When did The Magic Flute premiere and who conducted the first performance?
The Magic Flute premiered on the 30th of September 1791 at the Freihaus-Theater auf der Wieden in Vienna. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart conducted the orchestra at the premiere.
Questions about The Magic Flute
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who wrote the libretto for The Magic Flute?
Emanuel Schikaneder wrote the German libretto for The Magic Flute. Schikaneder also played the role of Papageno at the premiere performance.
What is a Singspiel and why does The Magic Flute qualify as one?
A Singspiel is a popular German-language opera form that mixes singing with spoken dialogue. The Magic Flute qualifies because it combines operatic arias and ensembles with spoken scenes throughout both acts.
What Masonic elements appear in The Magic Flute?
The Magic Flute contains extensive Masonic symbolism, including the recurring number three (three ladies, three boys, three temples, three-chord brass sequences) and initiation trials. Mozart and Schikaneder were both Freemasons, as was Ignaz Alberti, the printer of the first libretto.
When did Mozart die relative to the premiere of The Magic Flute?
Mozart died on the 5th of December 1791, just over two months after the premiere on the 30th of September 1791. The Magic Flute was his last opera, and he did not live to see its hundredth performance in November 1792.
What was the first complete recording of The Magic Flute?
The first complete recording of The Magic Flute came from a live performance at the 1937 Salzburg Festival, conducted by Arturo Toscanini with the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna State Opera. The first studio recording was completed in 1938, with Sir Thomas Beecham conducting the Berlin Philharmonic.