Villa Musica Mainz

Mozart Gala

Montabaur Castle, Sunday 18 June, 5 pm

Claudia Eder and four fantastic young singers from Mainz tell the life story of a dazzling Mozart prima donna: Adriana Ferrarese del Bene was the first singer at the Vienna Court Opera from 1788 to 1791. She made musical history as the first Fiordiligi in Mozart's Così fan tutte and as the second Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro. The rondos composed for her by Italian maestri such as Tarchi, Anfossi and Bertoni sound almost as beautiful as Mozart's. Sopranos Yuki Tamai and Hannah Kim Koo sing pathetic seria arias from their Italian years. Mezzo-sopranos Shai Terry and Gayoung Kim slip into their Viennese roles. Duets by Mozart and Cherubini round off the festive gala in the baroque castle of Montabaur. In between, Claudia Eder tells the adventurous life story of the Ferrarese, from her escape from Venice to her liaison with Lorenzo da Ponte, in a text by Karl Böhmer.

Photo: Shai Terry Israeli mezzo-soprano - Herbert Piel / copyright Villa Musica