Donizetti also arranged the librettos of 'Betty' and
'The Daughter of the Regiment,' and of the last act of 'Lucia' he not
only wrote the words but designed the scenes."
Concerning Verdi, Arthur Pougin says: "It is not generally known that,
virtually, Verdi is himself the author of all his poems. That is to
say, not only does he always choose the subject of his operas, but, in
addition to that, he draws out the sketch of the libretti, indicates
all the situations, constructs them almost entirely as far as regards
the general plan, brings his personages and his characters on the
stage in such a way that his _collaborateur_ has simply to follow his
indications to bring the whole together, and to write the verses."
One of Verdi's poetic assistants was Francesco Piave, who supplied the
verses for "La Traviata," "Ernani" and several other of his operas. He
was, Pougin informs us, "a tolerably bad poet, quite wanting in
invention," but he had the most important quality (from Verdi's point
of view) "of effacing himself completely, of putting aside every kind
of personal vanity and of following entirely the indications and the
desires of the composer, cutting out this, paring down that,
shortening or expanding at the will of the latter--giving himself up,
in short, to all his exigencies, whatever they might be.
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