The opera in two acts by the 19th-century composer from Bergamo was written especially for what was then known as the Teatro Carolino (now Teatro Bellini) in the Sicilian city, where it made its debut on January 7, 1826.
The discovery was made by Edoardo Cavalli of the Gaetano Donizetti study centre linked to the annual Donizetti Opera Festival in Bergamo.
The Alahor autograph had reportedly been the object of study for years but “no one before now had confirmed its authenticity” said Conservatoire director Daniele Ficola.
Donizetti arrived in Palermo in April 1825 as maestro di cappella and musical director of the Teatro Carolino, only to leave the following February.
While in Sicily he composed ‘Alahor in Granata’, which received a lukewarm reception before being performed at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples and then again in Palermo, without the composer, in 1830.
Until now, the score of this third rendition of the opera was the only one to have been identified.
ANSA
