Il Bellerofonte

From the time of the premiere of Bellerofonte until his death in 1781, Mysliveček succeeded in having more new opere serie brought into production than any other composer in Europe.

Historical settings, rather than mythological ones, were customary for serious operas in Italy of the 1760s, unless elements from the French tragédie lyrique were included to create a Franco-Italian fusion.

In this case, the inclusion of choruses and programmatic musical effects mark it as moderately influenced by French operatic traditions aside from the choice of mythological subject matter.

The opera was also preceded by a festive dance while a cantata was sung in honor of King Ferdinand I (also composed by Mysliveček).

Il Bellerofonte features many arias with elaborate vocal virtuosity of the type favored by Italian audiences of the 1760s.

In a sidelight, the virgin Briseide, slated for sacrifice to the monster, is saved from death and finds a lover to marry in the "second tier" of romantic involvements.