Opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi

Libretto by Francesco Maria Piave based on the drama by Victor Hugo

First performance - Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 9 March 1844

First performance in Bulgaria - Opera Department of the Drama Theatre "Tear and Laughter", 1892

Second performance in Bulgaria - Varna Opera, 2 October 1960, conductor - Yosko Yosifov, director - Dragan Kardjiev

In Ruse for the first time the opera "Erani" was presented in a concert performance on 22 March 1995 in the programme of the International Music Festival "March Music Days" by the Ruse Philharmonic and the Mixed Choir "Danube Sounds".

First stage reorchestration in Ruse: 16 March 2022 in the programme of MF "March Music Days", conductor - José Cura, director - Orlin Anastasov, artist - Denis Ivanov

Main characters:
Hernani, rebel tenor
Don Carlos, King of Spain - baritone
Don Rui Gómez de Silva, Spanish nobleman - bass
Elvira, his niece - soprano
Giovanna, her cousin, soprano
Don Ricardo, royal squire - tenor
Iago, Silva's squire - bass
Rebels, knights and courtiers

Set in Spain and Germany in 1519

Short synopsis
Act I - "The Exile"
First picture
The son of the Spanish nobleman Juan of Aragon dreams of taking revenge on the Castilian King Don Carlos, whose father sentenced Juan's father to death some time ago. Juan has assembled a band to fight the King and, under the name of Hernani, is hiding in the mountains of Aragon. Here, among the inaccessible cliffs, his rebel detachment is stationed. The rebels feast before setting out on their campaign. Only Hernani does not take part in the general revelry. He passionately loves Elvira, the niece of the old nobleman Gómez de Silva, who has decided to marry her. The King is also captivated by the maiden's beauty. Hernani is unwilling to concede his beloved to any of his rivals. Together with the rebels, he sets out for Silva's castle to free Elvira.

Second picture
In the Castle of Silva. Elvira thinks with dread of her forthcoming marriage to the old man. But her thoughts involuntarily go to the brave Ernani, with whom Elvira is in love. Her reveries are interrupted by the arrival of the maidens of her retinue. They bring rich gifts from the betrothed. But all this does not cheer the maiden. She longs to be left alone with her reveries. Unexpectedly, Don Carlos enters her. The King reveals his love to the maiden and wants to win her reciprocation. Faced with determined resistance, Don Carlos decides to take Elvira away by force when Hernani suddenly enters their home. With dagger in hand he rushes against the King, but Elvira stands between them. Suddenly Silva enters. He recognizes neither the disguised Don Carlos nor Ernani. Wishing to divert the suspicions of the jealous Silva, the King reveals his name and says that he has come to the castle to tell the nobleman of his impending accession to the imperial throne.

Act Two - "The Guest"
Silva feasted at the rich festive meal in the castle's parade hall, surrounded by friends and relatives. He is informed of the arrival of a stranger. It is the King's persecuted Ernani, disguised as a pilgrim monk. According to ancient Castilian custom, Silva receives the stranger as his guest. Elvira enters the hall in wedding robes. Deceived by the false news of Hernani's death, she has consented to her marriage with Silva. Understanding that the wedding will take place the next day, Ernani reveals herself to everyone. He can now be handed over to the King - he prefers death to life without Elvira. But, true to the custom of hospitality, Silva refuses to betray even his rival. He knows that the King's troops are pursuing Ernani, and goes to reinforce the castle's guards himself. When Silva returns he finds Elvira in Ernani's arms. But even at that moment he thinks nothing of revenge, for the King is already at the castle gates. Silva hides Ernani and when Don Carlos orders the soldiers to search the castle, he cannot be found. The King's wrath falls on Silva. Only the appearance of Elvira and her intercession save the old nobleman from death. Don Carlos takes Elvira with him as a pledge of Silva's loyalty.
Once they are alone, Silva offers to duel Hernani, but he refuses to fight his savior. He gives Silva his hunting horn and swears that once he hears its sound, it will be the signal for him to meet death. Before that, the two gather their forces and loyal men to free Elvira.

Third Act - "Mercy"
Night. In the tomb where the remains of Emperor Charlemagne lie. Here are gathered the conspirators who pronounce the death sentence on Don Carlos. When the lot is drawn, it falls to Hernani to do so. Secretly from the conspirators, Don Carlos overhears their secret assembly. A torpedo volley heralds his election as ruler of the entire empire, and he stands openly before the terrified conspirators. At the same moment his soldiers and courtiers, among them Elvira, burst into the tomb. They have come to pay homage to the new emperor. Giving in to the maiden's fervent pleas, the emperor forgives the conspirators - returning Ernani's forfeited noble title and allowing him to marry Elvira.

Act IV - "Masquerade"
The veranda of the castle of Hernani. Elvira and Ernani are happy. After all the hardships and twists of fate they have experienced, they are now together. Suddenly a horn sounds in the distance. Ernani knows what this signal means. Faithful to the oath he made to Silva, Ernani stabs himself in front of the unfortunate Elvira's eyes. She falls dead on her husband's lifeless body.

"Ernani is Giuseppe Verdi's fifth opera. After his third opera, Nabucco, and his fourth opera, Lombardzi, he established himself in Italy as the most important opera composer with the presentation of Errani. Victor Hugo's 1830 drama Ernani attracted Verdi's attention for its choice of subject and composition of libretto. This drama is representative of the genre of dramatic theatre art of the Romantic era. It became the basis for the libretto of the opera, adopting the most characteristic features of Romantic theatre - vivid, relief in their versatility characters of the characters, reaching even contradictory in their psychological relief, strongly affecting the audience with their emotional performances. This surprisingly rich sensibility is complemented and enriched by Giuseppe Verdi's music. In his work on Ernani, Verdi displays the composer's new creative approach to the creation of opera - the desire to bring musical performance as close as possible to the principles of dramatic theatre. Francesco Maria Piave (1810-1876) was the librettist of the Venetian theatre La Fenice at the time of Ernani's composition and became Verdi's collaborator in the work on the opera's libretto. Their collaboration was remarkable - he fulfilled even the composer's smallest demands.