Mozart considered Idomeneo to be his greatest work in the genre of opera. Inspired by the operas of Gluck, which he had seen in his Parisian period, he wrote perhaps the best baroque opera in history.
Mozart was to write a Singspiel for Emperor Joseph II. He fulfilled his wish and wrote the first truly great work for this genre. At the same time he beyond it and wrote one of his great masterpieces. It became one of his greatest successes during a sunny period of his life.
In order to describe the final result of the collaboration between Da Ponte and Mozart, superlatives must not be neglected. “World theatre at the level of Don Qujote and Hamlet” or “opera of the operas” are attributes heard and read again and again.
Mozart finished the work in September of 1791, the year of his death, and by November he was already in bed sick and died on December 5. It is inconceivable that this magnificent opera was written in the shadow of his death. The Magic Flute became the most frequently performed opera in the entire repertoire in the 20th century and its popularity is unbroken.
When Mozart wrote “Cosi fan tutte” in 1790, he was economically devastated. He wrote this opera in an incredible 2 months in his penultimat year of death. Mozart again offers us an abundance of melodies. Especially the ensemble scenes like the love duets “soave sia il vento” or “il mio cor vi dono” remain immortal.
That Da Ponte and Mozart were able to create a masterpiece out of this intricate comedy is a miracle. With “Le nozze di figaro” Mozart not only wrote wonderful situation comedy with stunning music, but also five immortal role portraits for the main characters. Read more