Der Schauspieldirektor
Arrangement for chamber orchestra (arr. U. Stäuble) KV 486, 1786
Mozart was commissioned by Emperor Joseph II to write the one-act opera Der Schauspieldirektor (The Impresario) to mark a visit to Vienna by the Governor-General of the Netherlands in the spring of 1786. The guests were to be musically entertained with a short German and an Italian comedy at a party arranged at short notice in Schönbrunn. The two composers chosen were Mozart and Salieri, both of whom poke fun at the theatrical conventions of the time. The Schauspieldirektor lampoons the vanity of opera singers and the amateurish nature of many a traveling acting troupe.
This chamber version reduces the original doubled wind section to a quintet of solo flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn. While trumpets are omitted, the timpani are not, giving the outer movements real momentum through rhythmic impulses. The string parts can be performed by solo instruments. In this way, a performance can be realized with only a few players yet without giving up the differentiated tonal qualities of the original. Ideal for a performance in the opera studio!
The original version of the work is available under Carus 51.486/00.| Original version | Arrangement for Chamber Orchestra |
| Soli SSTB, 6 speaking parts, 2 Fl, 2 Ob, 2 Clt, 2 Fg, 2 Cor, 2 Ctr, Timp, 2 Vl, Va, Vc, Cb |
Soli SSTB, 6 speaking parts, Fl, Ob, Clt, Fg, Cor, Timp, 2 Vl, Va, Vc, Cb |
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Contents
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Composer
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
| 1756-1791As the son of the deputy Kapellmeister to the Salzburg Prince-Archbishop, Mozart was constantly surrounded by church music in his youth. On his travels Mozart became familiar with Italian church music, and later in Vienna he studied the works of Bach and Handel. After moving to Vienna he was faced with the new challenges of composing opera and piano concertos, and significantly the “C Minor Mass” KV 427, the greatest sacred work of the first Vienna years, remained unfinished. The last period of his life again shows a change of direction to church music: Mozart successfully applied to succeed the terminally ill Leopold Hoffmann as Kapellmeister at St Stephen's Cathedral, but he was unable to take up the position as he died before Hoffmann. A gem such as the “Ave verum” KV 618 and the incomplete Requiem KV 626 give us an idea of what Mozart might have achieved as a composer of sacred music if he had taken up this important position. Personal details
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Songwriter / Librettist
Johann Gottfried Stephanie der Jüngere
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Arranger
Urs Stäuble
| 1951Urs Stäuble studied at the Conservatory of the Music Academy in Basel (organ with Eduard Müller, piano with Klaus Linder) and at the University of Music in Vienna (organ with Michael Radulescu, orchestral conducting with Karl Österreicher, choral conducting with Günther Theuring). In addition to teaching at the Basel Music Academy (1980–2016), he worked as an organist and choir and orchestra conductor in various European countries and Australia. Personal details
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