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VERDI – Song ‘La Donna e mobile’ (from the opera ‘Rigoletto’, 1851) – 6 CELLOS (easy) or TWO CELLOS AND PIANO

Other Identification:
“La donna è mobile” is a famous tenor aria from Act III of Giuseppe Verdi’s opera Rigoletto, meaning “Woman is fickle.” The Duke

The Duke of Mantua sings this cheerful, yet ironic, melody to justify his cruel behavior, while at an inn in order to sleep with one of his many lovers, but for the audience, however, the song is ironic since his behaviour has caused great suffering and his supposed victim, Gilda, has been deceived.

Raffaele Mirate’s performance of the bravura aria at the opera’s 1851 premiere was hailed as the highlight of the evening. Before the opera’s first public performance (in Venice), the song was rehearsed under tight secrecy: a necessary precaution, as “La donna è mobile” proved to be incredibly catchy, and soon after the song’s first public performance it became popular to sing among Venetian gondoliers.

Movements or sections:
Written in a major key and with a fast time signature (3/8), the song is known for its catchy rhythm and became an immediate hit after its premiere in 1851.

Instrumentation: SEXTET OF SIX CELLOS (easy) or TWO CELLOS AND PIANO
Works equally well with a larger cello ensemble !
On top of this, there is ALSO the possibility of performing this music with TWO CELLOS and PIANO – and this score can also serve as a base score in case a conductor is required in the six cello version!
Arranged by David Johnstone

This music is in 3 PDFs:
[1 – General Cello Ensemble Score
[2 – ALL individual Cello Parts
[3 – Piano Score

Approximate difficulty: EASY
Johnstone has setr the music here in G major to be very kind to less experienced cellists! In this way only the first cello part leaves first position (up to 4th position), though some forward extensions are needed in first position.

Dedicatee of this presentation (if applicable):
This arrangement is fondly dedicated to the Severn Cellos Ensemble (Worcestershire, England), organized and directed by the professional cellist Joanne Jefferis

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Johnstone Music has been performed by orchestras and conservatories worldwide, earning international recognition in cello repertoire.

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