The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote) in Full Score by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote) in Full Score Reviews

• 
  Manny

  Earlier this evening, Not and I attended a free staging of The Magic Flute given by Piccolo Opera, Geneva's opera school. Most of the performers were students at the school, ranging in age from about five to fifteen. They were reinforced by a few adults, who lent their voices at critical moments or sang parts too low for the children to reach. (One of our CERN friends was Sarastro, which was how we'd got to hear about it). The technical standard was dreadful, but it was a wonderful performance all the same. The kids, singing in German and doing the recitative in French, were often only marginally comprehensible, but I have watched the Bergman movie version a dozen times and was able to supply mental subtitles. Everyone was having fun, and there were some delightful moments. The kid playing Monostatos was about five years younger than Pamina and a head shorter, but he was did his best to come across as a psychotic would-be rapist; he got a big hand from the crowd.
  
  And every now and then, the true magic of the opera shone forth. The Queen of the Night sang her duet with Pamina, where she gives her the dagger and tells her that she must kill Sarastro or never see her again. Usually chilling, this was very cute; the Queen's three attendants, all about eleven and doing their damnedest to look mysterious and sexy, danced around the mother and daughter as the Queen tried to reach the high notes in the coloratura bit. And then the girl playing Pamina relinquished the stage for a couple of minutes to one of the adult stand-ins, who sang her despairing aria with enormous passion and force, and briefly made us feel that she really was mad with grief and just wanted to kill herself.
  
  It struck me that this was an interesting metaphor for life. Most of the time, we muddle along not really knowing our parts, giggling at the most solemn moments and forgetting the key lines. Occasionally, though, we're taken over by someone who actually does know what they're doing and interprets the role as it's meant to be played. And those are the moments we remember years later.
  
  Piccolo Opera is brilliant; we'll be back in July, when they're doing Mary Poppins and La Belle Helène. And if you haven't ever seen The Magic Flute, check it out.
  
