A number of Verdi’s early operas are closely associated with the Risorgimento, no more so than “Nabucco” with its famous chorus, “Va pensiero,” in which the people yearn for a homeland. Arguably, however, it was the follow-up and now rarely performed opera, “I Lombardi alla Prima crociata,” which best encapsulates the spirit of the Italian people’s desire for nationhood. Listening {…}