The partnership forged by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte is one that has never been equalled in the history of
musical theatre. The trio of operas they created together, including Don Giovanni, dramatically reshaped the nature of Italian opera and transcended their era, becoming timeless and leaving an indelible imprint on the operatic canon that is considered one of the pinnacles of the genre. In their version of the Spanish legend about the libertine and womaniser Don Juan, composer and librettist blended comedy with supernatural elements while also bringing to the forefront serious existential themes such as the question of freedom and morals, in this way stylistically distancing themselves from the established genre conventions governing operatic works at the time. This concert performance of the opera is presented by the Pehlivanian Opera Academy, an institution that brings together promising conductors and singers from all over the world. Following last year’s successful performance of Puccini’s La bohème, maestro George Pehlivanian will once again leave the conductor’s rostrum to young professional conductors, while the singing roles will be shared by several young singers who are developing their opera performance and production skills through their collaboration with the Pehlivanian Opera Academy. After moving from his native Beirut to Los Angeles, Academy founder George Pehlivanian refined his conducting skills as a student of some of the leading musicians of the post-war era, including Pierre Boulez, Lorin Maazel and Ferdinand Leitner. Today he is himself one of the leading conductors of his generation.