Opera Scotland

Mozart and Salieri Mozart i Sal'yeri

Tours by decade

Tours by location

Music

Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (born Tikhvin, 18 March 1844; died Lyubensk, 21 June 1908)

Text

Alexander Pushkin (1799-1837)

Source

Drama (1830) by Pushkin

 

Premieres

First Performance: Moscow (Solodovnikov Theatre), 7 December 1898.

First Performance in UK: London (Albert Hall), 11 October 1927.

First Performance in Scotland: Edinburgh (Usher Hall), 24 October 1986 (concert).

Scottish Opera premiere: N/A.

 

Background

Rimsky set the brief Pushkin drama in its entirety, using a very different style from most of his operas based on Russian subjects. It is a chamber work, highly conversational in style, and much influenced by the music of a century earlier. 

 

Characters

Antonio Salieri (baritone)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (tenor)

 

Plot Summary

The fictitious plot will be familiar to anyone who has seen the Peter Shaffer drama Amadeus. Salieri, an older composer who has achieved great material success, recognizes Mozart to enjoy a degree of genius which he himself entirely lacks. In furious jealousy, he poisons the younger man.