Antonio Salieri Upon his return at imperial behest to Vienna in 1780, Salieri wrote one German singspiel, "Der Rauchfangkehrer" ("The Chimney Sweep"), which premiered in 1781. Salieri's "Chimney Sweep" and Mozart's work for the same company in 1782, "Die Entführung aus dem Serail" ("The Abduction from the Seraglio"), were the only two major successes to emerge from the German singspiel experiment, and only Mozart's opera survived on the stage beyond the close of the 18th century. In 1783 the Italian opera company was revived with singers partly chosen and vetted by Salieri during his Italian tour; the new season opened with a
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