characters and setting mateo falcone : baritone giuseppa , his wife : soprano fredrick , a corsican carpenter baritone fortunato , their son : alto sanpiero , a smuggler : tenor gamba , a sergeant : bass a few soldiers ( i.e. , gendarmes ) : tenors and basses setting : corsica , 1800s a view of the rugged landscape of corsica synopsis the boy fortunato is outside of his family 's house , playing a horn while his parents are away .