The Original Portrayal of Mozart’s Don Giovanni

Contents

• Introduction
• Rewriting the myth of Don Juan
• The demonising of Don Giovanni: A historical overview
• Chapter 1: Luigi Bassi as Don Giovanni
• The singer and his role
• Intention and experience: Prescriptive and descriptive sources
• The performer as a phenomenon
• Grace and gallantry: Bassi’s portrayal
• Performance traditions: Italians and Germans
• Chapter 2: The opening scene
• Chapter 3: Don Giovanni and the three women
• Donna Elvira’s entrance aria
• The duettino
• The quartet and Donna Anna’s narration
• Chapter 4: The party episode
• The champagne aria
• The garden scene
• The ballroom scene
• Chapter 5: The disguise episode
• The first duet with Leporello
• The trio
• The canzonetta
• The disguise aria
• Chapter 6: The graveyard scene
• Chapter 7: The second finale
• The supper
• The last encounter with Donna Elvira
• Don Giovanni and the stone guest
• The final scene
• Postscript: In defence of the operatic work
• Bibliography