Beverly Sills - Mozart: DER SCHAUSPIELDIREKTOR, Bester Jüngling, Los Angeles 1974

THE SONGBIRD: Beverly Sills (1929 - 2007) was my first diva and the reason I became infatuated with coloratura sopranos and started collecting vocal music. Sills holds a special place in my musical life to this day so I'm happy to share this rare item that is not currently posted on YouTube, taken from a Los Angeles Philharmonic concert in 1974 with Zubin Mehta conducting.

THE MUSIC: Mozart's short comic opera "Der Schauspieldirektor" ("The Impresario") K.486 was given a private performance on February 7, 1786 for Joseph II at the Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna as part of a composition competition. A German singspiel (Mozart's work) was presented at one end of the room and an Italian opera buffa by Antonio Salieri ("Prima la musica e poi le parole" - "First the Music, then the Words") was then given at the other end of the room. Three public performances came a few days later in Vienna. There are only five musical selections in Mozart's work, which pits two rival divas against each other: a fabulous overture, an aria for the first diva Madame Herz, a rondo for the second diva Mademoiselle Silberklang, a trio vocal battle, and a quartet finale. The diva roles were written for two of Mozart's muses: coloratura sopranos Aloysia Weber (Herz) and Caterina Cavalieri (Silberklang), both big stars in Vienna at the time. This is Silberklang's rondo, "Bester Jüngling." Sills had sung this role in just two performances of the opera, with the New York City Opera very early in her career in 1956 (opposite Jacquelynne Moody), and then out of the blue in 1972 began programming this aria in concerts.