MOZART had been so well satisfied with Da Ponte's libretto for "Figaro" that he had no hesitation in intrusting the new libretto to him, and immediately on his return to Vienna they consulted together as to the choice of subject. Da Ponte, fully convinced of the many-sidedness of Mozart's genius, proposed "Don Giovanni," and Mozart at once agreed to it. Da Ponte relates,[ 1 ] with an amusing amount of swagger, that he was engaged at one and the same time on "Tarar" for Salieri, on the "Arbore di Diana" for Martin, and on "Don Giovanni" for Mozart. Joseph II. made some remonstrance on this, to which Da Ponte answered that he would do his best; he could write for Mozart at night and imagine himself reading Dante's "Inferno"; for Martin in the morning, and be reminded of Petrarch; and in the evening for Salieri, who should be his Tasso. Thereupon he set to work, a bottle of wine and his Spanish snuffbox before him, and his hostess's pretty daughter by his side to enact the part of inspiring muse. The first day, the two first scenes of "Don Giovanni," two scenes of the "Arbore di Diana," and more than half of the first act of "Tarar" were written, and in sixty-three days the whole of the first two operas and two-thirds of the last were ready. Unfortunately we have no certain information either of the share taken by Mozart in the construction of the text, nor of the manner in which his composition was carried on. The warmth of his reception at Prague made the contrast of his position in Vienna all the more galling to him. On the departure of Storace, Kelly, and Attwood for England, in February, 1787, he had seriously entertained the idea of following them as soon as they had found a situation worthy of his acceptance VIENNA, 1787—DITTERSDORF. in London. The bass singer Fischer, who was visiting Vienna,[ 2 ] wrote in Mozart's album on April 1, 1787, the following verses, more well-meaning than poetical:—
Die holde Göttin Harmonie Der Tone und der Seelen,
Ich dächte wohl, sie sollten nie
Die Musensöhnen fehlen,
Doch oft ist Herz und
Mund verstimmt;
Dort singen Lippen Honig,
Wo doch des Neides Feuer glimmt—
Glaub mir, es gebe wenig Freunde die den
Stempel tragen Echter Treu, Rechtschaffenheit.
The lines throw a light on Mozart's relations to his fellow-artists, and the hint contained in Barisani's album verses, written on April 14, 1787, that the Italian composers envied him his art (Vol. II., p. 306), leaves no doubt as to whose envy, in the opinion of himself and his friends, he had to dread. A musical connoisseur, visiting Vienna on his return from Italy in the spring of 1787,[ 3 ] found everybody engrossed with Martin's "Cosa Rara," which, Storace's departure having rendered its performance in Italian impossible, was being played in a German adaptation at the Marinelli theatre with success. Dittersdorfs success in German opera had also the effect of throwing Mozart completely into the shade.
Dittersdorf (1739-1799)[ 4 ] came to Vienna during Lent, 1786,[ 5 ] to produce his oratorio of "Job" at the concerts of the Musical Society, and he afterwards gave two concerts in the Augarten, at which his symphonies on Ovid's "Metamorphoses" were performed. The genuine success of these compositions led to his being requested to write a German opera. Stephanie junior, theatrical director at the time, provided him with the incredibly dull libretto of the "Doctor und Apotheker," which was played for the first DON GIOVANNI. time on July 11, 1786, and twenty times subsequently during the year. That which had not been attained by the success of the "Entführung," happened in this case. Dittersdorf was at once requested to write a second opera, "Betrug durch Aberglauben," which was performed on October 3, 1786, with not less applause than the first; it was followed by a third "Die Liebe im Narrenhause," also very well received on April 12, 1787. On the other hand, an Italian opera by Dittersdorf, "Democrito Corretto," first performed on January 2, 1787, was a complete failure. Dittersdorf's brilliant triumph over such composers as Umlauf, Hanke, or Ruprecht, is not to be wondered at; his operas rapidly spread from Vienna to all the other German theatres, and he acquired a popularity far in excess of most other composers.[ 6 ] True merit was undoubtedly at the bottom of this; he was skilful in appropriating the good points both of opera buffa and of French comic opera, and his finales and ensemble movements are specially happy in effect; he was not only thoroughly experienced in the management of voices, but, being a fertile instrumental composer, he had learnt from the example and precedent of Haydn to employ his orchestra independently, and with good effect. His easy flow of invention furnished him with an abundance of pleasing melodies, a considerable amount of comic talent showed itself in somewhat highly flavoured jokes, and his music had an easy-going, good-tempered character, which, though often sinking into Philistinism, was, nevertheless, genuinely German. Far behind Grétry as he was in intellect and refinement, he decidedly excelled him in musical ability. Life and originality were incontestably his, but depth of feeling or nobility of form will be sought for in vain in his works. Each new opera was a mere repetition of that which had first been so successful, affording constant proof of his limited powers, which were rightly estimated by some of his contemporaries.[ 7 ] Joseph II. COMPOSITIONS IN 1787. shared the partiality of the public for Dittersdorf's lighter style of music, and rewarded him munificently when he left Vienna in the spring of 1787. But the Emperor took no real interest in German opera—the company received their dismissal in the autumn of 1787, and the performances ceased in February, 1788.[ 8 ]
Mozart's autograph Thematic Catalogue contains few important works between his return to Vienna and his second journey to Prague:—
1787. March 11. Rondo for pianoforte, A minor (511 K.).
March 18. Scena for Fischer, "Non sö d'onde viene" (512 K.).
March 23. Air for Gottfried von Jacquin, "M entre ti lascio" (513 K.).
April 6. Rondo for the horn, for Leutgeb (514 K.).
April 19. Quintet for two violins, two violas, and violoncello, C major (Vol. III., p. 19) (515 K.).