Newsgroup: it.arti.musica.classica
Titolo: Salieri batte Mozart 1-0

Forse non tutti sanno che ...
Mozart's Schauspieldirektor and Salieri's Prima la Musica were composed for the
same occasion; both were commissioned by the Emperor Joseph II and dealt with
the same subject - the creation of an opera and the establishment of an opera
company. Both works had their premieres on February 7th 1786 in the Orangery at
Schonbrunn. Just as the main topic of the two little operas highlights and most
cunningly parodies the competition between rival singers, so these two works
represent in themselves a competition unique in the history of music theatre; by
lmperial decree the newly created German opera, The Singspiel, pitted itself, as
it were, against the ltalian opera buffa to prove its viability. Salieri had an
advantage in that his librettist (Giambattista Casti) was vastly superior to
Mozart's (Stefanie). This was why the plan of the Emperor, who presumably was
hoping  for Mozart and German opera to win the day, failed. - The Orangery was a
long, narrow building with small stages at each end, on which the orchestras
were seated. The audience was placed between them like so many umpires; they
only needed to turn round. - The evening was a triumph for Salieri and ltalian
opera; the Schauspieldirektor was a flop. On February 8th, 1786, the "Wiener
Zeitung" carried the following report: "On Tuesday H.M. the Emperor arranged a
festivity in honour of their Highnesses the Governors General of the Royal &
lmperial Netherlands and a company of the local nobility. lnvitations were
extended to 40 cavaliers (including Prince Poniatowsky), who chose their ladies
and drove in pairs, either in barouches or in closed carriages, along with His
Imperial Majesty, who escorted Her Highness the Archduchess Christine. They left
the lmperial residence at 3 o'clock  for Schonbrunn and alighted at the
Orangery, which was arranged for the reception of the guests and for luncheon in
the most charming and delicate manner. The table under the orange trees was
dressed most delightfully with indigenous and foreign flowers, blossom and
fruit. While His Majesty and the distinguished foreign and other guests were
dining, the Imperial & Royal Court chamber orchestra performed on wind
instruments. At the conclusion of the meal the actors of the Imperial & Royal
National Theatre performed "Der Schauspieldirektor, a play with arias, specially
composed for the occasion" by Mozart, on a stage erected at one end of the
Orangery. As soon as it was over, the Italian stage, built at the other end of
the Orangery, became the venue for an opera buffa also specially written for the
occasion entitled Prima la musica e poi le parole, presented by the company of
the Court Opera. Throughout this time the Orangery was splendidly illuminated by
a large number of lights in chandeliers and on brackets. After 9 o'clock the
whole company returned to town, in the same order as before, each carriage
accompanied by two grooms with storm lanterns." The present performance is based
on the New Mozart Edition and autograph score and on Salieri's dedicatory score.
In respect of tempo and basic mood the overtures are strikingly similar, but the
identical scenarios were bound to produce paral1els of this nature. Since the
German Singspiel contained no recitatives, Mozart's work was interspersed with
extensive dialogue passages, whereas Salieri made use of the customary secco
recitatives. (These bave been omitted,as were some of the arias, in order to
facilitate the publication of both works on the same record.) Salieri: Prima la
Musica, Poi le Parole After Il short, stormy overture the composer (Maestro)
informs the librettist (Poet) in Duet No. l that he has just accepted a
commission to produce and opera within four days. The Poet is outraged,
declaring that he cannot possibly write a complete play in so short a time, but
in the end he is persuaded to cooperate. In the following recitative the Poet
desperately tries to resist the demand that he should supply the text for music
which has already been composed, protesting that this procedure is inartistic.
In addition, the Maestro offends him deeply by declaring that opera goers  are
not the slightest bit interested in the text. They then decide to engage their
cast, and the age-old problem of patronage raises its ugly head. The Poet
recommends a soubrette who is the mistress of a rich benefactor prepared to
provide some money if she gets the part. They start an argument about the
division of the spoils: the Poet wants a half share, while the Maestro demands
nine tenths! A prima donna enters; she prays in aid her friendship with the
Count who has commissioned the opera and is most attentive to the Maestro, while
ignoring the Poet. She boasts ofher huge repertoire and her successes abroad,
particularly with an opera by Salieri. The Maestro invites her to sing the first
cavatina starting at the words "Pensieri. . .". The Poet intervenes to instruct
her in the latest fashion in ornamentation, but she refuses to listen to him.
Recitative No.3 and Aria No.4: The prima donna proposes to sing Sabino's great
aria which opens with an accompanied recitative; first she requests the Poet to
play the roles of her partners, to assume a "dignified pose" and to keep still
until the end; the Maestro accompanies her. As she sings the castrato part, the
ludicrous contrast between the heroic text and the female soprano voice is
emphasized. The Poet complains of her unmusical rendering right up to the final
chord. She is outraged, but intends to give proof positive of her skill in a
Rondo; both men are made to assume highly uncomfortable and grotesque attitudes
as they perform supporting roles. Rondo No.6 is a sad aria of farewell, spoilt
by the Poet and Maestro who complain of their aching knees while they give her
her cues; she is not to be put off, but sings to the bitter end, when the two
men collapse on the ground The primadonna mocks their sensitivity and departs,
confident that she will be engaged. - The two get down to work. The Poet is hard
pressed to find suitable words far the music that is already in existence, but
in the end they manage to piece together an aria and a text after some chopping
and changing. Now they try to fit the soubrette into the piece - a completely
hopeless task, since opera seria and opera buffa were kept rigidly apart. In the
end they cobble together the buffo aria "Per pietą, padrona mia. . .". In a duet
they describe the process of composing a piece of music. Then the libretto is
finished, complete with deliberate errors in writing and reading. While the Poet
goes to fetch the soubrette, the Maestro extols the predominance of the music
over the words and composes a buffo aria. The soubrette, Tonina, arrives,
arguing with the Poet. She grumbles about the old-fashioned operas and
contemptuously throws the scores on the floor. Finally she claims to be an
allround soubrette capable of singing any role that she is given. First she
pretends to be a Quaker girl (this aria was probably omitted as early as the
first performance), then a lunati.
Aria No.1O:The text is a collection of utter nonsense. She berates the two men
because they do not weep tears of emotion; then she continues with her
balderdash. After the aria proper she even imitates a stammerer: Aria No. 11.
In order to silence her Poet and Maestro praise her singing and offer her a part
in their new opera. She is just starting to sight-read her aria when the prima
donna returns. The Maestro interrupts Tonina's rehearsal, thereby infuriating
her. The primadonna immediately wants to start working on her own aria. When she
discovers that a soubrette has been engaged in addition to herself, she flies
into a rage.
Finale Na. 13 starts with Tonina singing her aria in total disregard of the
primadonna, who begins rehearsing her own aria at the same time. Poet and
Maestro, in despair, comment upon the ensuing uproar. Eventually they settle
their disagreement and sing in praise of music theatre.
____________________________________________________
Allegri !
Claudio Chiani
buo n a  s  s  e   e    e     r      a        a 
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 Mozart's Schauspieldirektor and Salieri's Prima la Musica
Prima la Musica, poi le Parole di Salieri non č niente male, la preferisco
all'Impresario Teatrale di Mozart. 2-0 ;-)
Saluti,
Riccardo.

