1.8 (above average)
Sunday 11 October 2009
Tune of the Day: Papageno's Aria
from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera “The Magic Flute”
This famous aria is sung near the end of the second and last act of Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute). After Pamina and Tamino fell in love with each other, the funny bird catcher Papageno also desires to have a “little wife”, and sings of this with his magic bells. The original first line is “Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen”, but here's a translation instead, taken directly from the 1984 film Amadeus:
A sweetheart or a pretty little wife
Is Papageno's wish.
A willing, billing, lovey dovey
Would be
My most tasty little dish.
Be my most tasty little dish!
Be my most tasty little dish!
Then that would be eating and drinking
I'd live like a Prince without thinking.
The wisdom of old would be mine —
A woman's much better than wine!