Arrigo Boito
also Enrico Giuseppe Giovanni Boito, Tobia Gorrio
Birthplace: Padua, Kingdom of Lombardy–VenetiaAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026).
Arrigo Boito was an Italian poet, composer and criticAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026)., remembered for his one completed opera, MefistofeleAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026)., and as the librettist of Verdi's Otello and FalstaffAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026).. Trained at the Milan ConservatoryAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026)., in the 1860s he belonged to the ScapigliaturaAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529., whose iconoclasm he put into an ode that gravely offended VerdiAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.. Mefistofele failed at La Scala in 1868 and succeeded, revised, at BolognaAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026).. As Tobia GorrioWikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026). he wrote La Gioconda for PonchielliAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026).. Reconciled with Verdi through Ricordi, he revised Simon Boccanegra as a trialAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026)., and the friendship lasted until Verdi's death, at which Boito was presentAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026).. Nerone was left unfinishedAshbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026)..
Works
- Falstaff — Librettist, Translator (Paris, 1894)
- Otello — Librettist, Translator (Paris, 1894)
- Simon Boccanegra — Reviser (Milan, 1881)
Written from
- Ashbrook, W. (1992) 'Boito, Arrigo [Enrico]', in Sadie, S. (ed.) The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. London: Macmillan Reference, vol. 1, pp. 527-529.
- Wikipedia (2026) Arrigo Boito. (Accessed: 30 September 2026).