12.3: Opera in the Classical Era

Opera in the Classical Era: Mozart's Don Giovanni

Because much opera in the Baroque Period (1600-1750) was mostly written on a serious subject matter like Greek tragedies, they tended to depict royalty and more political problems that they might encounter. These types of operas would eventually pave the way for the Italian opera seria, or "serious opera" in the Classical Era (1750-~1820) that would depict current events from the perspective of royalty and nobility, and were usually written for this specific audience. As a result, the common folk did not relate all that well to the subject matter at hand. A response to this opera seria was the opera buffa, or "comic opera," which was typically written on a subject matter that was more aligned with the common folk and things that they might experience. These operas weren't always funny, but their subject matter was a bit more relatable (and they did depict more comical aspects of life, though it still might not have a happy ending).

One of the best examples of an opera buffa that combines comical and serious elements is Mozart's Don Giovanni. As a Classical-Era opera, Don Giovanni includes a much larger orchestra than Dido and Aeneas: strings, winds, brass, and percussion all come together to create a larger and more colorful musical pallette. The plot of Don Giovanni is a simple story of a terrible womanizing playboy named Don Giovanni, who in an attempt to pursue a woman named Donna Anna, ends up killing her father, the Commendatore, who was trying to protect her. Anna and her fiance Ottavio swear vengeance upon Giovanni, who flees the scene wearing a disguise. He soon encounters a women named Elvira—a woman whom he had scorned in the past—before once again fleeing the scene after realizing who she is. Giovanni's endless womanizing eventually lands him in Hell, which is depicted in the final scene. Read through this synopsis that provides many different pictures from the spectacle from a recent staging of this opera.

The scene we'll see here is a famous scene of Elivra, who sings an aria about finding the man who scorned him (Giovanni), as Giovanni and his servant Leporello watch from afar in a very mocking tone (saying "I should console her," and commenting on how he'd like to try to "win" her). The aria is somewhat comical: Elvira's anger is depicted not only in her acting and facial expressions, but in the music itself. Mozart's melody here includes many melodic skips in her melody. Elvira sings this melody a few times, but pay special attention to the last line in this aria, the "Gli vo' cavare il cor," which translates to "I will rip his heart out." She sings this line several times, but at 2:56, you'll hear a very long, technically impressive melisma, on this one line. It is very clear that Elvira wants nothing to do with Giovanni. Read the translation below before watching Cecelia Bartoli's astounding performance of this aria. When you're done, watch the video presentation that discusses these musical traits in more detail.

Italian text English Translation
Ah, chi mi dice mai Who will ever tell me
Quel barbaro dov'e' Where that barbarian/scoundrel is
Che per mio scorno amai For whom I loved and disgraced myself
Che mi manco' di fe? And to me was unfaithful
Ah, se ritrovo l'empio Ah, if I find again that evil man
E a me non torna ancor And he still will not come back to me,
Vo' farne orrendo scempio I will destroy him
Gli vo' cavare il cor. I will rip his heart out.