Kelly Zuzic

February 16th, 2019

MH-142-N1
Music Historiography II
Dr. Nicole Vilkner

Mozart’s Take on Opera Seria

Mozart has been a household name since the 18th century during the heart of the classical

era. He is well known for his cosmopolitan style compositions and for his willingness to try a

large variety of techniques outside of the restrictive expectations of classical music during this

time. Though Mozart’s time on Earth ended too soon, his passion for music and the lasting

impact that he has made is anything but short-lived. Mozart composed several different types of

music as well as operas in an array of styles during his busy life. At the end of his life, Mozart

returned to opera seria and composed ​La Clemenza di Tito.​ This opera includes arias such as

“Torna di Tito a lato”, sang by the protagonist’s good friend, Annio. This piece in particular

highlights the beauty of opera seria and allows characters other than the protagonist to revel in

the spotlight.

W. A. Mozart was born in 1756 in Salzburg to Anna Maria and Leopold Mozart. His

older sister, Maria Anna (who went primarily by “Nannerl”), was the only other child of the

couple’s seven to survive infancy (Rieger). Both young Mozart and Nannerl were introduced to

music from a young age, for their father was a musician and had a “musical agenda” for his

children. He wanted to see Mozart grow up to be a court composer and also promoted Nannerl’s

interests in the arts by giving her harpsichord lessons (Abert et. al.). Leopold Mozart led his

children through a 3.5 year tour of Europe; in which he exposed them to all different types of

music. He gave them important skills such as how to network with and play for famous
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musicians of the time (Grove). While both children showed excellent promise, Nannerl’s career

could not take off as Mozart’s did due her gender and the societal standards of the time (Rieger).

Mozart, on the other hand, was luckier than Nannerl and was able to maintain a lot of the

connections made from his journey with his family. All of the places he travelled gave him a

very broad view of music and how one could compose in more ways than what was being

showcased in any specific area. He was also heavily influenced by the music of Haydn, and was

fortunate enough to have a mentor/mentee bond with him (Burkholder). Mozart composed

several different types of music, including but not limited to: piano sonatas, string

quartets/quintets, symphonies, concertos, and operas.

The most interesting and varied compositions of Mozart are his operas. Before Mozart’s

birth, there was heated debate across Europe, specifically in Paris, over what opera should be and

which style of opera was more “correct”. Known as the “Querelle des Bouffons”, from

1752-1754 the French fought for the traditional opera seria as opposed to the newer style of

opera buffa (Burkholder). This discussion never ended finitely, and only flourished as composers

wrote more and more operas to prove their case of how an opera should sound. Because of this,

Mozart not only received the opportunity of travelling the continent, but doing so in a time where

opera was expanding its limits. It is of no surprise that Mozart wanted to be a part of this action.

Mozart drew from the styles of all of the places he visited; including the opera seria and buffa of

Italy and the singspiel of Germany (Grove).

Mozart wrote his first one act opera at age eleven, and wrote twenty-two more before he

died at the age of thirty-five. (Abert et. al.). Mozart was known for composing more than one

opera at a time. Though each of his operas have a specific style, one of the things that made
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Mozart unique was his ability to bend the rules within those categories. He never felt confined to

the rules of opera that people before him had argued about. For example, ​Le Nozze di Figaro​ is

classified as a "dramma giocoso" (Burkholder). It has a mix of serious and comedic plot lines

and takes place among both middle class individuals and royal figures (Britannica). In addition,

Susanna and Figaro are what you would call “mezzo carattere” roles, meaning they take from

both seria and buffa styles of opera (Burkholder). Mozart also composed a lot of operas in the

German singspiel style, which incorporate spoken dialogue (Grove). Living in the age of Italian

opera seria had an effect on Mozart as well, leading him to write ​La Clemenza di Tito​ before

passing away in 1791.

​ as one of the last operas Mozart composed, with the premiere

La Clemenza di Tito w

taking place a mere 3 months before his death. While he was composing ​La Clemenza di Tito​,

Mozart was also composing ​Die Zauberflöte ​(Abert et. al.). It makes sense that the last two

operas Mozart gifted to the world were in the two styles that spoke to him most: singspiel, which

was his most composed genre of opera, and opera seria, the traditional form of opera. Opera

seria, which translates to “serious opera”, is defined as a highly popular Italian style of opera that

focuses on the solo voice, with lots of bel canto singing and da capo arias (Britannica). Most

seria operas were based off of Greek mythology or the idea of royalty. As a result, these operas

include regal characterization and florid vocal lines, making opera seria a very beautiful and

sophisticated style of opera. ​La Clemenza di Tito​ fits that bill perfectly as it tells the story of a

love pentagon taking place in the emperor’s court in ancient Rome.

