Score Study: Don Giovanni Act I: No. 10, Recitative and Aria

Recitative:

The dominant chord of the preceding secco recitative should be cued in tempo.  The first two measures of No. 10 are conducted in two, but measure three is conducted in four.  The parts of Donna Anna and Ottavio should not match in tempo – rather she should take some time to anguish over “son morta”, while his response should be quicker.  The orchestra chords which punctuate her recognition of Giovanni with “…del padre mio” should happen in a quicker “tempo” than that with which she delivered the line.  Likewise, Ottavio’s “che dite!” should quickly follow.  Similarly, Ottavio’s exclamation “O ciel!” in m. 20 must come early to interrupt her word “appartamento”. 

Sufficient pause should separate “d’amicizia....” and “Ma come fu” in m. 22 and emphasis on the word “strano” for coloristic effect.  The “p” on the downbeat of m. 25 in the orchestra must be prepared by taking time over the barline into that measure.  The minor tonality must be given space to bloom for the sake of this important atmosphere that is both “strange” but also introduces us to Anna’s storytelling. 

The orchestra chord notated on beat one of m. 31 may be played either with, or after, Anna’s word “voi”.  This depends entirely on how, if at all, that statement is to register with Ottavio.  My preference is for it to strike a very mild pleasure with him that, while it may not be visually perceptible from the stage, is at least registered by the orchestra by placing the chord AFTER the word “voi.” 

Ottavio’s “Stelle!” must be cued in tempo for the sake of the ensemble of the orchestra. 

Sufficient pause should be taken in m. 39 before Anna delivers her text “non viene alcun” to allow the greatest dramatic context between her horror, and the revelation that no one answered her screams.  Her text should be in the same tempo as the orchestra’s Andante response.  The chord in m. 42 should be very short and precise.  No pause should be taken in m. 43 between “cosi” and “che gia”, and in m. 44, the orchestra should play roughly Allegro so that Don Ottavio’s lines are uttered with great agitation.  Anna, however, answers with a much slower ‘tempo’

Beginning at m. 54, a decision must be made whether or not to overlap the orchestra with the voice, or allow Donna Anna to finish each of her statements first.  Dramatically, the overlap works best, but only if balance is not a problem.  The dramatic momentum is compromised if we are unable to hear her final words.  So, this may depend on the acoustics and other balance considerations. 

Aria:

“Vengence Aria” in typical key of D Major.  Borrowed from opera seria.  Although marked Andante, the Barenreiter edition corrects many others by notating this in cut time.  This is relevant as this meter choice is a further reference to the exalted style indicative of Anna’s social status, and this music clearly moves in two rather than four.  Therefore, the Andante applies to the half-note not the quarter-note.  With this said, the rhythmic activity of this number requires much to be conducted in four or, rather, in a subdivided two with sufficient energy for the rapid not figures. 

Measure 86 can be challenging for the violins at a rapid tempo – be careful not to over conduct, but just keep celli/bassi moving steadily.  Bassoon should enter covertly in m. 87, but with a steady crescendo on the whole-note ‘E’.  This joins to form a duet with the viola line through m. 94.