Style, enthusiasm & scholarship: Ian Page and The Mozartists explore Opera in 1775

Haydn: L'incontro improvviso - Ava Dodd, Stephanie Hershaw, Chelsea Zurflüh, The Mozartists - Opera in 1775 - Cadogan Hall

Opera in 1775: Tozzi, Fischietti, Mozart, Myslivecek, J.C. Bach, Haydn, Sacchini; Ava Dodd, Stephanie Hershaw, Chelsea Zurflüh, Hugo Brady, Sebastian Hill, The Mozartists, Ian Page; Cadogan Hall
Reviewed 17 September 2025

Opera by the 19-year-old Mozart alongside works that he heard and works by composers he admired in an engaging evening of young talent and learning worn lightly

It is 1775, and Mozart is turning 19. He is largely marooned in Salzburg where he works as a court musician for the Archbishop. His salary is low and opportunities for composing opera are limited, especially as the court theatre closed that year. But he and his father make one visit, to Munich, where Mozart fails, again, to get any sort of court appointment but his opera La finta giardiniera is premiered, alongside Antonio Tozzi's Orfeo ed Euridice. However, the visit of Archduke Maximilian Franz to Salzburg engenders a flurry of activity, some of it musical, some of it even opera. Mozart's Il re pastore results from this, along with Gli orti esperidi by the Salzburg court kapellmeister, Domenico Fischietti.

This is the background to Ian Page and The Mozartists' Opera in 1775 at Cadogan Hall on 17 September 2025. The latest instalment in their Mozart 250 project. They were joined by sopranos Ava Dodd, Stephanie Hershaw and Chelsea Zurflüh, and tenors Hugo Brady and Sebastian Hill for an evening of operatic excerpts from operas premiered in 1775 including works by Tozzi, Fischietti, Mozart, Mysliveček, J.C. Bach, Haydn and Sacchini.

The same season as Mozart's La finta giardiniera premiered in Munich, Antonio Tozzi's L'Orfeo ed Euridice premiered also. In fact, delays to Mozart's opera meant that Tozzi's went first and Mozart would have heard it. Gluck's L'Orfeo ed Euridice had been performed in Munich in 1772, to conspicuous lack of success. Tozzi who was Hofkapellmeister in Munich, was commissioned to set a revised and 'improved' version of Calzabigi's libretto, which added extra characters and lengthened the work. Tozzi clearly followed Gluck's example in many ways, but the intriguing things is that the overture to L'Orfeo ed Euridice which has many Gluckian aspects also has distinct pre-echoes of the overture of Mozart's Il re pastore giving the impression that the younger composer listened and decided he could do it better!

Opera in 1775 - Sebastian Hill, The Mozartists - Cadogan Hall

Ian Page and The Mozartists began with the overture to Tozzi's L'Orfeo ed Euridice, which was notable for its use of strong unison to striking effect and the general air of lively excitement, leading to a graceful minuet. The role of Eagro in the opera was a new one, Orfeo's father. Sebastian Hill sang Eagro's aria 'Che orribile aspetto'. A substantial piece which made quite a strong effect via Tozzi's use of a rather straight, direct vocal line surrounded by a web of orchestral sound.

Fischietti's Gli orti esperidi is another work that we know Mozart heard. Venus' aria 'Senza temer d'inganni' from the opera was sung by Ava Dodd. The aria featured a substantial oboe solo along with the oboe duetting the soprano. Dodd sang with vibrant tone, bringing out the bravura of the first section and the more dance-like element of the second.

We then turned to Mozart's Il re pastore, where Mozart set a Metastasio libretto originally written for composer Giuseppe Bonno in 1751 for Empress Maria Theresa's birthday and performed by her five eldest children. We heard Tamiri's aria 'Di tante sue procelle' from the opera. It began with a substantial and passionate recitative. Soprano Stephanie Hershaw sang with open-hearted warmth, giving the aria with passion and bravura. It was a substantial piece and throughout she conveyed a sense of joy.

Bohemian composer Josef Mysliveček was much admired by Mozart. Mysliveček's Demofoonte was one of seven operas that he wrote for the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples. It was a notable success. We heard the title role's final aria, 'Odo il suono de' queruli accenti' sung by Hugo Brady. The aria began with significant excitement in the orchestra, but though Mysliveček created a rich texture there was lightness too which contrasted with Brady's quite direct vocal line which, at times, felt closer to arioso.

