Search - Rolando Panerai, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Herbert von Karajan :: Mozart: Così fan tutte (Highlights)

... genuine music...

Mr Bassil A MARDELLI | Riad El-SOLH , Beirut Lebanon | 04/15/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is another Opera Buffa Mozart composed and Lorenzo da Ponte wrote



Così fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti - KV 588 - (Thus Do They All, or The School for Lovers) is equal in its grandiose music to Don Giovanni and Figaro, da Ponte wrote the libretto of the three chef-d'óeuvre.



Da Ponte, aided by Mozart, took as a buffa base "fiancée swapping" which dates back to the thirteenth century. They must have had in mind certain snapshots from `The taming of the Shrew' by Shakespeare.



Così (as known in English speaking communities) was written and composed in answer to the prompting of the Austrian Emperor Joseph II.



Mozart's `rival' - Salieri who competed with Mozart to fetch as many works from Da Ponte as possible, cherished to compose this opera instead of Mozart. It is said that Salieri actually worked on part of Cosi in the first act, then ran out of steam and couldn't complete the entire work.



The title, Così fan tutte, literally means "Thus do all [women]" but it is often translated as "Women are like that".



The first performance of Mozart's setting took place at the Burg's theater in Vienna on January 26, 1790. - Mozart was then 34 years less one day. Bear in mind that Mozart had one more year to live (died 1791), yet he composed Opera buffa amid unbearable pain caused by deteriorating health conditions.



I am sure you will see how Mozart has been able to have superior libretto subordinated to his genuine Music.



So did Karajan.



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