for a number of years". But at the time of the premiere, Mariani was enthusiastic, as demonstrated in his letter to Ricordi: As for the music, this Aroldo could be one of Verdi's finest operas; it includes pieces which are absolutely certain to make an effect. Budden notes another aspect: "the new music reaps the benefit of seven years' growing maturity...[resulting in]..the richer vein of musical invention." On the other hand, he also notes that more conventional elements in Aroldo sometimes replace the more original aspects of Stiffelio, such as the opening drinking chorus which replaces a recitative for Jorg in the original version. Recordings References Notes Cited sources Baldini, Gabriele (1970), (trans. Roger Parker, 1980), The Story of Giuseppe Verdi: Oberto to Un Ballo in Maschera. Cambridge, et al: Cambridge University Press. Budden, Julian (2001), "Aroldo: an opera remade", Notes contained with the Phillips CD 462-512-2 recording, 2001, pp. 13–16 Budden, Julian (1984), "Aroldo", in The Operas of Verdi, Volume 2. London: Cassell, Ltd., 1984, pp. 335–358. Kimbell, David (2001), in Holden, Amanda (Ed.) (2001), The New Penguin Opera Guide, New York: Penguin Putnam, 2001. Martin, George (1983), Verdi: His Music, Life and Times, New York: Dodd, Mead and Company, 1983 Osborne, Charles, The Complete Opera of Verdi, New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1969. Parker, Roger, "Aroldo" in Stanley Sadie, (Ed.), The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, Vol. One. London: MacMillan Publishers, Inc. 1998 Phillips-Matz, Mary Jane (1993), Verdi: A Biography, London & New York: Oxford University Press, 1993 Toye, Francis, Giuseppe Verdi: His Life and Works, New York: Knopf, 1931 Walker, Frank, The Man Verdi, New York: Knopf, 1962, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1982 Other sources Chusid, Martin, (Ed.) (1997), Verdi’s Middle Period, 1849 to 1859, Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press. De Van, Gilles (trans. Gilda Roberts) (1998), Verdi’s Theater: Creating Drama Through Music. Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press. (hardback), Gossett, Philip (2006), Divas and Scholar: Performing Italian Opera, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Parker, Roger (2007), The New Grove Guide to Verdi and His Operas, Oxford & New York: Oxford University Press. Pistone, Danièle (1995), Nineteenth-Century Italian Opera: From Rossini to Puccini, Portland, OR: Amadeus Press. Warrack, John and West, Ewan, The Oxford Dictionary of Opera New York: OUP: 1992 Werfel, Franz and Stefan, Paul (1973), Verdi: The Man and His Letters, New York, Vienna House. External links Verdi: "The story"