Mercadante+virginia+opera Rara+

Many 19th century Italian operatic composers had problems with censors. Verdi's disputes over Rigoletto notorious, but many other works by Rossini and Donizetti were rewritten to appease the arbiters of what was deemed morally, religiously or politically correct. Another victim was Saverio Mercadante. 'Virginia', completed in 1850, was not performed until 1866 because the composer refused to make alterations. The work is set in ancient Rome where the heroine, daughter of the soldier Virginio, is assailed by the corrupt and powerful Appio as part of an ongoing conflict between patricians and plebeians. It ends with Virginia's father stabbing her rather than relinquish his daughter to their oppressor.