# Mozart's Abduction from the Seraglio



## ozradio (Oct 23, 2008)

Are there different versions of this opera's libretto? I have the version from Brilliant's box set and the dialog portions seem to have considerable chunks omitted, at least compared to the copy of the libretto I bought (Robert Pack/Marjorie Lelash, 1961). A couple songs are also in a different order. Is this unusual? I haven't run in to this with the other operas I've listened to in that box.


----------



## Il Seraglio (Sep 14, 2009)

It's been said that Mozart had the man responsible for commissioning the opera, Gottlieb Stephanie, alter the libretto so that it didn't negatively effect the structure of the opera as a musical piece. Mozart lived in a time when bad librettos were very common and believed that the text ought to be subordinate to the music.

Maybe you stumbled upon the libretto in its original, unaltered form?


----------



## Edward Elgar (Mar 22, 2006)

It's better imo to get an English recording of this particular opera (if that is your 1st language). It's not one of Mozart's best, I went to see it in Leeds last year and wasn't that impressed. Having it sung in a different language will not spoil your enjoyment (which may well be limited).


----------

