revivals, and the stalled collaborations with Enrico Bossi and his son Renzo Bossi. These projects expose tensions between poetic autonomy and musical authority, and they reflect broader fin de siècle debates over verismo , the hierarchy of word and music, and the constraints of interdisciplinary creation, highlighting Pascoli’s unfulfilled ambition to craft a modern Italian Literaturoper .

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