Evening star., 1955-01-09
Mozort S Cosi fan tutte'
Billed Twice This Week
Symphony and Six SoIoists to Perform
Work Under Direction Of Galloway
News Of Music
By Day Thorpe

Il Mozart's "Cosi fan tutte."
his last opera ba6a. win be
given two performances this
week by the National SYM
phony Orchestra. under the
direction of Paul Galloway.
There are no minor roles u
this opera, each Of the six re-
curing an artist OF urisuf-
passed ability as an ensemble
singer, and five calling Tor
soloists of great range and
dramatic power.
As In. all Mozart's comic
operas, the chorus. while It
makes several appearances
very effective dramatically. is
not Of prime Importance, II
one can rate such matters IN
8 perfect artistic composite.
Phyllis Curtin, soprano, Is
Fiordiligi; Jane Hobsor. Dora
bella: Barbara Gibson, Des-
pima: David Lloyd. Fernando;
Mac Morgan, Guglielmo: and
kenneth Smith. Don Alfonso.
An are good singers experi-
enced in Mozart opera The
chorus is the Chamber Chorus
Of Washington, which has
given many performances here
and elsewhere Of Mozart.
Scarlatti, Byrd. and other
music.
Mozart wrote in every style,
and was unexcelled in every
thing he attempted, but opera
was his greatest love. The first
10 Of his % pieces for the
stage are works Of his youth;
during his mature years OPP
portunity came all too rarely
for him to use his gifts as q
dramatic composer. @
Mozart seldom wrote any
thing that was either not COM
Enissioned or for which there
was no prospect of immediate
performance, and his letters
ere evidence Of ceaseless Bit
ternesS and sorrow at being
unable to devote himself en-
tirely to opera.
No composer with q new
opera perhaps lacking In color
or immediate appeal. no, pro-
ducer anxious to assure the
success Of a revival. turned
to Mozart In vain. He was
always willing to write an aria
or even a complete scene to
be implanted In the work Of
another. Seventy -one are now
known, buried in works usu-
ally with no other incentive
for resuscitation. Numerically,
they form the largest single
category Of all Mozart's works.
Reasons for Attachment
The glamour, splendor and
excitement of an opera per-
formance, the sense of being
the creator of the most tan
gible and realistic Of all kinds
of music, were certainly prime
reasons for Mozart's attach-
ment to opera. A deeper rea-
son was his lifelong fascina-
ton with the exposition of
character and dramatic ac-
ton.
From his earliest days in
Salzburg, Mozart was passion
ately devoted to the theater.
His ability to depict individ-
uals and situations in music
was no less highly developed
than Shakespeare's to do the
same in words. His whole
genius was essentially dramat-
5ic-the frustrated opera COM
poser would typically personify
q baSsoon, a horn, or a violin
In his purely instrumental mu-
sic, making each behave like
o character in an unwritten
opera. When one becomes in
timately familiar with the
musical gestures, conventions
and idioms Of Mozart's operas,
all his instrumental works are
heard in an entirely new per-
spective. -
! Wrote Four Types
Mozart wrote four different
kinds Of opera. The pastorale
g-stylized. static, almost a
pageant-he abandoned in his
early youth. The popular
opera--the musical show for
lthe people. the Broadway hit
Of its day. sung in the Ian
guage Of the audience. he was
the first composer of stature
to make successful. die
Entfuhrung ausdem Serail'
and die zauberfiote" are his
two masterworks in this genre.
Z Then there was opera seria,
tragic opera the Ibretto of
which was vigorously pre-
iscribed by convention, and
the music for which was as
restricted In form as the lines
sof q sonnet. "Tdomeneo" and
s"La Clemenza di Tito" are
examples of opera Seriu.
Opera bufd. or comic opera,
is represented by the three
masterpieces Mozart wrote In
collaboration with Lorenzo da
Ponte-"Le Nozze di Figaro"
Don Giovanni" and "Cosi
fan lutte" 1t is the kind of
opera by which Mozart is now
best known. and a kind which
has had few first class exem-
plars since his tirne-"Fal-
staff" of, Verdi, IN Barbiere