"Giovanna d Arco" (Joan of Arc), Verdi s seventh opera, premiered at La Scala in 1845 to great public success despite sub-par production standards, and modern performances have swept away both audiences and critical reservations when the work is executed with faithfulness to his score. At the heart of this large-scale opera, with its prominent choruses, is the difficult and beautiful part of Joan simultaneously ethereal soprano and dynamic warrior. The libretto by Temistocle Solera, based in part on Schiller s play "Die Jungfrau von Orleans," omits Joan s trial for heresy and burning at the...