DON GIOVANNI, opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (libretto by Da Ponte), first produced at Prague on 29 Oct. 1787. While a buffa opera according to the terminology of the day, or "dramma giocoso," as Mozart called it, the buffa elements are transfigured by the power of genius and 'Don Giovanni> has been universally accorded recog nition as one of the musical masterworks of all time. All of the great composers have paid it homage. Rossini, placing his hands solemnly on an autograph copy of the score, said: "He is the greatest, the master of them all; the only composer who had as much science as he had genius, as much genius as he had science"; while Wagner wrote: "Is it possible to find anything more perfect than every piece in Don Juan?" Based on an old subject, that has done service in many literatures, the book of the opera, in spite of certain weaknesses, is an admirable vehicle for musical treatment; but Mozart invested it with a tragic power that carried it to heights undreamt of by the libret tist. The overture which at the outset prepares the way with its solemn chords and progres sions was written in a single day—one of those miracles of musical creation of which Mozart performed so many. The opera is popularly assumed to be merely a string of musical numbers, connected by recitative, in stead of a serious dramatic work ,• and the usual style of performance is largely respon sible for this notion. As a matter of fact, Mozart excelled in dramatic characterization, and great as is the sheer musical beauty of the opera, still more wonderful, from the mu sician's standpoint, is its subtle reflection of character expression. One has only to recall the trio in the first act when the Commandant is killed, the duet "La ci darem," the serenade "Dch vieni," the drinking song "Fin ch'han dal vino," Zerlina's "Batti batti," to see how won derfully the music heightens the power of the situations. The ballroom scene is a triumph
of contrapuntal skill concealed under a simple exterior. The whole work is filled with touches that reveal the composer's genius at its best and superlatives fade before it. The orchestra, with the utmost economy of means, is as flex ible and responsive an instrument as the great aggregations employed by the most modern composers. An excellent illustration of this is furnished in the accompaniment to Leporel lo's “Madamina* aria — the catalogue aria, as it is sometimes called. In 1825 Manuel Garcia, a famous singer, and the head of a remarkable family of musicians, brought an Italian opera company to New York. At that time Da Ponte, the librettist, then an old man, was living there — having left Europe to escape importunate creditors. He called on Garcia and on learning his identity, the singer clasped him in his arms and danced around like a child, singing "Fin ch'han dal vino." The opera was at once in cluded in the repertory and it was produced on 23 May 1826, with Manuel Garcia himself in the title role and his daughter, later to become world-renowned as Malibran, and two other members of the family also taking part. Its success was immediate and permanent. In spite of the vast strides music has taken in the past hundred years, 'Don Giovanni' still re mains an ever fresh fount of inspiration.