• 
  Huda Aweys

  نجمتين للحكاية العبيطة و حبكتها الزفت :))) اللي شبه حكايات المكتبة الخضراء ( و موش معنى كده اني باقول ان حكايات المكتبة الخضراء بهذا السوء ، لكن كل الحكاية :) انها و اشباهها مابقيتش ترضي عقول و ارواح ناس في اعمارنا ! ) ، و نجمة للمزيكا و الأوبرا ...
  *****
  كنت باتناقش مع صديقة عن المزيكا و الأوبرا فزودتني بمعلومة جديدة عن ماسونية موتسارت :) ماكنتش اعرف عن الموضوع دا قبل كده الحقيقة لكنها دللت لي عليه بأوبرا (الفلوت السحري) بالذات و ماكتب عنها فكان لازم أطلع عليها ...، ابتديت بالبحث عنها و بقراءة ما كتب عنها و عن موتسارت ايضا على مواقع المزيكا و ويكيبيديا و جوجل لاقيت انه موضوع معروف و متداول فعلا .. ، و الحقيقة الموضوع بتاع الأخوية (الماسونية) او العقيدة (الماسونية) او المحفل (الماسوني) دا مابقاش سر خلاص ! ، يمكن زمان كان يبدو الكلام عنه غريب شويه عشان كان فيه حالة من الجهل العام بالموضوع بسبب ماكان يشوبه من تعتيم و سرية ، الى جانب الاساطير و الحوارات الكتير اللي الصقت بيه بسبب من التعتيم و السرية ايضا مما جعله مادة للتندر و المبالغات ، لكن حاليا بقى موضوع مفتوح ومعروف ، و الماسونية بقت زيها زي البوذية .. زي الشيوعية .. زي اللوسيفيرية ، و غيرها من العقائد .. و ان كان مازال بيشوبها شئ من السرية و التعتيم ، الا انه على الأقل تم تصنيفها ، و وضع عناوين عريضة لها و لتاريخها
  *****
  بالنسبة للاوبرا بقى اللي هي موضوعنا :) ، فبتبتدي بصراع مابين وحش اسطوري ومابين الأمير (تامينو) ، او بمعنى ادق .. بهجوم من ذلك الوحش الأسطوري على (تامينو) :) و محاولة من الأخير للدفاع عن نفسه مع بعض صرخات الاستغاثة :) ، اللي بتسمعها مساعدات (ملكة الليل) او (ملكة ضي النجوم) زي ما في اقرب ترجمة للنص الأصلي لـ الأوبرا فبيحضروا لمساعدته و بيقتلوا الوحش بينما هو مغمى عليه ، و بيتركوه و يرجعوا لملكتهم يحكولها عن وسامته و شبابه ، في الوقت دا بيمر (باباغينو) صائد الطيور في المكان ، و بيفوق الأمير و يشوفه و يظن انه ((باباغينو)) هو اللي انقذه من الوحش ، لكن مايلبث أن تأتي المساعدات مرة اخرى ليعلموه بالحقيقة ، و يعرضوا عليه (الأمير) صورة (بامينا) بنت ملكة الليل اللي خطفها (ساراستو) الشرير و يطلبوا منه انه ينقذها بناء على طلب ملكتهم ، و بتحضر الملكة بنفسها و بتناجيه مناجاة مؤثرة لأم فقدت بنتها ، و بيرحل تامينو بعدها في مهمة لانقاذ (بامينا) مع باباغينو كمساعد له و بيوصلوا لبامينا و بيقابلوها فعلا لكن ساراستو ( الشيطان او الشرير بتاع الحكاية اللي بيطلع مظلوم :) ) بيعترض طريقهم ، لكن لما بيشوف حبهم لبعض (الغير مبرر بالمرة :) ) بيقرر يعطي لتامينو فرصة يثبت فيها حكمته و نبله اللي بيهم يكون جدير بـ بامينا ، و بأخويتهم و صداقتهم .. و بالانضمام لمعبدهم .. معبد الحكمة و النور اللي بيعبدوا فيه ايزيس و اوزوريس ( احب اسجل اعجابي بصنف الكولا اللي بيشموه بهذه المناسبة السعيــــــــــدة :))) ) ، و بيبتدوا بقى في تجسيد مراسم قبول و تعميد عضو جديد في معبد الحكمة ( المحفل الماسوني :) ) ، و تجسيد رمزي للاختبارات اللي بيمر بيها ، و الشروط اللى بيملوها عليه ..، و تبعيا بيتم عرض بعض افكارهم ومعتقداتهم عن الألوهية و الحكمة و الموسيقى على لسان الأبطال ..، لغاية ما بيمر تامينو من الاختبارات كلها بتوفيق في النهاية و بيتم جمعه على بامينا ، و باباغينو (اللي هو الفاكهة بتاعة الأوبرا دي و تقريبا كده البطل الحقيقي لها) على (باباغينا) رغم انه مانجحش في و لا اختبار اساسا :)) ، ومع كده هاداه ساراستو بباغينا زي ما وعده في البداية اذا ما مر في الاختبارات بنجاح ...
  اما ملكة الليل فبتتغلب في مواجهة اخيرة قصاد ساراستو .. بيطغى نوره فيها على ليلها بقى و كده يعني :) .. و اخيرا بيحصلهم الاستنارة
  :))))) زي مابتحصلنا كده
  و بيقوموا يشكروا ايزيس و اوزوريس و عم الحج ساراستو و بتخلص الحكاية على كده #
• 
  Manybooks

  So yes indeed, I absolutely do adore Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’ opera Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute). For Die Zauberflöte is both musically and visually enchanting, and Emanuel Schikaneder’s libretto, it also adeptly and smoothly manages to successfully combine both fantasy and reality, both fun and philosophical enlightenment in an easy to digest and experience delightful romp (which always or at least usually makes me smile and sometimes even laugh out loud such as when for example Papageno spews forth with his often rather silly asides that nevertheless have elements of folk wisdom and down-to-earth 18th century street smarts included and appreciatively also tend to balance the rather dryly Masonic philosophies of Sarastro and company, which are of course interesting but at the same time also a trifle dragging and tedious).
  
