A week ago we remarked that in the modern operatic canon, the works of Giacomo Meyerbeer are non-existent. That is even truer for Saverio Mercadante, a composer who was famous in his time but has not seen his works achieve anything resembling a revival. Baptized on Sept. 17, 1795 (the date of his “illegitimate” birth remains a mystery), he was {…}