DM's opera site
libretti & information
Composers Operas Side-by-side libretti paperback Links About
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart operas
Le nozze di Figaro (1786)
Don Giovanni (1787)
Così fan tutte, ossia La scuola degli amanti (1790)
La clemenza di Tito (1791)
Die Zauberflöte (1791)

“Don Giovanni” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Дон Жуан

Premiere / date of written: 29 October 1787

Don Giovanni (K. 527; complete title: Il dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni, literally The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni) is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It is based on the legends of Don Juan, a fictional libertine and seducer. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga (now called the Estates Theatre) on October 29, 1787. Da Ponte's libretto was billed like many of its time as dramma giocoso, a term that denotes a mixing of serious and comic action. Mozart entered the work into his catalogue as an "opera buffa". Although sometimes classified as comic, it blends comedy, melodrama and supernatural elements.

A staple of the standard operatic repertoire, Don Giovanni is currently tenth on the Operabase list of the most-performed operas worldwide. It has also proved a fruitful subject for writers and philosophers.

Libretti

# Language Authors
1 Italian Lorenzo Da Ponte
2 German Eckhardt van den Hoogen
3 English William Murray, 1961
4 French Michel Roubinet

original libretto
line-by-line of the original libretto

Images

Audio recordings

Year Cast
Conductor,
Opera chorus and orchestra
Label,
Comment
Buy
1955
Don Giovanni — Cesare Siepi,
Leporello — Fernando Corena,
Donna Anna — Suzanne Danco,
Don Ottavio — Anton Dermota,
Donna Elvira — Lisa Della Casa,
Zerlina — Hilde Gueden,
Masetto — Walter Berry,
Commendatore — Kurt Böhme
Josef Krips
Wiener Philharmoniker, Wiener Staatsopernchor
CD: Decca Heritage Masters Cat: 478 1389

Amazon.com
1959
Don Giovanni — Eberhard Wächter,
Leporello — Giuseppe Taddei,
Donna Anna — Joan Sutherland,
Don Ottavio — Luigi Alva,
Donna Elvira — Elisabeth Schwarzkopf,
Zerlina — Graziella Sciutti,
Masetto — Piero Cappuccilli,
Commendatore — Gottlob Frick
Carlo Maria Giulini
Philharmonia Orchestra
CD: EMI Classics Cat: 747260-8

Amazon.com
1977
Don Giovanni — Sherrill Milnes,
Leporello — Walter Berry,
Donna Anna — Anna Tomowa-Sintow,
Don Ottavio — Peter Schreier,
Donna Elvira — Teresa Å»ylis-Gara,
Zerlina — Edith Mathis,
Masetto — Dale Duesing,
Commendatore — John Macurdy
Karl Böhm
Wiener Philharmoniker, Wiener Staatsopernchor
CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: DG 477 5655

Amazon.com
1985
Don Giovanni — Samuel Ramey,
Leporello — Ferruccio Furlanetto,
Donna Anna — Anna Tomowa-Sintow,
Don Ottavio — Gösta Winbergh,
Donna Elvira — Agnes Baltsa,
Zerlina — Kathleen Battle,
Masetto — Alexander Malta,
Commendatore — Paata Burchuladze
Herbert von Karajan
Berlin Philharmonic
CD: Deutsche Grammophon DG DG 419 179-2

Amazon.com
1997
Don Giovanni — Bryn Terfel,
Leporello — Michele Pertusi,
Donna Anna — Renée Fleming,
Don Ottavio — Herbert Lippert,
Donna Elvira — Ann Murray,
Zerlina — Monica Groop,
Masetto — Roberto Scaltriti,
Commendatore — Mario Luperi
Sir Georg Solti
London Philharmonic
CD: London Cat: 455 500-2

Amazon.com

Books

Year Title Description Buy
2024

DM's pick

Don Giovanni by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Side-by-side Italian/English libretto A complete libretto of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Don Giovanni" with Italian and side-by-side English translations, as presented on DM's opera site. The book is designed to help opera lovers follow and understand the lyrics. Amazon.com

Video recordings

Year Cast
Conductor,
Opera chorus and orchestra,
Director
Label,
Comment
Buy
1979

DM's pick

Don Giovanni — Ruggero Raimondi,
Leporello — José van Dam
Donna Anna — Edda Moser,
Don Ottavio — Kenneth Riegel,
Donna Elvira — Kiri Te Kanawa,
Zerlina — Teresa Berganza,
Masetto — Malcolm King,
Commendatore — John McCurdy
Lorin Maazel
Paris Opera Orchestra and Chorus
Joseph Losey
DVD: Second Sight Cat: 2NDVD 3132; Audio CD: Sony Masterworks Opera Cat: 82876 87758-2

Amazon.com
2011
Don Giovanni — Bryn Terfel,
Leporello — Peter Mattei,
Donna Anna — Anna Netrebko,
Don Ottavio — Giuseppe Filianoti,
Donna Elvira — Barbara Frittoli,
Zerlina — Anna Prohaska,
Masetto — Stefan Kocan,
Commendatore — Kwanchul Youn
Daniel Barenboim
La Scala Orchestra and Chorus, Milan
Robert Carsen
Deutsche Grammophon 0440 073 5218 2 2 DVD Videos GH2

Amazon.com

External links