COSI FAN TUTTE ACT I (S6 | E288)
Enough with the pop princesses… for now. This week we go back 236 years to the time of Mozart.
In our latest episode, we are pulling back the curtain on Act I of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s brilliant opera buffa, Così fan tutte. At its core, this opera is a hilarious and cynical exploration of human fidelity, as two young men don disguises to test the loyalty of their fiancées. But as we explore on the broadcast, the drama unfolding on the stage is sometimes entirely eclipsed by the delightfully petty drama that happened behind the scenes.
WHAT ABOUT THIS CRAZY SOPRANO?
One of the most iconic moments in Act I is the spectacular aria “Come scoglio,” sung by the character Fiordiligi. In this sweeping number, she proudly declares that her faithfulness is as firm as a rock standing against a storm. It is a show-stopping piece of vocal gymnastics that demands absolute precision and power from the performer. However, to understand the unique musical architecture of “Come scoglio,” one must examine the historical context of its composition.
The role of Fiordiligi was written specifically for the Italian soprano Adriana Ferrarese del Bene, who was, at the time of the 1790 premiere, the mistress of the librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte. Mozart reportedly harbored a strong personal and professional dislike for Ferrarese del Bene, viewing her as arrogant and musically lacking in taste, despite her possessing a remarkable vocal range. A publication of the era, the Rapport von Wien, noted that she possessed “an unbelievable high register” alongside a “striking low register.”
Historical anecdote and musicological lore suggest that Ferrarese del Bene had a peculiar physical habit while singing: she would instinctively drop her chin to her chest when singing low notes, and throw her head back violently to reach high notes. Seeking to play a malicious prank on the diva, Mozart intentionally filled “Come scoglio” with massive, rapid interval leaps—a technique known as cantar di sbalzo. The aria repeatedly forces the soprano to plunge from high B-flats and C’s down to low A’s and G’s within a single phrase. On stage, this massive vocal displacement would force Ferrarese del Bene to constantly nod and thrust her head, making her appear to “bob like a chicken pecking at the ground.”
COSI FAN TUTTE ACT I (S6 | E288)
| Track Name | Album Name | Artist Name(s) | Release Date | Record Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588: Sinfonia | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Terzetto. “La mia Dorabella capace non è” (Ferrando, Guglielmo, Don Alfonso) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Terzetto. “È la fede delle femmine” (Don Alfonso, Ferrando, Guglielmo) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Terzetto. “Una bella serenata” (Ferrando, Guglielmo, Don Alfonso) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Duetto. “Ah guarda, sorella” (Fiordiligi, Dorabella) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Heinrich Schmidt;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Quintetto. “Sento, o Dio, che questo piede” (Guglielmo, Ferrando, Don Alfonso, Fiordiligi, Dorabella) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Terzettino. “Soave sia il vento” (Fiordiligi, Dorabella, Don Alfonso) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Aria. “Smanie implacabili che m’agitate” (Dorabella) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Christa Ludwig;Heinrich Schmidt;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Aria. “In uomini, in soldati” (Despina) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Hanny Steffek;Heinrich Schmidt;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Sestetto. “Alla bella Despinetta” (Don Alfonso, Ferrando, Guglielmo, Despina, Fiordiligi, Dorabella) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Giuseppe Taddei;Hanny Steffek;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Aria. “Come scoglio” (Fiordiligi) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Heinrich Schmidt;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Aria. “Non siate ritrosi, occhietti vezzosi” (Guglielmo) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Terzetto. “E voi ridete?” (Don Alfonso, Ferrando, Guglielmo) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Aria. “Un’aura amorosa del nostro tesoro” (Ferrando) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Heinrich Schmidt;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Finale. “Ah, che tutto in un momento” (Fiordiligi, Dorabella, Ferrando, Guglielmo, Don Alfonso) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Giuseppe Taddei;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Finale. “Ah che del sole il raggio” (Fiordiligi, Dorabella, Ferrando, Guglielmo, Don Alfonso, Despina) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Giuseppe Taddei;Hanny Steffek;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Finale. “Eccovi il medico” (Don Alfonso, Ferrando, Guglielmo, Despina, Fiordiligi, Dorabella) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Giuseppe Taddei;Hanny Steffek;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
| Mozart: Così fan tutte, K. 588, Act 1: Finale. “Dove son? Che loco è questo?” (Ferrando, Guglielmo, Despina, Don Alfonso, Fiordiligi, Dorabella) | Mozart: Così fan tutte | Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart;Karl Böhm;Alfredo Kraus;Christa Ludwig;Elisabeth Schwarzkopf;Giuseppe Taddei;Hanny Steffek;Heinrich Schmidt;Walter Berry;Philharmonia Orchestra | 1/1/63 | Warner Classics |
It is these delicious details of musical history that make revisiting classical masterpieces so rewarding. When you listen to “Come scoglio” knowing that one of history’s greatest composers wrote it specifically to make an arrogant diva look utterly ridiculous, the music takes on a brilliant, mischievous new life. Tune in to this week’s episode of Lester the Nightfly as we spin the records, break down the rest of Act I, and explore exactly what makes Mozart’s work so timelessly entertaining.
