Mozart’s 1786 comic opera in four acts, The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492, is filled with trickery, deception, overheard conversations, cunning disguises, and crazy schemes. Unfolding over the course of a single “day of madness,” it tells the story of two servants, Figaro and Susanna, who succeed in getting married despite the efforts of their lecherous employer, Count Almaviva.
The play by Pierre Beaumarchais, on which the opera was based, faced censorship because of its shameless portrayal of the intermingling of peasant classes with a buffoonish aristocracy. Napoleon called it “the revolution already in action.” Three years after the opera’s Vienna premiere, the real French Revolution broke out.
Mozart completed the Overture to The Marriage of Figaro two days before opening night. While the Overture does not contain any music from the opera itself, it does set the stage perfectly, sweeping us along on a wild ride which is as exhilarating as it is brief. It begins as a breathless whisper in the strings and bassoon, and soon explodes in a sudden, festive rush of pent-up energy. Sparkling musical conversations unfold among a cast of zany instrumental characters, each with their distinct persona. There is all of the excitement and scurrying activity of a crazy wedding day which, in the end, takes a joyful turn.
This live concert recording features John Eliot Gardiner and the English Baroque Soloists:
Recordings
- Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492 – Overture, John Eliot Gardiner, English Baroque Soloists Amazon
Featured Image: a poster advertising “The Marriage of Figaro,” 1786