About the work
Artaserse was Johann Christian Bach's first opera for an Italian stage, commissioned by the Teatro Regio in Turin and set to Pietro Metastasio's libretto. The premiere opened the theatre's carnival season on 26 December 1760.
Plot
The Persian guard commander Artabanus murders King Xerxes and casts suspicion on his son Darius, who is executed as a result. The younger son Artaserse ascends the throne and faces a crisis of conscience when his friend Arbace is wrongly suspected of the murder.
Cultural significance
The Turin success established Bach's reputation as an opera composer and brought further commissions in Naples and Milan that eventually led to his engagement in London. With more than 90 settings, Metastasio's text was his most frequently set libretto of all.