Another composer admired by Mozart was Johann Christian Bach. His opera Lucio Silla was written for Mannheim in 1775, though Bach completed it in London and the score was sent via the ambassador, who managed to lose a large part of it! This would, in fact, be the last Italian opera seria presented in Mannheim before the court moved to Munich (when the Elector of Bavaria inherited the Electorate of the Palatinate and the two were combined). Mozart never heard the opera but was able to see the score in Mannheim, and in fact Bach set a revised version of the libretto written for Mozart in Milan in 1772.

Chelsea Zurflüh sang 'Ah, se a morir mi chiama' from Lucio Silla. A complex web of orchestral lines supported Zurflüh's highly expressive solo line with a contrasting middle section that was vivid and strong. There was a cadenza at the end and the whole work was striking, a piece of significant music making.

Opera in 1775 - Hugo Brady, The Mozartists - Cadogan Hall

The first half ended with a return to Mysliveček with his second opera for Naples in 1775, Ezio. Ava Dodd sang 'Ah! non son' io che parlo' with the aria preceded by a vary dramatic accompanied recitative where the soprano's line was punctuated by eager excitement from the orchestra. This led to a surprisingly urgent yet perkily bravura aria, though the drama seemed to made Dodd's voice a trifle wild at times.

Part two opened with a terzetto from Haydn's L'incontro improvviso, his sixth opera (of 12) but only the second to survive. A comedy set in Cairo it was known as a Turkish opera (worth bearing in mind that  the Ottoman Turks ruled Egypt at the time). We heard a graceful and imaginative trio, 'Mi sembra un sogno' when Rezia (Chelsea Zurflüh) tells her maids (Ava Dodd and Stephanie Hershaw) that her beloved has come to rescue her. It was a lyrical piece with the three voices largely moving together, yet it very distinctive, rather pointed way with the final word of each line. We also encountered Rezia's beloved, Ali, in the form of Hugo Brady singing 'Deh! se in ciel pietade avete' preceded by a substantial accompanied recitative with quite a significant orchestral contribution which allowed Brady to really take us on an emotional journey, leading to the aria with its expressive vocal lines and graceful orchestration suggesting it was more conventional than the accompanied recitative might have suggested.

Antonio Sacchini is partially remembered for being as favourite of Queen Marie Antoinette. Motezuma was written for London where Sacchini was based from 1772 to 1781. The score does not survive but luckily a selection of 'Favourite songs' was published. Chelsea Zurflüh sang 'Mi scordo lo scempio d'un padre infelice'. There was an attractive vigour to the aria with Zurflüh bringing passion and vibrancy to the bravura writing, yet all the time presenting an engaging charm too.

We returned to Mysliveček's Ezio for 'Tergi l'inguiste lagrime' sung by Sebastian Hill and Chelsea Zurflüh though she only sang in the recitative and flounced off, her character in a rage. Hill brought an attractive graceful quality to the aria. Then Ava Dodd sang Aminta's 'L'amero, saro costante' from Mozart's Il re pastore, where a lovely web of orchestral texture contrasted with Dodd's vibrant, floated soprano line. The whole throbbing with passion.

Stephanie Hershaw then sang 'Che fiero momento' from Tozzi's Orfeo ed Euridice which saw the composer traversing the same ground as Gluck. Hershaw brought vibrant emotion to bear on the accompanied recitative, and then the aria was intense and vivid with moments when the tension relaxed. It was an effective piece, if more conventional than Gluck's setting of the words!

We ended with Mozart, the final quintet from Il re pastore sung by all five of the evening's young singers. The result was brightly imaginative, with Mozart creating a sophisticated ensemble from what was dramatically simply a jolly occasion.

We were treated to an encore too. Chelsea Zurflüh sang an aria from a comic opera by Salieri.

Mozaart: Il re pastore - Chelsea Zurflüh, Stephanie Hershaw, Ava Dodd, Ian Page, Sebastian Hill, Hugo Brady, The Mozartists - Cadogan Hall

A lot of research went into the programme and the young singers had significant numbers of unfamiliar notes to learn. Yet the learning was worn lightly, and all five singers gave strongly characterised and highly musical performances, impressive with their command of idiom and sense of bravura. As ever, Ian Page and his ensemble accompanied with style and enthusiasm.

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