One of the elements that Mozart put great detail into is his transition from recitative to

aria. His operas are known for being fluid in motion as the different sections of his music all
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blend into each other quite smoothly. This makes watching a Mozart opera all the more exciting

because they are unpredictable. There are times that his reciatives flow into solo arias, duets, or

trios so subtly that one might not realize the music has transitioned.

La Clemenza di Tito ​is a traditional two act opera seria with six characters. The only

character not as involved in the complex storyline is Publio (bass), the guard. The audience is

​ esto, a soprano role that was originally

introduced to five other important characters including​ S

premiered by Mozart’s castrato friend, Domenico Bedini. In fact, the opera was written ​for

Bendini, as he felt that there were not a lot of fitting roles for castrato men to play (Abert et. al.).

In modern day, Sesto is played by a female soprano or mezzo soprano portraying a male.

In ​La Clemenza di Tito, ​Sesto is faced with a hard-hitting issue. Vitellia (soprano), who

Sesto is fond of, wants the power of the current emperor, Tito (tenor), so that she can avenge the

death of her father, the previous emperor of Rome. When Vitellia discovers that Tito is courting

another girl to be his empress, she persuades Sesto to kill him. Annio (mezzo-soprano en

travesti) then enters the picture, telling Sesto he would like to marry his sister, Servilia (soprano).

It is then discover that Tito is also in love with Servilia, but she turns him down as she is so

hopelessly in love with Annio. In turn, Tito unaffectedly goes to his next choice, which is

Vitellia. Vitellia is too late to telling Sesto to abort the plan of murdering Tito, so Sesto sets fire

to the Emperor’s Palace. The audience leaves act one in suspense as Sesto is convinced he has

unwillingly killed Tito (Mozart).

In act two, Annio delivers Sesto the important news that Tito is alive and that he should

make amends with him. This is where Annio sings “Torna di Tito a Lato”, or “Return to the side

of Tito” (Suverkrop). Publio enters the opera and arrests Sesto for suspicious activity. This
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makes Tito discover that Sesto tried to kill him, and he is overwhelmed with the thought that his

best friend has betrayed him. Annio arrives and tries to convince Tito to save Sesto from being

punished by death. Sesto, on the other hand, feels so guilty that a woman would come between

him and his friend that he believes he deserves to die. Right before Sesto is about to be killed,

Vitellia comes forward with the truth. Finally alluding to the title of the opera, Tito has mercy on

all parties. He decides to still marry Vitellia and to spare Sesto. Annio still gets to marry Servilia,

and everyone lives happily ever after (Mozart). In opera seria it was forbidden to have a tragic

ending; so Mozart was sure to please the masses and the characters in the story.

​La Clemenza di Tito ​has a unique but memorable storyline which leads to it still being

performed at the Metropolitan Opera House today. It is a cookie cutter example of the opera

seria genre. Signs of this include the characters being upper class, the copious amounts of drama

and romance presented, and the catchy yet beautiful da capo arias throughout. Even though the

opera presents Sesto as the protagonist, all of the characters are equally important to the story.

Mozart gives this effect by adding in lush vocal lines and ample stage time for each character.

This is easier to do with an opera written for only six people and no chorus. In addition, there are

no characters only added in for a comedic relief, which would be seen as a role with little to no

relevance to the plot.

One example of Mozart highlighting a character that is not the protagonist is when the

level-headed sidekick, Annio, sings a beautiful aria in the beginning of act two; the

aforementioned da capo aria “Torna di Tito a Lato”. The A section translates to “Return to Tito’s

side, and make amends for your past errors with proof of your fidelity (Suverkrop)”. This simple

statement begins as such, with not much happening in the accompaniment while Annio sings
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what he has to say in the beginning in an almost recitative style. As Annio begins thinking more

and more about the possibilities and solutions to Sesto’s situation, the piano part builds with

anticipation, and Annio’s vocal line becomes more and more ornamented. There is a lot of

repetition within the A section. The word “return” being mentioned multiple times shows the

audience the urgency in Annio’s plea to Sesto. Sesto in this moment is very overwhelmed

thinking about what to do next. He does not know whether he should run away, hide, confess,

take his own life, or follow through and take Tito’s life after all. Annio serves as the mediator

and gives him two simple options. Either, he proves himself to be loyal and gets a chance at

survival, or he proves himself to be disloyal and face his death.

