One of the tragedies of famous composers with prolific outputs is that large portions of their output, no matter how brilliant, end up being neglected. Not many of us can claim to be familiar with all of Haydn’s 123 baryton trios, Vivaldi’s 39 bassoon concerti, Massenet’s 34 operas, Palestrina’s 105 masses, Telemann’s 45 settings of the Passion, or Schubert’s 600-plus lieder. Mozart’s own contredanses, cassations, and marches have suffered the same fate.

An example is his 1772 opera Lucio Silla, K.135, composed when he was 16, and premiered in Milan to full houses over nearly 30 performances. The plot concerns a relatively obscure love triangle set in the later days of the Roman Republic. Unfortunately, like the other operas of Mozart’s earlier period, the vocal parts were written to suit the abilities and tessiture of specific singers, making modern casting for them difficult, and so are rarely performed. Lesser-known works are less likely to sell tickets, so producers stick to more famous operas, resulting in a vicious cycle.

The overture is the best-known part of the opera, due to its inclusion as concert filler material, and is in the old Italian overture form of fast-slow-fast, almost a miniature symphony. It begins with a formal D major Molto allegro opening, with brass fanfares setting us firmly in the military setting of Ancient Rome, before leading us into a playful A major second theme. An elegant Andante section follows, before a whirling returns us to a 6/8 Molto allegro that opens the opera.

Singapore Symphony Orchestra
Joshua Tan, conductor

Recorded live at the Victoria Concert Hall, Singapore, on 1 Apr 2021. The reduced orchestra, masks and distanced seating were required by rules in force during the pandemic.

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