Commissioned by the Viceroy of Egypt, Aida is Verdi's only opera written for a non-European house. Although set in 19th century BC Egypt, it borrows...

Commissioned by the Viceroy of Egypt, Aida is Verdi's only opera written for a non-European house. Although set in 19th century BC Egypt, it borrows only superficially from the current fashion for exotic subjects but on closer examination emerges as an implacable indictment of nationalism and imperialism.