When she has told him all, she urges him again to revenge her father's death, in an air (Act I., 10) of which the delicate characterisation completes the perfect image of Donna Anna. This air, in comparison with the preceding recitative and with the duet, is temperate in tone. The renewed appeal for revenge is not the same involuntary outburst of passion which it was; it is the expression of conviction, and is therefore more composed, though not less forcible than before. A high and noble pride speaks in the first motifs (Vol. 11., p. 428)—[See Page Image] DONNA ANNA—OTTAVIO. with inimitable dignity and force, while the plaintive sextoles of the violins and violas, the urgent figure for the basses, which turns to imitation at the second motif, and the gentle admonitory dialogue of the wind instruments represent the restless anxiety which has called forth her determination.[ 174 ]
Donna Anna's elevation of mind raises the man of her choice, and her maidenly bashfulness gives her confidence a lover-like character. Ottavio, who has not been inspired with the same instinctive certainty of Don Giovanni's guilt, finds it hard to convince himself that a nobleman, and his friend, can be capable of such a crime; but he is quite ready to acknowledge the necessity for closely observing him. It was at this point that the air composed in Vienna was inserted (Anh. 3) to express Ottavio's devoted love for Donna Anna. It depicts exclusively the tender lover, and the heroic impulses which might be supposed to belong to the situation will be sought for in vain; the contrast with Donna Anna's high-spirited air is very striking. No doubt the insertion of the song was, in some measure at least, a concession to the individual singer and to the preference of the public for sentimental lovers. Granting this, however, it is simple and true in sentiment, tender without sickliness, and of purest melody. Besides the clear and lovely chief melodies, parts here and there, such as the transition to B minor and the return to D major at the words, "E non ho bene s' ella non l' ha," have a very striking effect. But the song DON GIOVANNI. is below the level of the situation, and, for want of a counterbalancing force, it injures the conception of Don Ottavio's character. The masque terzet expresses in a very pure and noble manner the contrast between an affection based on moral constancy, such as that of Donna Anna and Don Ottavio, and the unwholesome passions of the other characters. Donna Anna, entering masked to play the spy on Don Giovanni, is seized with alarm at the danger which threatens them all, especially her lover—"Temo pel caro sposo" she sings with her own melting, plaintive tones—and she calms her fears with difficulty. In the ball-room, where noisy merriment is at its height, their dignified appearance gives the assembly a certain air of solemnity. Leporello and Don Giovanni greet them respectfully; they answer somewhat ceremoniously, and join in the cry: "Viva la libertà!" but with a sort of dignified reserve which stamps them as of superior rank to the crowd of country people round them. This is a faithful reflection of the manners of the time; so also is the subordination of the chorus in this scene: it was customary for country people to keep at a respectful distance before persons of rank. When the dance recommences, it is Donna Anna again who finds her feelings so hard to master that she almost betrays herself. Zerlina's cry for help is the signal for an outbreak of general excitement; and henceforth they are all avowedly ranged against Don Giovanni. Don Ottavio acts as the mouthpiece and champion of the women, and calls Don Giovanni to account for the murder of the Commendatore. But he makes no attempt to take the punishment of the crime into his own hands, and Don Giovanni is allowed to beat a retreat from the presence of his former friends and now determined opponents. No chorus is introduced in the last movement of the first finale, and indeed none is conceivable.[ 175 ] What would be gained in material sound-effects would be lost in true dramatic effect. The "buona gente" do not presume to take part in the DONNA ANNA—OTTAVIO dispute of their lords; and, as the affair grows serious, the dancers and musicians leave the ball-room hastily, and the principal characters remain in possession of the scene.[ 176 ]
Hitherto Don Ottavio has shown himself as a man deserving of Donna Anna's affection and confidence, loyal and devoted, cautious and determined, and preserving throughout the lofty demeanour which distinguishes him from Don Giovanni. But from this point we are in expectation that he will put his resolutions into action, and that the second act gives him no opportunity of doing so is a serious blemish.
The loose and disconnected plot of the second act sacrifices Donna Anna and Don Ottavio in especial; Elvira, Zerlina, and Masetto are woven not unskilfully into its intricate meshes, but the other two are altogether left out. In the sestet (Act II., 6) the earlier motif of consolatory assurance is repeated without any definite occasion, and only the exalted purity of the music can cover this defect. Their presence is in no way necessary either to the exposure of Leporello's trickery; it is amply justified from a musical point of view, however, for the noble and dignified tone, which contrasts with Leporello's comic fright and gives the character of the ensemble, is the result of their participation.
Don Giovanni's new villainy having removed all doubt of his guilt from Don Ottavio's mind, the latter no longer hesitates to call him to account. His conduct has rendered him unworthy of giving the ordinary satisfaction of a nobleman, and Ottavio resolves to deliver him over to justice, taking upon himself the risk of encountering so bold and formidable an adversary. As he turns to depart his thoughts naturally turn to Donna Anna, who has left the scene after the sestet, and he entreats his friends to console her during his absence, until he shall return with the tidings of a completed revenge. This feeling is natural and true, and the air (Act II., 8) expressing it is in every way appropriate.