  However, I do actually also (and contritely) feel a trifle annoyed at and with myself for having read the libretto for Die Zauberflöte so meticulously and thoroughly. For while watching (and of course also hearing) Die Zauberflöte performed does already show that there is a bit of latent and not so latent misogyny present in Emanuel Schikaneder’s text (and that all of the female characters in Die Zauberflöte are either totally passive like Pamina or horrid villains like the Queen of the Night and her handmaidens), you really do not get the total scope of that same misogyny until you actually read the libretto without the distraction of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s music and realise that the entire philosophy of Sarastro and his so-called Masonic enlightenment is in fact based not only on total masculinity but on a decided attitude of women being inherently dangerous as leaders and needing to be guided by men, to be completely controlled and subjugated, leaving me with still enjoying Die Zauberflöte as an opera, but certainly also leaving me feeling increasingly uncomfortable with regard to what Emanuel Schikaneder’s libretto claims regarding women obviously represent and demonstrate.
  
  And while I would still warmly and fondly recommend Die Zauberflöte and also (in my opinion) consider it Mozart’s best opera, I do have to say that the annoying piece of truth that all of the female characters in Die Zauberflöte are majorly typecast as being either passive or villainous and that Sarastro’s attitude towards women and our mental and emotional maturity basically and without any doubt whatsoever obviously claims that we are all severely lacking there and just because of our gender, yes indeed, this does make me quite angry and majorly frustrated.
• 
  Laura L. Van Dam

  Tengo este libreto en una edición bilingüe y comentada por el prestigioso musicólogo Kurt Pahlen. Es absolutamente genial. Como si fuera poco, en 1994 el mismísimo Pahlen dio unas conferencias sobre Historia de la Ópera en el Salón Dorado del Teatro Colón, donde me autografió este libro. Un tesoro que guardo con mucho cariño.
• 
  Forrest

  This edition of Die Zauberflöte by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the first full "book" I read in German, so I have a bit of a soft spot in my heart for this opera. Though I'm sure that there is some sinister Masonic propaganda at work, probably with the end result that we will all work as stone-cutter slaves in the new glorious reign of the 14th Grand Master Dragon of the East Wind of the Masonic Order of Golden Dawn (or whatever), I couldn't help but enjoy the over-riding strangeness of the plot and characters. Papageno is my favorite character of the bunch, flitting somewhere between playful and insane. My favorite aspect of this opera, though, is the bawdiness that is displayed from time to time, belying the false impression that the German-speaking countries of the 18th-Century were stoic and all-too-serious. Mozart, at least, shows a rather bizarre sense of humor in the his portrayal of Papageno.
  
  Rather than getting caught up in the interpretation of Masonic symbols that permeate the work, I like to view it (and listen to it) as if it were simply a fantastical text. In that light, one can consider it one of the earliest surreal fantasies, presaging the bulk of the surrealist movement by over a century. I think of the work of the Symbolist painters of the last half of the 19th-Century as having derived their ouvre from Die Zauberflöte, though I can't decisively prove such a connection existed. Viewing the work as a surreal fantasy allows an unhindered enjoyment of the work, especially if one is simply reading the words divorced from the music (a necessary evil when one is reading the book in a classroom with other students).
  
  And for you movie buffs, read this book, then watch Howl's Moving Castle and tell me if you don't begin to suspect that Mozart and Miyazaki weren't both trying to get at something much more meaningful than either one presented on the surface of their respective works. And if it means that we all have to be stone-cutting slaves to the Masonic Order, I say "Welcome to our new overlords"!
• 
  Bettie

  
  Bettie's Books
• 
  Anni K. Mars

  Früher fand ichs irgendwie cooler. Jetzt fallen mir all die Brüche im Text auf. Ich bin gespannt, was wir in der Uni noch dazu machen.
  Außerdem bin ich gespannt auf mein Referat über die Freimaurer, die viel mit diesem Text zu tun hatten ;)
• 
  Elizabeth

