"" ( K. 418) is a

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

History

Mozart entered the aria into his catalogue on 20 June 1783 Vienna. It was performed in the

Burgtheater The Burgtheater (literally:"Castle Theater" but alternatively translated as "(Imperial) Court Theater"), originally known as '' K.K. Theater an der Burg'', then until 1918 as the ''K.K. Hofburgtheater'', is the national theater of Austria in Vi ...

, Vienna, on 30 June 1783, as an

insertion aria An insertion aria (' in Italian, also known as suitcase aria, interpolated aria, or trunk aria) is an aria sung in an opera for which it was not composed. It was a practice that began in the seventeenth century and continued actively through the ...

for a performance of

Pasquale Anfossi Pasquale Anfossi (5 April 1727 – February 1797) was an Italian opera composer. Born in Taggia, Liguria, he studied with Niccolò Piccinni and Antonio Sacchini, and worked mainly in London, Venice and Rome. He wrote more than 80 operas, both ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

'' Il curioso indiscreto'' which had premiered with great success in 1777 in Rome. Mozart wrote two other insertion arias for that occasion, "No, che non sei capace" (I. 7) (K. 419) and "Per pietà, non ricercate" (II. 4) (K. 420); K. 418 and K. 419 were written for Mozart's sister-in-law Aloysia Weber, K. 420 for

Valentin Adamberger Valentin Adamberger, also known by his Italian name Adamonti, (22 February 1740 or 6 July 174324 August 1804) was a German operatic tenor. His voice was universally admired for its pliancy, agility, and precision, and several composers of note, su ...

, but that aria was not performed because of some intrigue initiated by Salieri.''

Neue Mozart-Ausgabe The ''Neue Mozart-Ausgabe'' (''NMA''; English: ''New Mozart Edition'') is the second complete works edition of the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. A longer and more formal title for the edition is ''Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791): Neue A ...

'', Series II "Stage Works", group 7: Arias, Scenes, Ensembles and Choirs with Orchestra, vol. 3, p. XI The aria is part of the 1991

pasticcio In music, a ''pasticcio'' or ''pastiche'' is an opera or other musical work composed of works by different composers who may or may not have been working together, or an adaptation or localization of an existing work that is loose, unauthorized, o ...

opera ''

The Jewel Box ''The Jewel Box'' is a pasticcio opera constructed by Paul Griffiths out of various pieces by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Its mostly English libretto by Paul Griffiths includes new translations of most of the Italian-language texts of the musical nu ...

''.

Music

"" was written as a draft for this work just a few days before; it resembles more a

piano reduction In music, a reduction is an arrangement or transcription (music), transcription of an existing sheet music, score or musical composition, composition in which complexity is lessened to make musical analysis, analysis, performance, or practice ...

than a genuine work for piano and soprano. For the final version, the text of the first slow section was changed considerably. The aria is scored for

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

I and II,

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

I and II,

horn Horn most often refers to: *Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound ** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...

I in D, horn II in A, and

strings String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

. The work is 151 bars long and takes about seven minutes to perform. The

key signature In Western musical notation, a key signature is a set of sharp (), flat (), or rarely, natural () symbols placed on the staff at the beginning of a section of music. The initial key signature in a piece is placed immediately after the clef at ...

A major A major (or the key of A) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor. The key of A major is the only k ...

. The aria is divided into three parts; the first part with a

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

of ''

alla breve ''Alla breve'' also known as cut time or cut common timeis a musical meter notated by the time signature symbol (a C with a vertical line through it), which is the equivalent of . The term is Italian for "on the breve", originally meaning tha ...

'' and a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

direction of ''adagio'', ends in bar 80 after a reprise of the initial

stanza In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian language, Italian ''stanza'' , "room") is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or Indentation (typesetting), indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme scheme, rhyme and ...

. The second part is in the time signature of common time and a tempo indication of ''allegro''; at bar 124, the tempo accelerates to ''più allegro'' to the words of the last stanza. The aria has a

vocal range Vocal range is the range of pitches that a human voice can phonate. A common application is within the context of singing, where it is used as a defining characteristic for classifying singing voices into voice types. It is also a topic of stud ...

of 2

octave In music, an octave ( la, octavus: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is the interval between one musical pitch and another with double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been refer ...

s plus a fourth (or 2 900 cents), from E₆ to B₃; the latter note is a

whole note A whole note (American) or semibreve (British) in musical notation is a single note equivalent to or lasting as long as two half notes or four quarter notes. Description The whole note or semibreve has a note head in the shape of a hollow o ...

in bar 135, followed immediately by a whole note D₆, an interval of 2 octaves plus a

minor third In music theory, a minor third is a musical interval that encompasses three half steps, or semitones. Staff notation represents the minor third as encompassing three staff positions (see: interval number). The minor third is one of two com ...

Libretto

Giovanni Bertati Giovanni Bertati (10 July 1735 – 1 March 1815) was an Italian Libretto, librettist. Bertati was born in Martellago, Italy. In 1763, he wrote his first libretto, ''La morte di Dimone'' ("The Death of Dimone"), set to music by Antonio Tozzi. Two ye ...

is often given as the author of the opera's libretto, others credit

Giuseppe Petrosellini Giuseppe Petrosellini (29 November 1727 – 1799) was an Italian poet and prolific librettist working primarily in the '' dramma giocoso'' and ''opera buffa'' genres. Petrosellini was born in Corneto, Papal State (now Tarquinia, Lazio) and spent ...

;"Curioso indiscreto, Il."
by Mary Hunter in ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...

'', edited by

Stanley Sadie Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was an influential and prolific British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was publ ...

however, neither is confirmed. The aria is inserted at the end of act 1, scene 6, where Marchese Calandro wants to test his bride's Clorinda's fidelity – six and a half years later, in 1790, this was a central theme in Mozart's opera ''

Così fan tutte (''All Women Do It, or The School for Lovers''), K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte w ...

''. Calandro persuades his friend, Count di Ripaverde, to court Clorinda. At his second attempt, Clorinda begins to waver and makes a veiled confession of her love to the Count. But stricken by conflicting emotions and her jealousy of the Count's bride, Emilia, she sends the Count away. Vorrei spiegarvi, oh Dio! Qual è l'affanno mio; ma mi condanna il fato a piangere e tacer. Arder non può il mio core per chi vorrebbe amore e fa che cruda io sembri, un barbaro dover. Ah conte, partite, correte, fuggite lontano da me; la vostra diletta Emilia v'aspetta, languir non la fate, è degna d'amor. Ah stelle spietate! nemiche mi siete. Mi perdo s'ei resta. Partite, correte, D'amor non parlate, è vostro il suo cor. Let me explain, oh God, What my grief is! But fate has condemned me To weep and stay silent. My heart may not pine For the one I would like to love Making me seem hard-hearted And cruel. Ah, Count, part from me, Run, flee Far away from me; Your beloved Emilia awaits you, Don't let her languish, She is worthy of love. Ah, pitiless stars! You are hostile to me. I am lost when he stays. Part from me, run, Speak not of love, Her heart is yours.

References

External links

*
Discography
at ''

'' * {{Authority control Arias by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Soprano arias Arias in Italian Opera excerpts 1783 compositions Compositions in A major