The Magic Flute troupe, tenor Benedikt Schack (the first Tamino), and had contributed to the compositions of the troupe, which were often collaboratively written. Mozart's participation increased with his contributions to the 1790 collaborative opera "Der Stein der Weisen" ("The Philosopher's Stone"), including the duet ("Nun liebes Weibchen", K. 625/592a) among other passages. Like "The Magic Flute", "Der Stein der Weisen" was a fairy-tale opera and can be considered a kind of precursor; it employed much the same cast in similar roles. The libretto for "The Magic Flute", written by Schikaneder, is thought by scholars to be based on many sources. Some works
Libretto of The Magic Flute to draw a generalized observation from the proceedings on stage in order to promote virtue or condemn vice." Cairns attributes a taste for "didactic sentiment" specifically to the Viennese popular theater. Concerning "The Magic Flute" specifically, Rosen writes that it "develops ... a conception of music as a vehicle for simple moral truths." The opera's didacticism is concentrated in passages of poetry, set in the ensemble scenes, in which the characters cease to converse with each other and join in singing an edifying lesson to the audience. One example is found in the first act, just after Monostatos and his