Angelo Soliman Haydn as well the Hungarian poet Ferenc Kazinczy. Lodge records indicate that Soliman and Mozart met on several occasions. It is likely that the character Bassa Selim in Mozart's opera "The Abduction from the Seraglio" was based on Soliman. Eventually becoming the Grand Master of that lodge, Soliman helped change its ritual to include scholarly elements. This new Masonic direction rapidly influenced Freemasonic practice throughout Europe. Soliman is still celebrated in Massonic rites as "Father of Pure Masonic Thought", with his name usually transliterated as "Angelus Solimanus". During his lifetime Soliman was regarded as a model of the assimilation and
Opera nozze di Figaro"), "Don Giovanni", and "Così fan tutte", as well as "Die Entführung aus dem Serail" ("The Abduction from the Seraglio"), and "The Magic Flute" ("Die Zauberflöte"), landmarks in the German tradition. The first third of the 19th century saw the high point of the bel canto style, with Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti and Vincenzo Bellini all creating works that are still performed. It also saw the advent of Grand Opera typified by the works of Auber and Meyerbeer. The mid-to-late 19th century was a golden age of opera, led and dominated by Giuseppe Verdi in Italy and Richard