  So awesomely racist and sexist, but it was written in 1791. What did I expect? Interesting enough though, with all the racist and sexist parts, the priest worship the goddess Isis. Huh?
• 
  Lucía

  You can't go wrong with Mozart.
• 
  Bryce Wilson

  The music is wonderful, but even for someone as Un PC as me the story of The Magic Flute has always been a little bit weird. Remember kids happiness can only be obtained by submitting to the every whim of patriarchal Masonic priest.
• 
  annaa

  don‘t get me wrong, the music is beautiful but..
• 
  Eddie

  nice music, but I'm not sure if I'd like to know what Mozart thought of black people
• 
  Alina Kuhlmann

  Die Oper "Die Zauberflöte" kennen vermutlich auch die Meisten von Euch. Ich habe in meinem ersten Semester an der Humboldt Universität zu Berlin ein Seminar über die beliebte Oper besucht und durfte nun eine Hausarbeit über die Fragestellung "Liebt Sarastro Pamina auf väterliche oder erotischer Ebene?" schreiben (Daumen drücken, dass ich nicht durchfalle!). Im Zusammenhang mit den geführten Diskussionen im Seminar fand ich die Auseinandersetzung mit der Oper interessant. Privat hätte ich mich dazu allerdings nicht durchringen können und hätte das Libretto vermutlich auch nicht so gut verstanden.
  
• 
  Jill

  This is my first exposure to the whole story of the Magic Flute, it's really been fun to listen and watch the opera on TV while reading the book (which has the English and German side by side). I'm not really fond of the illustrations in this book, but it served its purpose - English translation! Who knew the beautiful song, Queen of the Night, is really a mother's demand of her daughter to murder her foe?! Papageno is an easily enjoyed character - very funny and good comrade for Tamino.
• 
  AngryGreyCat

  Die Zauberflote is a libretto for Mozart’s opera The Magic Flute. I had a ticket to see the show with a friend and wanted to read the libretto ahead of time to be familiar with it. I felt the storyline was a contrived with over the top drama, but it is not really meant just to be read. The performance had a great cast and beautiful music at Westminster College. I still didn’t like the storyline, but I’m glad that I went to see it.
• 
  Jesús Cardeña Morales

  Siempre me ha gustado el aria de la Reina de la Noche, pero una vez leído el libreto, aún no tengo ni idea de qué me ha querido decir el autor. Como ópera puede ser una obra grandiosa, pero como argumento... cojea bastante, posiblemente porque sea verdad que lo que realmente oculta es un mensaje masónico.
• 
  Sérgio

  Libreto da ópera A Flauta Mágica, de Amadeus Mozart, levado ao palco no Coliseu do Porto a 27 de Julho de 2013, com encenação de Peter Konwitschny e direcção de orquestra de António Saiote. Contém o roteiro da obra, com uma entrevista ao encenador, biografia do compositor e uma pequena história da representação da obra.
• 
  lily

  Pamina was sad that her husband couldn't talk to her during his trial, but they still got married. Papageno and Papagena are so funny. Sarastro married Tamino and Pamina together. My favorite part is the Queen of the Night song.
• 
  The Cute Little Brown-haired girl

  I want this book for my birthday! It is so cool! Mozart, opera, cartoon, goofy, racist, English and German, serious, and just plain cool. I must have it! I must!!!
• 
  Line

  I totally want this!!! It'd do a fantastic Playreading evening!!! HOW COOL!!!!!
• 
  Oksana

  deutschsprachiges Juwel
• 
  Ola

  As all the ENO opera guides, this is a good one, but I more than once disagree strongly with the English translation.
• 
  Michael

  For someone who never saw the magic flute, it was ok. The German text wasn't too hard, and I got to now the story, so all in all a win win
• 
  Melanie

  In der Grundschule haben wir das Stück immer zu Weihnachten gehört, deshalb wollte ich es unbedingt lesen. Es war nicht schlecht, aber ich hatte mehr erwartet :)
• 
  Mr. Pe Mr. Pe

  this is a great book and i recommend it to everyone