FEDERICO CORTESE 
 
Mixing Opera Buffa and Opera Seria: How Mozart describes his characters inDon Giovanni and in his other Da Ponte operas.
 
Everyone can agree on the extraordinary psychological subtilty of Mozart’s characters. Italianspeakers may particularly enjoy the elegant humor and the wits of Da Ponte’s librettos, but it isclear that the multifaceted insights of each character’s description come mostly from Mozart’smusic itself.How does he do that? In many brilliant ways, of course. This conversation will focus on themixing of operatic genres, which is arguably one of Mozart’s most original tools. Becomingaware of his peculiar hybrid vocabulary can be very helpful for any young performerapproaching in particular Don Giovanni and Così fan Tutte.