Mustafà

Mustafà (Rossini: L'italiana in Algeri). Bass. The Bey of Algiers. He no longer loves his wife Elvira and orders his captured Italian slave, Lindoro, to marry her. His servant Haly must find him an Italian lady to marry. The lady Haly finds in a shipwreck is Lindoro's lover, Isabella, looking for her beloved. She and Lindoro plot their escape — they fool Mustafà into believing Isabella loves him and slip away while he is busy dining. Realizing she has gone, the Bey returns to Elvira, swearing to have no more to do with Italian women. Aria: Già d'insolito ardore (‘I already feel excited and afire’). Created (1813) by Filippo Galli.