Un moto di gioia, K. 579
For soprano with 1 flute, 1 oboe, 1 bassoon, 2 horns in G, and strings
Program Notes by Martin Pearlman
Mozart composed the arias Un moto di gioia (K. 579) and Al desio di chi t'adora (K. 577) for a revival of The Marriage of Figaro, which took place in Vienna in 1789, three years after the premiere of the opera. In all probability, they were demanded by the new diva who played the role of Susanna, Adriana Ferrarese del Bene. While they make fine music for a concert, these arias are peculiar substitutions in the drama of the opera itself and are almost never heard in that context.
Un moto di gioia replaced the aria Venite, inginocchiatevi in Act II, where Cherubino is being dressed up as a girl. The second aria, Al desio di chi t'adora, with its unusual wind music for basset horns, bassoons and horns, replaced Susanna's famous aria Deh vieni. The author of the texts for these two arias is not known for certain but may well be Lorenzo da Ponte, the original librettist of Figaro.
Mozart, Un moto di gioia, K. 579
Un moto di gioia
Mi sento nel petto
Che annunzia diletto
In mezzo il timor.
Speriam che in contento
Finisca l'affanno
Non sempre è tiranno
Il fato ed amor.
Di pianti, di pene
Ognor non si pasce,
Talvolta poi nasce
Il be dal dolor.
E quando si crede
Più grave il periglio,
Brillare si vede
La calma maggior.
I feel joy pulsing
in my breast--
that tells of delight
mixed with fear.
May my troubles
end in happiness,
for fate and love
are not always tyrants.
We do not always feed
on tears and troubles,
sometimes happiness
is born of grief.
And when you believe
danger to be gravest,
you can see
supreme calm shine through.
Boston Baroque Performances
Un moto di gioia, K. 579
March 15, 1997
NEC’s Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor
Soloist:
Dominique Labelle, soprano
October 11, 1991
NEC’s Jordan Hall, Boston, MA
Martin Pearlman, conductor
Soloist:
Sharon Baker, soprano