Verdi’s ‘La Traviata’ from China’s National Centre for the Performing Arts on WHRO-FM

This Saturday, WHRO-FM continues broadcasting the WFMT opera series from China’s National Centre for the Performing Arts, with Verdi's most beloved operas. “La Traviata” combines memorable melodies with an intensely human story of love, sacrifice and social judgment. Indeed, Verdi's music follows Violetta's emotional transformation. The contrast between the festive opening and the heartbreaking “Addio del passato” is central to the opera's emotional power.
Set in France, the intrigue is featuring Violetta, a famous Parisian courtesan, who falls genuinely in love with a man called Alfredo. They leave Paris to live together, but Alfredo's father asks Violetta to sacrifice their relationship because of the family's reputation. She leaves Alfredo without explaining why. When the truth is finally revealed, Violetta is dying of tuberculosis. Alfredo returns, but they have only a brief moment together before she dies.
The title role of Violetta is embodied by Soprano Ekaterina Bakanova who combines vocal agility with emotional vulnerability, portraying both the sophisticated courtesan and the woman discovering genuine love.
Tenor Shi Yijie portrays Alfredo’s anger and desperation when he believes Violetta has betrayed him. He also brings youthful lyricism and passion to the character. Conductor Yu Long has extensive experience with opera and balances the singers' expressive freedom with the precision of the score, allowing the orchestra to support the drama without overwhelming the voices.
This Saturday at 1:00 p.m., tune in to WHRO-FM 90.3 for a particularly powerful opera, and sense the beautiful contrast between its glittering opening and its heartbreaking final act. Don’t forget that you can also listen online via our Media Player.