- Person
- Lorenzo Da Ponte
- Lived
- 1749–1838
- Field
- Opera librettist
- From
- Italian-American
The story
Lorenzo Da Ponte was born Emanuele Conegliano on 10 March 1749 in Ceneda, in the Republic of Venice, the eldest of three sons in a Jewish family. In 1764 his father converted the family to Roman Catholicism so that he could marry a Catholic woman, and the boy took the name of the bishop of Ceneda who baptised him. He trained for the priesthood and was ordained in 1773, but his real gift was for words.
That gift took him to Vienna, where he became a writer of opera texts, known as librettos. There he formed one of the most important partnerships in the history of music, with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Together they created three operas: The Marriage of Figaro in 1786, Don Giovanni in 1787 and Così fan tutte in 1790.
A libretto is far more than a set of lyrics. Da Ponte shaped the stories, the characters and the dramatic structure that Mozart's music brought to life. In Figaro, servants outwit a nobleman who tries to abuse his power over them. In Don Giovanni, a charming seducer finally faces the consequences of his cruelty. Così fan tutte is a sharp and funny look at love and loyalty. Da Ponte gave Mozart characters who feel like real people, with mixed motives and recognisable emotions, and that human quality is a large part of why these works still move audiences.
Da Ponte later carried this work across the Atlantic. Having settled in New York, he produced the first full performance of Don Giovanni in the United States in May 1826, helping introduce Italian opera to American audiences.
More than two centuries after they were written, the three operas Da Ponte wrote with Mozart remain at the heart of the opera repertoire. They are staged by opera companies, studied by singers and music students, and heard in recordings and broadcasts by people around the world who may never set foot in an opera house.
Why it matters
Every performance and recording of Figaro, Don Giovanni and Così fan tutte uses the words and drama Da Ponte wrote, giving audiences worldwide some of the best-loved works in opera.
About Lorenzo Da Ponte
Born Emanuele Conegliano in a Jewish family near Venice, he wrote the words for Mozart’s Figaro, Don Giovanni and Così fan tutte, then brought Italian opera and Italian studies to America.
More about Lorenzo Da Ponte
Sources
- Lorenzo Da Ponte Wikipedia
- How Mozart's Librettist Became the Father of Italian Studies at Columbia Columbia Magazine
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