The 19th century movement towards Italian unification which concluded in the establishment of The Kingdom of Italy on March 4th 1861 is called ‘’the Risorgimento’’. ‘’The Risorgimento was an ideological and literary movement that helped to arouse the national consciousness of the Italian people, and it led to a series of political events that freed the Italian states from foreign domination and united them politically.’’ (Risorgimento | Italian history | Britannica.com. 2015) The Risorgimento had two main stages; the first – idealistic, revolutionary approach in which began in 1815 and climaxed in the revolutions of 1848/ 1849, the second – diplomatic and practical approach during the 1850’s which led to the creation of a united Italian Kingdom by 1861. (Risorgimento| 2015 | Risorgimento | www.ohio.edu/chastain/rz/risorgim.htm.) The main momentum to the Risorgimento came from the reforms put in place by the French, …show more content…
Italy has essentially been unified by the power of opera alone. Operas circulated through the Italian peninsula, continually crossing the borders between the various states.
The 19th century in Italy was the primary time of the romantic opera, initiated at first by Gioachino Rossini. However Italian music during the time of the Risorgimento commanded by Giuseppe Verdi ‘’ one of the most influential composers of opera in any era.’’ Although modern scholarship has reduced his actual role in the reunification movement, the style of Verdi’s works lends itself to being the soundtrack to the Risorgimento’’ (Italy. 2015) ‘’Verdi’s music and political preferences were considered to be heavily influenced by the growing sentiment for Italian