© Copyright 2005/2026 of the Centro Ricerche Musicali Beethoveniane (C.R.M.B.) www.lvbeethoven.it – Managers, co-authors, reviewers and curators: Luigi Domenico Bellofatto, Antonietta Cappelli, Graziano Denini, Armando Orlandi and Fiorella Romenzi. Texts, documents, research, scores, mp3, MIDI files and documents are the exclusive property of the Centro Ricerche Musicali Beethoveniane (C.R.M.B.) and their respective authors; therefore, none of these resources may be used or disclosed without the prior written authorization of the owners. The complete list of researchers, performers and collaborators of the Centro Ricerche Musicali is visible on the relevant page. Anyone wishing to contact us for consultation, to obtain a copy of the site’s resources or to collaborate with the Centro Ricerche Musicali Beethoveniane (C.R.M.B.), can make a request using the appropriate contact form. Web publishing: Aruba. Site optimized for mobile devices, tablets and PCs with a resolution of 1920 × 1440 or higher. To provide a better service to users, the site only uses technical cookies, which do not track the visitor or send personal data to third parties. These cookies do not require a prior consent banner: we mention them here anyway.
Salvatore Viganò, born in Naples on March 25, 1769, was first a dancer and later a choreographer. He came from a family of artists: his father, Onorato, was a dance master and choreographer; his mother, Maria Teresa Boccherini, also a dancer, was the sister of the famous Luigi Boccherini. Salvatore studied composition with his uncle.
His debut as a dancer—in a female role—took place in Rome. Shortly thereafter, Viganò traveled to Spain, contracted for performances in honor of Charles IV in Madrid (1788), where he met and married Spanish dancer Maria Medina. The couple later moved to England with the famous choreographer J. Dauberval, from whom Viganò learned Noverre’s theories and the art of choreography.
He performed briefly at the Paris Opera (1789), then in Bordeaux and Venice (1790), where audiences were particularly enthusiastic about his wife’s performances, noted for her very transparent and provocative costumes. This caused an initial rift in the couple, who nonetheless continued performing together from 1795 to 1799 in Prague, Dresden, Berlin, and Hamburg. In 1799, however, the definitive separation occurred, and Viganò returned to Vienna, becoming maître de ballet at the theater until 1803.
In Vienna, he choreographed many celebrated ballets for the Hoftheater, most notably his masterpiece The Creatures of Prometheus, first performed at the Burgtheater on March 28, 1801. While Beethoven composed the music, Viganò created the choreography and even danced at the premiere. Although Beethoven was not entirely satisfied with his contribution, the production was performed 14 times in 1801 and 13 times the following year.
Viganò returned to Italy in 1804. His subsequent productions in Milan, Venice, Rome, and Padua marked a progression in his development of dramma danzato, based on expressiveness tied to musical rhythm. He settled permanently in Milan in 1812, abandoning dance to focus entirely on choreography. Until his death in Milan on August 10, 1821, he served as maître at Teatro alla Scala, successfully staging many of his works.
As the creator of the so-called coreodramma (dance drama—a fusion of dance and dramatic acting that emphasizes the corps de ballet over solos or pas de deux), he was the first to intuit the dramatic potential of choreographic art. Viganò reached the pinnacle of his artistry with Prometeo (a reworking of The Creatures of Prometheus) in 1813 at La Scala. This success was due especially to the quality of the performance, the dancers’ interpretation, the musical selections (some composed by Viganò himself), and the grand neoclassical staging. Critics unanimously recognized this “grand ballet” as a masterpiece: Stendhal, Foscolo, and Porta all praised it.
With his final coreodramma, I Titani (1819), Viganò achieved spectacular staging heights that anticipated the rise of Romanticism.
La vendetta di Venere – Historical Notes
La Vendetta di Venere, gran ballo composto e diretto al R. Teatro alla Scala, dal Sig.r Salvatore Viganò (musica di diverse rinomati autori). Ridotta per Cembalo Solo dal Sig.r Ferd.o Bonazzi. Dedicato dall’Editore Al Merito singolare della Sig.a Elena Viganó (La vendetta di Venere, gran balletto composto e diretto al Teatro Regio della Scala dal sig. Salvatore Viganò [musiche di vari autori di fama].
(La vendetta di Venere, grand ballet composed and directed at the Royal Teatro alla Scala by Mr. Salvatore Viganò (music by various renowned composers). Arranged for solo harpsichord by Mr. Ferd.o Bonazzi. Dedicated by the publisher to the singular merit of Mrs. Elena Viganò).
Milan [ca. 1817]. An arrangement of musical pieces from Viganò’s ballet Mirra, ossia La Vendetta di Venere (1817), featuring music by Rossini, Beethoven, Josef Weigl, Michael Umlauff, and Michele Caraffa.
Elena Viganò, to whom this harpsichord reduction was dedicated, was the choreographer’s daughter and also a dancer. The Viganò family was one of many multigenerational dance dynasties that left a profound mark on Italian ballet. Emerging in the 18th century with Salvatore’s father, Onorato, the Viganòs remained active in the field until the late 19th century.
As for the arranger, Ferdinando Bonazzi was an Italian organist and composer. Born in Milan in 1764, he served as organist at the Milan Cathedral from 1795 to 1841. At the city’s Conservatory, his students included Stefano Ronchetti-Monteviti and Carlo Boniforti, who succeeded him as director in 1841 upon his retirement.
Bonazzi’s few known works include:
- Sonata for Two Organs (in C minor)
- Sonata for Organ and Harpsichord
- Te Deum
He was an extremely active arranger for piano, especially of works by Rossini, Bellini, and Donizetti.
?️ Elena Viganò – Performer and Muse
Elena Viganò, soprano and daughter of the celebrated choreographer Salvatore Viganò, was an amateur singer. “Sostenendo colla più squisita e non comune maestria dell’arte la non robusta, ma potente voce, spiegò ogni grazia e venustà di canto, ed ottenne tale, e tanta ammirazione che dimenticando il Pubblicò trattarsi in Lei d’una cortesissima amatrice l’impegnò con incessanti applausi a ripetere il suo pezzo a solo”
(“Supporting with the most exquisite and uncommon mastery of the art a voice not robust but powerful, she expressed every grace and charm of song, and earned such admiration that the audience, forgetting she was a gracious amateur, compelled her with incessant applause to repeat her solo piece.)” (Teatri Arti e Letteratura, April 5, 1827)
Portrait of Elena Viganò by Marie-Eleonore Godefroid
The Gran Ballo “La vendetta di Venere” is part of the “Research Becomes Art” project.
A New Life for the Unknown Works of Ludwig van Beethoven: An Artistic Exploration by the pianist Professor Antonietta Cappelli
Interpretive Notes
Professor Antonietta Cappelli points out what she believes to be a misprint. The G-sharp marked in green creates a “false relation,” unpleasant to the ear. A natural G would be much more appropriate. Both versions are presented for comparison.
Another small note concerns the beginning of the piece. According to Prof. Cappelli, the piece begins with an upbeat. One eighth note is missing to complete the final measure, and the initial forte recalls the forte on the last eighth of measure 12.
Musical examples and videos on this page are curated by Antonietta Cappelli. To contact the author, use .
