Bastien und Bastienne

• Bastienne, a shepherdess (Soprano)
• Bastien, her lover (Tenor)
• Colas, a would-be wizard ( bass)

Bastien and Bastienne (KV 50) is one of the earliest musical comedies by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The work was allegedly given by the Viennese physician Franz Anton Mesmer in order and was 1767/68, when Mozart was 12 years old. The premiere took place supposedly in Schwechat near Vienna on December 7, 1768 at the Garden Theatre or in the garden of the Palais Mesmer instead, the first detectable performance was on October 2, 1890 House in Berlin.

The Singspiel consists of an act and was written in German language. Leopold Mozart called it Operetta, for the librettist Friedrich Wilhelm Weiskern it was " a French Operacomique ". This genre was very fashionable.

The libretto was written by Friedrich Wilhelm Weiskern, Johann Heinrich Müller and Johann Andreas Schachtner. It is based on Charles Simon Favart, Marie Justine Benoîte Favart and Harny de Guervilles Les amours de Bastien et Bastienne, a parody of Jean-Jacques Rousseau's one-act opera Le devin du village ( The village soothsayer ).

The fair parody (see Parisian market theater ) of Rousseau's naive opera makes fun of the Council of the soothsayer funny that the jilted lover should her repentant worshipers the cold shoulder, it may increase this reaction to the extreme. In the German version of the comedy, however, is gone. The harmless, touching plot corresponded to the spirit of the Rococo, the need for simplicity and naturalness.

Orchestra

Two flutes, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, strings.

Action

The shepherdess Bastienne visited the village soothsayer Colas. She asks him for advice because she fears losing her lover Bastien Phyllis. Colas advises her to always indifferent to behave and to let it show.

A short time later Bastien visited the magicians and shares this with that he wants to marry his mistress Bastienne soon. However, the magician tells him that this would have been in love with someone else. Colas Bastienne beckons to him, opens his spellbook and sings an aria with a mixture of nonsense syllables and Italian and Latin word fragments. Bastien gets beside himself with jealousy, but Bastienne reacts completely indifferent. Finally Bastien threatens suicide and can still stir. The two embrace warmly and thank Colas for their union.