Cosi Fan Tutte: English National Opera Guide 22

by Wolfgang Mozart, Nicholas John (Editor)

Overview

English National Opera Guides are ideal companions to the opera. They provide stimulating introductory articles together with the complete text of each opera in English and the original. "It was a treat so truly intellectual that every ear and every breast, susceptible of harmony and of impression, was gratified to a degree beyond our power to describe." Thus one of the first London reviews in 1811 of Mozart's beautiful opera, Cosi fan tutte. Its enigmatic mixture of a detached experiment in human foibles and a struggle of sincere emotions has often disturbed audiences: in the last century it was performed under many different titles and extensively bowdlerised. H.C. Robbins Landon observes, however, that Mozart's heartfelt music proves he is openly on the side of the angels (that is, the ladies), not the deceivers, however cynical da Ponte's words alone appear to be. Brian Trowell describes the sophisticated world in which the opera was conceived, while John Stone traces the origins of the libretto to Ancient Greece, medieval Italy, and even to China. The text is certainly da Ponte's most original masterpiece and is here presented in a newly revised English version.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780714544236
Publisher:	Oneworld Classics
Publication date:	02/01/2011
Edition description:	New
Pages:	132
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.25(d)

About the Author

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) was born in Salzburg, and began composing at the age of five. His subsequent prolific output included the great operas of his maturity, Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, Così fan tutte, and Die Zauberflöte.

Editorial Reviews

Brilliantly produced and superb value.”  —The Sunday Times

"All these will provide the new opera-goer with food for thought."  —Daily Telegraph

"Wholehearted recommendation of this valuable new series."  —TLS

From the Publisher