His appeal for the consolation of Donna Anna is made in one of the loveliest cantilene which has ever been written for a tenor voice; but the second part is not quite on the DON GIOVANNI. same level. Mozart has rightly refrained from expressing the desire for revenge in a grand heroic movement, which would have introduced a false tone, but has limited it to a middle movement, rendered characteristic mainly by the rapid and forcible motion of the orchestra. The purely musical effect of this part is excellent, but the voice part has not force or brilliancy proportionate to the sweetness and fulness which it has just displayed. The idiosyncracies of the singer Baglione may, in some degree, have occasioned this treatment; he was specially celebrated for his artistic and finished delivery.[ 177 ]
The course of the plot justifies Don Ottavio in his conduct towards Don Giovanni, and when the reprobate has been called before a higher than any earthly tribunal, Ottavio claims Donna Anna's hand, not as a tender lover, but as a faithful protector summoned by fate to her side. Donna Anna's postponement of their union until the year of mourning for her father shall have expired is a realistic trait, and reflects the ordinary rules of society and mode of thought then in vogue too faithfully to be at all poetic. But there can be no doubt of the intention to represent the love of Donna Anna and Don Ottavio as deep and sincere; and it argues a misapprehension of tragic ideality to consider the postponement either as an excuse to conceal her aversion to her lover, or as the result of her determination to renounce earthly love and seek refuge in a convent or the grave.[ 178 ] It is to the disadvantage of Don Ottavio, however, that he is made to re-enter and entreat Donna Anna to consent to an immediate union, without any previous intimation that he has carried out his design of bringing Don Giovanni to justice. This is uncalled for, and shows him in the light of an amorous weakling destitute of energy.[ 179 ] The scene was probably inserted later in order to separate the DONNA ANNA—OTTAVIO. churchyard scene from the supper, and chiefly, no doubt, to supply Donna Anna with another air; the characterisation of Don Ottavio and the natural progress of the plot are sacrificed to these objects. On the other hand, the air itself (Act II., 10) is a grateful task for the singer; and affords important aid to the musical-dramatic characterisation of Donna Anna. Hitherto grief and revenge have inspired her utterances; her affection to Don Ottavio has been indicated by her intrusting to him her most sacred interests and duties. Here, at last, her love breaks forth without reserve, and although she still rejects his petition, it is with a maidenly coyness and an expression of regret which add a new and individual interest to her character. The air is introduced by a recitative, and consists of two independent movements in different tempi. In form and treatment, especially in the employment of wind instruments almost solo, and in the bravura voice passages, it more closely resembles the traditional Italian aria than any other of the original songs in Don Giovanni; but, in spite of this, it renders important service to the characterisation.[ 180 ] The regularity of the musical form corresponds very well to the refined and not only noble but well-bred demeanour of Donna Anna. Deep and sincere emotion is expressed with maidenly tenderness, infused with just the tinge of melancholy which invests the whole representation of her character.
The characters which have been occupying our attention are so accurately and minutely delineated, and every detail is so admirably blended into the conception of the whole, that though a comparison with "Figaro" may doubtless show many superficial points of resemblance, a closer examination reveals the complete independence of the two works. No one figure resembles another even distantly; each has its own life, its own individuality, preserved in the minutest particulars, as well as in the general conception. Not less remarkable than this is the art with which the different DON GIOVANNI. elements, in all their force of energy and truth, are combined into an harmonious and comprehensive whole.
As regards the dramatic force and reality of the situations, especially in the ensembles, "Figaro" has the advantage over "Don Giovanni." The introduction to the first act is admirably planned, both musically and dramatically; in the quartet (Act I., 8) and terzet (Act II., 2) the situation and prevailing tone are simple, but well chosen and sustained; and the idea of giving Don Giovanni and Leporello a share in Elvira's first air (Act I., 3), is productive of excellent effect. The sestet (Act II., 6), on the other hand, is very loosely put together; the characters are grouped round Leporello suitably enough, it is true, but their encounter is not the natural result of the situation, and the climax is a purely external one. The finales in "Don Giovanni" are indeed far superior to the ordinary run, which even in good operas often consist of loosely strung scenes which might just as well be spoken as sung, but they are inferior to the well-combined, consistent* development of the plot which delights us in the finales in "Figaro." The first finale begins in lively style with the quarrel between Masetto, whose jealously is newly awakened, and the terrified Zerlina, who seeks to avoid an outbreak. The insidious ever-recurring motif for both voice and orchestra—[See Page Image]
in contrast with the quickly uttered notes and sharp accents of anger, is highly expressive of suspicion. Suggestive in another way are the beating notes for the trumpets—