Program

Two comic operatic masterpieces breathe new life into the traditions of Italian opera buffa and Viennese Classicism. Domenico Cimarosa, in his Il maestro di cappella, masterfully combines melodic lightness with quick-witted theatrical dialogue, while Antonio Salieri, in Prima la musica e poi le parole, explores the fascinating clash between artistic talent and social ambition.

What unites the two works is their witty glimpse behind the scenes of the opera world. They are a form of meta-melodrama – in other words, opera making fun of itself. They explore the intertwined relationship between theatre and music, the rivalry between performers, aesthetic conventions, and the eternal debate over the superiority of music or words. At the time these works were created, this was a very popular subject. The tradition can be traced directly back to Benedetto Marcello’s satirical pamphlet Il teatro alla moda from 1720, which humorously and exaggeratedly criticised the operatic practices of his day. Yet on closer inspection, we find that little has changed since Marcello’s time: many of the things that were considered amusing then still have their counterparts in the world of opera today.

Two comic operatic masterpieces breathe new life into the traditions of Italian opera buffa and Viennese Classicism. Domenico Cimarosa, in his Il maestro di cappella, masterfully combines melodic lightness with quick-witted theatrical dialogue, while Antonio Salieri, in Prima la musica e poi le parole, explores the fascinating clash between artistic talent and social ambition.

What unites the two works is their witty glimpse behind the scenes of the opera world. They are a form of meta-melodrama – in other words, opera making fun of itself. They explore the intertwined relationship between theatre and music, the rivalry between performers, aesthetic conventions, and the eternal debate over the superiority of music or words. At the time these works were created, this was a very popular subject. The tradition can be traced directly back to Benedetto Marcello’s satirical pamphlet Il teatro alla moda from 1720, which humorously and exaggeratedly criticised the operatic practices of his day. Yet on closer inspection, we find that little has changed since Marcello’s time: many of the things that were considered amusing then still have their counterparts in the world of opera today.