The Operas

Abstract

Published as a "Burletta per musica" (a comedy for music), L'Infedelta delusa is the earliest of Haydn's major works for the stage. The first performance, which took place on July 25, 1773, was in commemoration of the Princess Eszterhazy's (the sister of his employer, Prince Nikolaus Eszterhazy) name day, as stated in the dedication of the printed libretto (by Marco Cottellini). However, a second printing of the libretto, this time with a new inscription, reveals that it was re-staged on September 1 in honor of the Empress Maria Theresa, who went to Eszterhaza on occasion to hear operas.

There is no record of L'Infedelta being performed again during Haydn's lifetime. In fact, it was not heard again in its original form until the 1950's when it was produced for Hungarian radio, and then staged in Budapest. Its only appearance in the interim was in the guise of a Viennesesingspiel, with a new German text by Hermann Goja, and the music rearranged by Gottfried Kassowitz (c.a. 1930). Ironically, the availability of reliable modern editions (most notably by H. G. Robbins Landon) and high-quality recordings has made L'Infedelta one of Haydn's more familiar and oft-performed comedies in recent decades, including productions in England, France, Sweden, Germany, and the United States.

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