 opera; the Schauspieldirektor was a flop.
Giustamente.  Questo Schauspieldirektor č il pezzo piů brutto di tutta
la storia storia della musica occidentale (e forse mondiale).
Altro che colpa del librettista.  Tze!
P.

Altro che colpa del librettista.  Tze!
se vuoi fare una battuta essendo musicista te lo concedo
se non hai ascoltato l'opera di Salieri ti consiglio di farlo
è di una stucchevolezza incredibile
dello Schauspieldirektor non posso dire la stessa cosa, l'ouverture è
interessante, la musica è gradevolissima e non ribadisce ogni tre battute la
relazione tra tonica e dominante come fa in maniera esagerata imho Salieri
il quale scimmiotta pedestremente il barocco senza coglierne le bellezze
estetiche, rinchiudendosi in quella sterile tecnica musicale che è più adatta ai
polverosi trattati di armonia piuttosto che all'apprezzamento dell'intelletto
umano
l'unico pezzo di Mozart che non riesco a farmi piacere è la sua Ave Maria (che
per qualche maledizione del destino devo anche - talvolta - cantare, visto che è
entrata a far parte del nostro repertorio - io canto nel coro Cycnus di Genova,
sezione bassi)
. a l l E g r i .
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Support bacteria -- they're the only culture some people have !
_______________________________________________________________

 è di una stucchevolezza incredibile
Come musicista sono un dilettante, non penso di potermi permettere
alcunché per questo. Che non tutto quello che ha scritto Mozart è
sublime, lo dico seriamente.
Ho ascoltato tutti e due i pezzi, ma è passato qualche anno e non
me li ricordo bene. L'impressione che mi ha fatto lo SSD è quella
che ho già scritto (modulo l'iperbole), il pezzo di Salieri mi è
sembrato non qualcosa di memorabile (infatti non me lo ricordo),
ma almeno era divertente.
Riascolterò i due pezzi.
Ciao
P.

 ha scritto nel messaggio
news:arjma2$jeouk$1...@ID-80584.news.dfncis.de...

mettici pure un 3 - 0
D.