When did Die Entführung aus dem Serail premiere?
Die Entführung aus dem Serail premiered on the 16th of July 1782 at the Vienna Burgtheater, with Mozart himself conducting. The first two performances brought in a combined 1,200 florins.
Questions about Die Entführung aus dem Serail
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who wrote the libretto for Die Entführung aus dem Serail?
The libretto was prepared by Gottlieb Stephanie, inspector of the Nationalsingspiel, based on an earlier work by Christoph Friedrich Bretzner called Belmont und Constanze, oder Die Entführung aus dem Serail. Stephanie adapted Bretzner's text without attribution or permission, and Bretzner publicly protested the theft.
How much was Mozart paid for Die Entführung aus dem Serail?
Mozart was paid a flat fee of 100 Imperial ducats, equivalent to roughly 450 florins, for composing Die Entführung aus dem Serail. He received no share of profits from the many subsequent performances.
What did Goethe say about Die Entführung aus dem Serail?
In 1787, Goethe wrote that Die Entführung aus dem Serail had conquered all, and that his own carefully written libretto work was never so much as mentioned in theater circles after Mozart's opera appeared.
What is the 'too many notes' story about Die Entführung aus dem Serail?
An anecdote first recorded in Franz Xaver Niemetschek's 1798 biography claims Emperor Joseph II complained the opera had too many notes and Mozart replied there were just as many notes as there should be. Scholars dispute both the accuracy of the story and the English translation, noting the original German phrase is better rendered as 'an extraordinary number of notes' or 'very many notes.'
Who sang the role of Konstanze at the premiere of Die Entführung aus dem Serail?
Caterina Cavalieri sang Konstanze at the premiere on the 16th of July 1782. Mozart wrote to his father that he had tailored her aria, the demanding 'Martern aller Arten,' specifically to suit what he called the flexible throat of Mlle. Cavalieri.