New-York tribune., 1922-04-09
Bv II. f. Krehbicl


-, h. devised to create the impress
~ erudition Is for writer to
h that sufficient evidence exists to
e.bnsh fact which has never before
,e Questioned concerning the author
1, q, book. Mr.. Walter Littlcfeid
,ar..d to this device when in The
,.,s OF last Sunday he published an
III. in which he ventured the opin-
;ot,bat Lorenzo da Ponte was not the
.as- Of the hbretto OF Mozart's
o,s aCosi fcur tutic." We recall
y-rittlefeld as gentleman who
con ak wears ago published an essay
!, |. Sunday magazine section of the
.sninewspsper, in the course of which
fass n; sarticle Of last week. he dis
nsns a great deal of information
abc, pa Ponte in the guse of the
p,oAt OF original research for which
he rht to have given credit to The
Tribe This writer spent great
desf time patience and labor in in
vesei,tng the American career of the
Italia poet in 1887 and published the
result first in this journal and after
ward n book entitled "Music and
yann,s in the Classical Period"
wbichsss published by Charles Serb
ners 3ns in 1898.
At ut time. some facts touching the
Hebrs ancestry OF Da Ponte, his real
name. his relationship with the
Csthob Church. into which he was re
eeiyedpy the Bishop of Ceneda. who
~ayo I'm the name by which he is
knownthe date Of his arrival in New
York Ten the exact date of his death
and til place of his burial, had not
been cared up. The Tribune's dis
coverie we're helpful, however, and all
the ncs material was used with credit
hy prfessor Angelo Marchesan. of the
University of Trewso. Italy, in his
book entitled, Ollie Vita ollie
oper, di Lornao Da Ponte,' published
IN ln0 "To TINS book Mr.. Littlefeld
mas,s no refeence. though he re
hasfcs as if it 'ere original with him,
cnod deal OF the information first
pri,ted in The Tribune and the boow
published by th Scribners. 1t is the
tide that he ade to the story on which
he basis his cotention that Ds Ponte
did not write te libretto of "Cos fan
lutte" His evience, ne admits is only
.ircumstantial, ut it may nevertheless
ne traversed inthe interest of truth.
The alleged athoriship Of the opera
book, says Mr. Littleheld, is based
upon IAN Until falsity' which is
without a graf of confrmatory evi-
dence,' and iscome to be accepted
simply because has so often been re
pcated Then h marshals his alleged
evidence. This insists of the titles Of
FIVE reprints of ne libretto The first,
ne says, was srItalian one published
by the typographical Society of Vi
enna in 1870. e gives its title thus:
"Cosi fan tutt, ossia lie Scuola digli
.amanti Drammigiveosa in due atti di
represontersi il Teatro di Corte
ismmo 1890 Wolfgango Mozart"
Next he cites second Italian copy Of
the libretto prited in Dresden in 1881.
Then copy.n Italian and German
Breslan, 179l and two German texts
Berlin ireland Angusburg, not later
than 1888. Only the German texts"
ne says, "giv the name of Da Ponte as
the author I the book" Now, in the
Library ofCongress at Washington
there is acollcction Of 10000 opera
ibrettos aeuired by purchase from AL
nert Schat of Rostock, and in it there
are six COPS Of "Cosi fan lutte" The
Hrst descne ind in the catalogue is, no
doubt, thu referred to by Mr.. Little
asld, butdr. O. G. Sonneck, who pub
hshed ;igantic catalogue of all the
hOrettosn the library published be-
'0fs 1so remarks specifically: 1.-TWO
'N'' kenzo da Ponte is mentioned az
suthr. sWolfgango Mozart az the
compose" In a publication for Dres-
dsn DsPonte is not mentioned hut
Aczart's. The Breslau books title
reads q German Prom the Italian of
me ae'te de la Ponte.' A publication
oi thewords of the airs ascribes the
sutnor'ip Of the book to "abate da
f0h'e Bretzner's Leipsic publication,
N wEh the plot Of the comedy was
'hahg1, says nothing about the original
'u'ho whose work had been freely
aoaph' So also reprint of the same
0ookSlth changed title (from "Wei-
oer'lne' TO die Wette"l. The dates
are f94 and 1895. In 1898 the onera
Raced Copenhagen and the title of the
hor'to published there reads: "Veddc-
hani eller Elskernes skole. Et syn
ssiykKe at abbe da Ponte," etc.
'oViously from the first perform
II d n n - noepa |