Definition
In nineteenth-century Italian opera (Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti, early and middle Verdi) the main numbers follow a multi-tempo scheme that the critic Abramo Basevi, in his Studio sulle opere di Giuseppe Verdi (1859), called “the solita forma of duets” (the “usual form”). The scheme applies, with adaptations, to arias, duets and act finales. The principle: alternate static, lyrical moments (in which time stops) and kinetic moments (in which the action advances), culminating in a fast section that triggers applause.
The multi-tempo aria
| Tempo | Character | Function |
|---|---|---|
| Scena | recitative accompanied by the orchestra | prepares the situation |
| Cantabile (or adagio) | slow, lyrical, long melody | expresses a static feeling |
| Tempo di mezzo | kinetic: an event (a message arrives, a character enters, an offstage chorus is heard) | changes the emotional situation |
| Cabaletta | fast, rhythmic, virtuosic, often repeated twice with an orchestral or choral ritornello in between | energetic reaction to the new state; brilliant close with a stretta |
The duet
Tempo d'attacco (the two characters confront each other, often with parallel phrases) → adagio (lyrical moment in which they sing together) → tempo di mezzo (event) → cabaletta (often for two, in thirds and sixths).
The act finale
Often: tempo d'attacco → largo concertato (slow ensemble piece in which all the characters and the chorus express different reactions at the same time) → tempo di mezzo → fast stretta.
The “lyric form” of the melody
Cantabiles and cabalettas often use a 16-bar melodic form, called by scholars the lyric form: a a′ b a′′ (or a a′ b c), with phrases of 4 bars; section b is a contrast often over a dominant pedal, the final phrase is a climax with the highest note. It corresponds almost exactly to the AABA form of an American song.
Examples
- Verdi, La traviata, Act I, Violetta's final scene: scena (“È strano!”) → cantabile “Ah, fors'è lui” → tempo di mezzo (Violetta shakes herself, “Follie!”, and Alfredo's offstage voice) → cabaletta “Sempre libera,” virtuosic, with Alfredo's return interrupting.
- Verdi, Il trovatore, Act III: cantabile “Ah sì, ben mio” → tempo di mezzo (the news that his mother is about to be burned) → cabaletta “Di quella pira.”
- Bellini, Norma, Act I: cavatina “Casta diva” (cantabile) → tempo di mezzo → cabaletta “Ah! bello a me ritorna.”
- Donizetti, Lucia di Lammermoor: the mad scene, with cantabile and cabaletta “Spargi d'amaro pianto.”
- Rossini, Tancredi (1813): “Di tanti palpiti,” the cabaletta that made the composer famous.
Evolution
The mature Verdi (Otello, 1887; Falstaff, 1893) dissolves the solita forma into a continuous scene, approaching Wagnerian composition; Puccini uses short arias inserted in a continuous flow with recurring motifs.
How to analyze it
- Divide the number into tempi by looking at the changes of tempo, meter and key in the score.
- For each tempo ask: is it static or kinetic? What is happening in the drama?
- Analyze the lyric form of the melodies (a a′ b a′′).
- Observe the repetitions of the cabaletta and how the singer varies them.
For a producer and songwriter
The solita forma is a dramaturgy that is still very current:
- cantabile = slow verse/ballad;
- tempo di mezzo = narrative bridge, break, beat change;
- cabaletta = fast finale, double-time, “drop” or switch to a more energetic groove, repeated twice with an interlude.
Many pop and K-pop tracks with a final beat switch, or R&B tracks that move from a ballad to an up-tempo, follow the same logic.
Related
Baroque opera: recitative, arioso and da capo aria, Leitmotif and music drama, The 32-bar American song form, Dance break and beat switch in K-pop, Prosody: words, melody and harmony.