Davide penitente


Davide penitente, K. 469, is a cantata by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, to texts by. The cantata was commissioned by the Wiener Tonkünstler-Societät, and first performed on 13 March 1785 in the Vienna Burgtheater. Most of the music is derived from the unfinished Great [Mass in C minor], K. 427, although two arias and a cadenza for the last movement were newly composed for the work.
It has a duration of approximately 45 minutes.

Authorship of text

The theme of the work is based on the Psalms and the First Book of Samuel of the Old Testament. The text was previously attributed to Lorenzo Da Ponte, following a report by Vincent Novello. However, it is now known that the text is taken from Italian translations of the Psalms by .

Structure

  1. Alzai le flebili voci al Signor
  2. Cantiamo le glorie e le lodi
  3. Aria: Lungi le cure ingrate
  4. Sii pur sempre benigno
  5. Duet: Sorgi, o Signore, e spargi i tuoi nemici
  6. Aria: A te, fra tanti affanni – Udisti i voti miei
  7. Se vuoi, puniscimi
  8. Aria: Fra l'oscure ombre funeste – Alme belle
  9. Terzetto: Tutte le mie speranze
  10. Chi in Dio sol spera – Di tal pericoli non ho timor

Recordings