In the B section of this song, Annio explains that he sees that “the bitter manifestation in

(Sesto’s) heart is a clear sign that there is still an image of virtue in his heart” (Suverkrop). This

shows the wonders of the depth of Mozart’s character development skills. Here, the

accompaniment plays around with scale quality to represent the deep empathy Annio is feeling

for Sesto. Mozart pays attention to every detail, and is sure to bring the tonality back to major in

time for Annio’s attempt to lift Sesto up, saying that he still sees the good in him and Tito should

too. Then, as in every da capo aria, the A section is repeated once more, with even more

chromatic alterations and speedy ornamentations. This is Mozart’s way of expressing that the

urgency is growing throughout the entire song, until the bitter end. Annio is aware that if Sesto

does not act fast, he could meet his demise. Annio’s role in ​La Clemenza di Tito i​ s crucial to the

story’s development, for without his guidance, our protagonist would not be able to handle the

situation.
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Mozart had a gift for writing music which is ideal for singers. He was aware of the

voice’s capabilities, and though singing a Mozart aria is quite difficult, these pieces are always

phrased reasonably, have text set with proper stress in the language it is written, and provides an

expansive showcasing of the singing voice. The technique required to sing Mozart is of a very

high caliber and takes years to develop. This can be seen in “Torna di Tito a lato” during the fast

ornamentation and in the way Mozart intends for the voice to leap effortlessly throughout its

range. In this song particularly, these leaps can be viewed as Annio’s brain racing through the

emotions of his current situation.

Annio is immensely loyal to Sesto like Sesto is to Vitelia, as he can forgive Sesto for

trying to kill his emperor and friend. He still wishes for Sesto to be his brother-in-law and

accepts Sesto despite his flaws. The theme of love throughout ​La Clemenza di Tito ​is prevalent.

These ideas of love are repeated throughout the text of the recitatives and arias the audience is

listening to. As the characters develop and the story unfolds, the audience is also repeatedly hit

with the same musical motifs over and over again . These themes are present regardless of which

character is singing to whom at any moment. All of the characters in this opera love each other

like family. Back in this time, societal norms were extremely strict, and if you did not adhere to

them, you would be exiled. Even by simply associating with or supporting someone who did not

adhere to society's standards, you would be exiled as well. Annio ran this risk for staying by

Sesto’s side. This could be seen as a political statement of the time, as society was not as

accepting of human relations as it is today. Similarly, Tito’s forgiveness of Sesto and the bond

that they shared could be Mozart’s way of making a statement, too.

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By travelling Europe and borrowing ideas from all of the places he visited, his non-stop

composing rewarded him with a great musical career and some of the most memorable pieces

from the classical era. Even though he only lived 35 years, his young mind had an intense

maturity when it came to character development and consistent themes presented in his opera

scores. It is thrilling and frightening to think how much more Mozart could have accomplished

had he lived to season his work further. “Torna di Tito a Lato” from ​La Clemenza di Tito i​ s just

one example of the brilliance Mozart gifted to the world. Using the style of opera seria, he

implemented the serious themes of love, death, guilt, and empathy in his music all while making

sure there was a happy ending. By doing the unthinkable and not being afraid to go against the

mold, similar to Annio, he has built himself a forever-lasting legacy. There is no doubt that

Mozart’s operas will be performed for a long time to come.

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References

Abert, Hermann, and Cliff Eisen. ​W.A. Mozart.​ Yale University Press, 2006. ​EBSCOhost​,

athena.rider.edu:6443/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db

=e000xna&AN=1353562&site=eds-live&scope=site.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Opera Seria.” ​Encyclopædia Britannica,​

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 17 Jan. 2018, www.britannica.com/art/opera-seria.

Burkholder, J. Peter, Donald Jay Grout, and Claude V. Palisca. ​A History of Western

Music.​ 9th ed. New York and London: W.W. Norton, 2014. Print.

"Mozart family." ​Grove Music Online​. January 17, 2018. Oxford University Press,. Date of

access 16 Feb. 2019,

<http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.00

1.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000040258>

Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus. “La Clemenza Di Tito.” ​Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and

Chorus,​ 1 Dec. 2012. Date of access 16 February, 2019,

www.metopera.org/season/on-demand/opera/?upc=811357015872.

Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus. “Torna di Tito a Lato.” ​La Clemenza di Tito, 1​ 791.

Rieger, Eva. "Mozart [‘Nannerl’], Maria Anna." ​Grove Music Online​. January 01, 2001. Oxford

University Press,. Date of access 16 Feb. 2019,

<http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.00

1.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-6002278231>

Suverkrop, Brad. “Torna di Tito a Lato.” ​IPA Source​, 2008.

https://www.ipasource.com/torna-di-tito-a-lato.html