Musical contribution - June 2024

Grand March (from Aïda) - Giusppe Verdi (1813-1901)

We’re moving into the summer with the sounds of Verdi. Many of you will have visited Italy at some point and will have attended an opera there. Possibly even outdoors. It’s highly likely that you will have heard a work by our composer of the month. If you’ve not attended an opera there yet, we really recommend doing this at least once. What an experience.

Giuseppe was born in a small farming village. There’s a large sign in the village with a photo of him and his quotation: ‘I am and will always be a farmer from Le Roncole’. He would later develop to become one of Italy’s greatest opera composers.

The Grand March comes from ‘Aïda’. He was commissioned to write this opera by the Egyptian viceroy. The goal was to make this genre more well-known on the other side of the Mediterranean Sea.

This organ arrangement is an excerpt from the original and can be played with much grandeur. Let your creativity run wild with the registration. But do use the setzers or super solos. And above all, enjoy this typical Italian composition.

Kind regards,

André