Bellini: Casta Diva from the opera Norma | Lidia Fridman, soprano

Opera’s finest hour: the aria “Casta Diva” from the opera “Norma” by Vincenzo Bellini. It is performed here by soprano Lidia Fridman at the opera gala held by the German AIDS Foundation in Bonn in 2023. Accompanying her was the Beethoven Orchester Bonn, conducted by Jacques Lacombe. LIDIA FRIDMAN | Soprano BEETHOVEN ORCHESTER BONN JACQUES LACOMBE | Conductor Vincenzo Bellini (1801-1835) composed the opera in less than three months. It premiered at the Teatro della Scala in Milan on December 26, 1831 and was a flop. The triumphal success of “Norma,” however, came with its second performance. Vienna, London, Berlin, St. Petersburg, and Paris—people everywhere wanted to see the tragically romantic opera. The story takes place in Gaul around 50 BC. Norma is the high priestess of the druids and the secret lover of the Roman proconsul Pollione, with whom she has two children. Pollione, however, falls in love with the novitiate Adalgisa and wants to leave Norma. Norma vows to take bitter