As we can see, although di Luna and Manrico have some military and potentially physical similarities, they also have marked differences in their characters that need to come out through the music and the drama, otherwise you would not understand Leonora’s preference for Manrico. If both male parts were played by solely heroic, strong voices, you would be forgiven for seeing them as just being two soldiers, and would be puzzled as to why the opera was entitled ‘ The Troubadour’.

Throughout the opera, Manrico serves several different purposes to the various characters he meets. We already know that to di Luna, he is a rival, a rebel, and through his execution, he will be the cause of di Luna’s greatest tragedy. To Ruiz and his soldiers, he is seen as a courageous leader who they look to for inspiration and leadership in the battle against Aragon. To Leonora, he is the love of her life and the reason for her living, though in addition to this he also fulfils the role of comforter, a trait that also manifests itself in his relationship with Azucena. The purpose of his only true aria (“Ah si, ben mio”) is to comfort Leonora over the potential danger that they are facing and to reassure her of the strength of their love. In the last act, he calms Azucena and sings her to sleep so as to settle her nerves over their impending execution. For proof that he ‘can’ fulfil this role we need only remember the serenity of ‘Tacea la Notte’, to show that his singing can soothe the most worried of hearts. Again such a thing would be unbelievable if the tenor could not manage the requisite lyricism for the role, and could only serve the heroic aspects.

So far the current picture of Manrico does seem to favour that of the lyric singer, though such an assumption would neglect the undoubted ‘darker’ and stronger aspects of his character, which require something more than just beautiful singing. He is impulsive, firstly by the way he reacts to Leonora’s case of mistaken identity in the first act, and by his hot-headed assumption over how she intends to save his life in the last act. Though such mistakes are be understandable in the circumstances (and indeed he does quickly rectify his faults), Manrico is also quick to challenge di Luna to a duel, and is disturbingly graphic in the way he describes the fate of his mother’s captors in the “Pira”. To counteract the solely lyric argument, it would be ridiculous to have a sweet voiced tenorino speak of ‘using the blood of his enemies to quench the flames of his mother’s funeral pyre’. Yet although he shares the same fiery nature of di Luna, and is heroic in his rescuing of Leonora (twice) and his mother, there is something almost celestial or “Guardian Angel” in his presence. Leonora even questions whether he is actually sent from God (Act 2 Scene 2: “Sei tu dal ciel disceso…?”), and we remember that the words of his serenade were likened to a man at prayer, in her first act aria (“qual d’uom che prega iddio”). Di Luna also claims that a rival God opposes his love for Leonora (“un Dio rivale s’oppone all’amor mio!”) and not even a divinity can steal her away from him, when she is about to take the veil (“Non puo nemmen un dio, Donna, rapirti a me”). Of course Manrico appears on the scene to save Leonora stating that that same God is his help, and confounds the wicked (“..gli empi un Dio confonde! Quel Dio soccorse a me”). I do not mean to suggest that he should appear with wings and a halo and be canonised for his good deeds, but for me it shows that his heroic figure is slightly more complicated than simply being heroic soldier who rescues the Damsel in distress from his enemies.

With all this said, I still enjoy the absolute thrill of hearing the ‘Pira’, yet I now feel that this is only a very small part of the work as a whole. I want more from my ‘Manrico’ than just a ringing high note; I want to hear the rest of Verdi’s sublime music, done as the composer intended, so that I can truly enjoy the excitement of such a fascinating work. As with many other characters in the history of Opera, the role of Manrico is far too complex to truly be categorised into today’s ‘fachs’ or performance terms. We recognise the heroic and courageous nature of the role, but more importantly we see the obvious need for lyricism, which is so vital to both the drama and the score. I feel that today’s performances are too far weighted towards the more spinto aspects of the role, and do not fully achieve the true drama of the piece because of the neglect of the lyricism. The ideal protagonist has to be capable of both heroic and lyric singing, otherwise the full extent of Verdi’s character, and indeed Verdi’s opera will not be realised.