'La Traviata' is 'the woman gone astray', 'the wayward one'. Verdi's opera is based on the story of the novel 'La dame aux camélias' by Alexandre Dumas fils about the life of a consumptive demimondaine full of joie de vivre in the salons of Paris and her wish to return to a life filled with meaning. In contrast to all opera subjects set to music by Verdi until then, this one was taken from everyday life; as a consequence, the music encompasses both positive and subdued to melancholy moods. After...