The first singer to perform the aria onstage was Mozart's sister-in-law Josepha Hofer. She was 33. Mozart wrote the two "Magic Flute" arias to showcase her voice. He was very impressed with Hofer's performance. In the fifth week of the opera's run, Mozart lay dying. He whispered to his wife Constanze on December 4, 1791: "Quiet, quiet! Hofer is just taking her top F; – now my sister-in-law is singing her second aria, "Der Hölle Rache"; how strongly she strikes and holds the B-flat: ""