Ferrando, the lover of Dorabella, can only be sung by a tenor because of the high tessitura of the role.
Mozart himself directed the first two performances, conducting seated at the keyboard, the custom of the day. Later performances were conducted by Joseph Weigl.
Gounod praised Don Giovanni in Mozart's Don Giovanni: A Commentary.
Anna Maria Walburga Mozart (née Pertl) was the mother of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Maria Anna Mozart.
The first librettist chosen by Mozart himself appears to have been Giambattista Varesco, for Idomeneo in 1781. Five years later, he began his most enduring collaboration, with Lorenzo Da Ponte, his "true phoenix".
On October 29, 1787, Luigi Bassi played the title role in the Prague premiere production of Don Giovanni.
After returning with his father from Italy in 1773, Mozart was employed as a court musician by the ruler of Salzburg, Prince-Archbishop Hieronymus Colloredo. Mozart would remain in this position until 1777 when he resigned.
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