e of change in a great master's
art, and this marked the limits of the second period. "Aida" followed.
It is well said that "the importance of Verdi's 'Aida' as a work of
musical art can hardly be overestimated!" This opera was written at
the entreaty of the Khedive Ismail Pacha. He wished to open the opera
house at Cairo with a great opera that had Egypt for its dramatic
theme. Upon the Khedive's application Verdi named a price which he
believed would not be accepted, as he felt no enthusiasm about the
work. But his terms were promptly approved and Mariette Bey, a great
Egyptologist, was commissioned to find the materials for a proper
story. Verdi, in the meantime, _did_ become enthusiastic over the
project and went to work. Egyptian history held some incident upon
which the story of "Aida" was finally built. First, it was given to
Camille du Locle, who put the story into French prose, and in this he
was constantly advised by Verdi, at whose home the work was done.
After that, the French prose was translated into Italian verse by
Ghislanzoni, and when all was completed, the Italian verse was once
more translated back into French for the French stage.

Then the Khedive decided he would like Verdi to conduct the first
performance, and he began to negotiate for that. Verdi asked twenty
thousand dollars for writing the opera, and thirty thousand in case he
went to Egypt. This was agreed, but when the time came to go, Verdi
backed out; he was overcome with fear of seasickness and wouldn't go
at any price. Then the scenery was painted in Paris, and when all was
ready--lo! the scenery was a prisoner because the war had broken out
in France! Everything had to wait a year, and during that time Verdi
wrote and rewrote, making his opera one of the most beautiful in the
world. Finally "Aida" was produced, and the story of that night as
told by the Italian critic Filippi is not out of place here, since the
night is historic in opera "first nights:"

"The Arabians, even the rich, do not love our shows; they prefer the
mewings of their tunes, the monotonous beatings of their drums, to all
the melodies of the past, present, and future. It is a true miracle to
see a turban in a theatre of Cairo. Sunday evening the opera house was
crowded before the curtain rose. Many of the boxes were filled with
women, who neither chatted nor rustled their robes. There was beauty
and there was intelligence especially among the Greeks and the
strange