Madama Butterfly

Based on a play by David Belasco, Madama Butterfly concerns the disastrous results of a young American naval officer's marriage to a pretty geisha girl. Scorned by the La Scala audience at its 1904 premiere, the opera was revised by Puccini and afterwards met with a brilliant success that continues to this day. The heartrending story, combined with The composer's inspired use of color effects to evoke the exotic Japanese setting, make it one of the world's most popular operas. This authoritative vocal score--including all the vocal parts, a piano reduction of the full score, and the complete libretto in Italian and English--offers musicians an inexpensive alternative to other editions costing significantly more. Indispensable for rehearsal pianists and singers, this volume will delight music students, musicologists, and opera lovers as well. Unabridged republication of the 1906 Ricordi edition. English (R. H. Elkin) and Italian underlay.