"Die rechte Liebe grünet auf Beständigkeit", or "Gelosia, filia è d'amor"? : love and virtue in two wedding operas from the milieu of the mid-18th century Schwarzenberg court

The article compares two wedding operas, both commissioned by the Prince Joseph Adam von Schwarzenberg: The opera Die durch Cupido und Hymens Stärke glücklich gemachte Trauungs-Werke was written by Franz Arbesser for the marriage of prince’s friend, Count Joseph Gundakar von Thürheim in 1745. In full accordance with Baroque poetics, the libretto highlights the principles of love, fidelity and above all perseverance. The buffa Dove è amore è gelosia was created in 1768 by Marco Coltellini and Giuseppe Scarlatti for wedding of the prince's son Johann. Its plot is carried by ironic humor, while the principles of love, jealousy and (in)constancy are seen not as contradictory, but interconnected. A comparison of the two operas invites reflection on their analogies and differences, which reflects shifts in court culture, changes in repertoire and taste, or the context of the performance.