The term verismo is used to describe a school of Italian opera, specifically in terms of its libretti. It blossomed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as a reaction to the high-flown subjects previously treated by the operatic form.
Composers such as Mascagni, Leoncavallo and, above all, Puccini became interested in naturalistic, rather than moral or heroic, subjects. Their protagonists were not gods or heroes, but recognisable people in dramatic, human dilemmas. Their political situations were near-contemporary, rather than legendary or classical. Above all, their settings could be modern and their characters middle-class.
To late twentieth century minds some of these ΓÇ£ordinaryΓÇ¥ stories may still seem melodramatic. In their time they were considered shockingly down to earth and, sometimes, highly unsuitable.
For an example of verismo opera, listen to the Tosca extract in The AcademyΓÇÖs Concert Hall.
