Un' Aura Amorosa - No.

17
from Act I, Scene III of the Italian opera, Così fan tutte by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Libretto : Lorenzo da Ponte
• Role : Ferrando, a soldier who is in love with Dorabella
• Voice Part : tenor Fach : tenor leggiero
• Setting : the living room of Dorabella and Fiordiligi
• Range : D3 to A5. Tessitura : A4 to A5
• Synopsis : Guglielmo complains of his hunger but, in this aria, Ferrando tells him he should
hold his appetite, for even the possibility of love from their beloveds will sate one's hunger at
once.

Lyrics (Italian)
Un'aura amorosa
Del nostro tesoro
Un dolce ristoro
Al cor porgerà;

Al cor che, nudrito

Da speme, da amore,
Di un'esca migliore
Bisogno non ha.

(English)
A breath of love
From our treasures
Will offer sweet sustenance
To our hearts.

A heart nourished
By hope, by love
Has no need
Of a greater lure.
Cosi Fan Tutti
Mozart and Da Ponte took as a theme "fiancée swapping" which dates back to the 13th century, with
notable earlier versions being those of Boccaccio's Decameron and Shakespeare's play Cymbeline.
Elements from Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew are also present. Furthermore, it incorporates
elements of the myth of Procris as found in Ovid's Metamorphoses, vii.
Place: Naples.
Time: the 18th century.

Act 1
In a coffee shop, Ferrando and Guglielmo (two officers) claim that their fiancées (Dorabella and
Fiordiligi, respectively) will be eternally faithful. Don Alfonso joins the discussion and lays a wager
with the two officers, claiming he can prove in a day's time that these two women (like all women) are
fickle. The wager is accepted: the two officers will pretend to have been called off to war; soon
thereafter they shall return in disguise and attempt to seduce each other's lover. The scene shifts to the
two women (they are sisters) who are praising their men. Alfonso arrives to announce the bad news: the
officers have been called off to war. Ferrando and Guglielmo arrive, brokenhearted, and bid farewell
(quintet: Sento, o Dio, che questo piedo è restio—"I feel, oh God, that my foot is reluctant"). As the
boat with the men sails off to sea, Alfonso and the sisters wish them safe travel (trio: Soave sia il vento
—"May the wind be gentle"), then Alfonso, left alone, rails against the fickleness of women (arioso:
Oh, poverini, per femmina giocar cento zecchini?—"Oh, poor little ones, to wager 100 sequins on a
woman").
The scene shifts to a room in the sisters' home. Despina, their maid, arrives and asks what is wrong.
Dorabella bemoans the torment of having been left alone (aria: Smanie implacabili—"Torments
implacable"). Despina mocks the sisters, advising them to consider new lovers over old lovers (aria: In
uomini, in soldati, sperare fedeltà?—"In men, in soldiers, you hope for faithfulness?"). After they
depart, Alfonso arrives upon the scene. He fears Despina will recognize the men through their
disguises, so he bribes her into helping him win the bet. The two men then arrive, dressed as
mustachioed Albanians. The sisters enter and are alarmed by the presence of strange men in their home.
The Albanians attempt to win over the sisters, Guglielmo going so far as to point out all of his manly
attributes (aria: Non siate ritrosi—"Don't be shy"), but to no avail (aria: Come scoglio—"Like a rock").
Ferrando, left alone and sensing victory, praises his love (aria: Un'aura amorosa—"A loving breath").
The scene shifts to a garden, with the sisters still pining. But Despina has asked Don Alfonso to let her
take over the seduction plan—and suddenly, the Albanians burst in the scene and threaten to poison
themselves if they are not allowed the chance to woo the sisters. As Alfonso tries to calm them, they
drink the poison and pass out. Soon thereafter, a doctor arrives on the scene (Despina in disguise), who,
through use of a large magnet (see animal magnetism), is able to revive the Albanians. The revived
men, hallucinating, demand a kiss of the goddesses who stand before them. The sisters refuse, even as
Alfonso and the doctor (Despina) urge them to acquiesce.

Act 2
The act opens in the sisters' bedroom, with Despina urging them to succumb to the Albanians' overtures
(aria: Una donna a quindici anni—"A fifteen year old woman"). After she leaves, Dorabella confesses
to Fiordiligi that she is tempted, and the two agree that a mere flirtation will do no harm and will help
them pass the time while they wait for their lovers to return (duet: Prenderò quel brunettino"—"I will
take the dark one").
The scene shifts to the garden, where Dorabella and the disguised Guglielmo pair off, as do the other
two. The conversation is haltingly uncomfortable, and Ferrando departs with Fiordiligi. Now alone,
Guglielmo attempts to woo Dorabella. She does not resist strongly, and soon she has given him a
medallion (with Ferrando's portrait inside) in exchange for a heart-shaped locket (duet: Il core vi dono
—"I give you my heart"). Ferrando is less successful with Fiordiligi (Ferrando's aria: Ah, lo veggio
—"Ah, I see it," and Fiordiligi's aria: Per pietà, ben mio, perdona—"Please, my beloved, forgive"), so
he is enraged when he later finds out from Guglielmo that the medallion with his portrait has been so
quickly given away to a new lover. Guglielmo at first sympathises with Ferrando (aria: Donne mie, la
fate a tanti—"My ladies, you do it to so many") but then gloats, because his betrothed is faithful.
The scene changes to the sister's room, where Dorabella admits her indiscretion to Fiordiligi (È amore
un ladroncello—"Love is a little thief"). Fiordiligi, upset by this development, decides to go to the
army and find her betrothed. Before she can leave, though, Ferrando arrives and continues his
attempted seduction. Fiordiligi finally succumbs and falls into his arms (duet: Fra gli amplessi—"In the
embraces"). Guglielmo is distraught while Ferrando turns Guglielmo's earlier gloating back on him.
Alfonso, winner of the wager, tells the men to forgive their fiancées. After all: Così fan tutte—"All
women are like that."
The final scene begins as a double wedding for the sisters and their Albanian grooms. Despina, in
disguise as a notary, presents the marriage contract, which all sign. Directly thereafter, military music is
heard in the distance, indicating the return of the officers. Alfonso confirms the sisters' fears: Ferrando
and Guglielmo are on their way to the house. The Albanians hurry off to hide (actually, to change out of
their disguises). They return as the officers, professing their love. Alfonso drops the marriage contract
in front of the officers, and, when they read it, they become enraged. They then depart and return
moments later, half in Albanian disguise, half as officers. Despina has been revealed to be the notary,
and the sisters realize they have been duped. All is ultimately forgiven, as the entire group praises the
ability to accept life's unavoidable good times and bad times.