Composer Giuseppe Verdi became famous overnight, in Italy and elsewhere, thanks to his third opera. In fact, on March 9 1842, at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan he created his masterpiece: Nabucco. Disillusioned and disappointed by the failure of his previous work (“Chi i bei dì m'adduce ancora”) and shaken by successive grieving, he rediscovered hope and inspiration by reading the text of the librettist Temistocle Solera. He decided to write a patriotic opera which reflected the political situation of Milan at the time under Austrian domination. The famous choir of the Hebrew slaves “Va’, pensiero, sull’ali dorate” ("Go, thought, on wings of gold" in English) has become a hymn to freedom, known and sung all over the world. This “music of an eager soul”—a feeling that would dominate Verdi’s following three operas—has completely bewitched critics and public alike thanks to its dramatic verve, together with its musical aesthetic inherited by the romantic bel canto tradition.

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Stream Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Nabucco on medici.tv!

medici.tv is the best online platform for streaming Verdi’s Nabucco live, on replay or VOD, offering you a virtual ticket to the most exciting concerts with the world’s best artists and orchestras captured in HD video. The aria “Va’, pensiero” from Verdi’s opera Nabucco has now become a universal hymn to freedom and patriotism, beyond any border and political limitation. This is the spirit of Nabucco! The plot tells the story of the biblical episode of the exile and slavery of the Hebrews in Babylon, along with their liberation. Come and discover some of the best interpretations of Verdi’s Nabucco: on medici.tv, liberty is just a few clicks away! What are you waiting for?

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A selection of our programs is available for free for all registered users and the rest can be unlocked with a subscription, including Verdi’s Don Carlo. Live videos, replays or VOD, stream right to your living room from the most renowned concert halls in the world, and you can watch our operas on your biggest screens with AirPlay, Chromecast, and our new Roku app. Come and discover Verdi’s most beautiful operas, including Nabucco, interpreted by artists of the caliber of Benjamin Bernheim, Aleksandrs Antonenko, and Bryn Terfel

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Nabucco, whose original title is Nabuchodonosor, is without a doubt the most political work of Verdi’s repertoire. In fact, the work has become symbolic of Italian unification during the period called Risorgimento (“Resurgence”). In fact, through the situation of the Hebrews held captive in Babylon, the public in the premiere of Verdi’s Nabucco could see a distant echo of the Austrian domination on the North of the Bel Paese. Two years later (1844), in Bologna, the first patriotic protests finally took hold! During these riots, writing often appeared on the city walls: “W V.E.R.D.I.”, which was an anti-Austrian message, as it could be read as the acrostic of “W Vittorio Emanuele Re D’Italia” (“W Victor Emmanuel King Of Italy”)! Nowadays, the aria “Va’, pensiero…” is regularly perceived as the national anthem of the Republic of Italy. On medici.tv, you can find some of the best interpretations of Nabucco, whenever you want, wherever you like!