L'Enlevement du Serail.

£1,200 · Offered by Shapero Rare Books

A rare, early score of The Abduction from the Seraglio; is a singspiel in three acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The German libretto is by Gottlieb Stephanie, based on Christoph Friedrich Bretzner's Belmont und Constanze, oder Die Entführung aus dem Serail. The plot concerns the attempt of the hero Belmonte, assisted by his servant Pedrillo, to rescue his beloved Constanze from the seraglio of Pasha Selim. The work premiered on 16 July 1782 at the Vienna Burgtheater, with the composer conducting. (Grove) Early edition; oblong folio (240 x 340mm, 13 x 10 1/8 in); arranged for harpsichord with libretto in German and French, age-toned, general light soiling, occasional, mostly peripheral spotting or foxing, more prominent to engraved title-page, curling to outer corners of approximately first 30 pages, single pin hole in the inner, upper corner margin but not offensive or affecting score; later (19th century) patterned card wrapper binding with original manuscript title in French with price of 18 francs (as per that printed on title-page), pasted on the front cover, loss of just over half of the spine but stitched bands still intact and sound, corners worn and rubbed with creasing to upper wrapper, otherwise a remarkable survival in an unrestored state; engraved title [1 blank], 2 - 151 pp.

• Binding: Hardcover

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