Who composed (wrote) the opera “The Magic Flute”?

Answer 1

i did last night when i lost my pea

Answer 2

The Magic Flute was composed by Mozart in 1791 just months before he died.

Answer 3

Mozart

Answer 4

Mozart

Answer 5

composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder

Answer 6

Mozart did.

Answer 7

There is complexity in answer.
if you can read in detail here it is:
Mozart's Magic Flute: Love, Forgiveness, Tolerance and the Brotherhood of Man

When reading about one of the most celebrated operas in the history of the genre, it is interesting to note that many of the reference sources available dealing with that work can only begin to fathom its complexities. The complexities themselves are often the reason such a work is so mystifying through the ages; and any explanation of the said work is often guarded by those who created the spectacle initially.

In the case of Mozart's opera, The Magic Flute, the Masonic traditions observed by the composer and its librettist (Emanuel Schickaneder) have prompted some of the most philosophical discussions in the annals of opera. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a fellow free-mason, speaks to the masses outside the circle of free-masonry regarding The Magic Flute: "It is enough that the crowd would find pleasure in seeing the spectacle; at the same time, its high significance will not escape the initiates."

Goethe's statement is revealing, as it points to an inner circle of beliefs and philosophies that may be the very core of The Magic Flute's libretto and music. Behind Goethe's statement lies an even deeper question to ponder: Who are the "initiates" and what is the higher meaning of The Magic Flute under the guise of Free-Masonry?

In order to answer the above questions with any sensibility, one must become more personally involved with those we can immediately identify as "initiated." The answers to the questions above seem to lead us invariably to Emanuel Schickaneder, whose libretto for The Magic Flute has multiple implications as well as now-known beliefs involving free-masonry.

Schikaneder's proposal of The Magic Flute came at a time when Mozart was quite prolific in several genres: dance music, the piano concerto in Bb major (K.595, his last) a string quartet, the Eb quintet, works for mechanical clock as well as several songs to name a few. Mozart's relationship with Schikaneder is traced to around 1780, and the proposal to write an opera for Schikaneder's theater was both fiscally and musically in Mozart's best interest.


Early Sources
Schikaneder's libretto has varied sources, and the interpolation of the sources themselves could certainly contribute to the plot's initial inaccessibility. Most research regarding the incipient plot for The Magic Flute can be traced to Jakob August Liebeskind's "Lulu oder Die Zauberflote," which was published in Christoph Martin Wieland's collection of fairy tales, Dschinnistan. (1786-1789) Loosely translated, Wieland's collection contains "selected tales of fairies and spirits, partly newly invented, partly newly translated and revised." Dschinnistan inspired other works as well, including Muller's "Kaspar der Fagottist" and Benedict Schack's "Der Stein der Weisen." Schikaneder also had cognizance of Phillip Hafner's play "Megara," dating from 1763. Magara contributed to some of the magical fairy tale elements so closely intertwined within the seriousness of The Magic Flute. Ritualistic elements, including the ancient Egyptian setting can be traced to Jean Terrasson's novel, "Sethos," dating from 1731.


The Enlightenment and Schikaneder's Free-Masonry
Masonic opera was not a new idea in Mozart's enlightened city of Vienna. Several years before the appearance of The Magic Flute, Lorenzo DaPonte had assisted the librettist Mazzola with the Masonic opera "Osiris," written by Johann Gottlieb Naumann. Naumann's opera has some traceable similarities to Flute, if not musically, then Masonically. Test scenes for Osiris used Egypt as its setting, and the struggle between good and evil was at the forefront of the libretto itself.
Although it is accepted that Schikaneder wrote the libretto for Mozart's opera, there has been some dispute about The Magic Flute's authorship. Schikaneder's wayward career and lack of any long-standing membership in any Masonic lodge may have fueled the suspect tales of false-authorship. In 1849, rumors were rife that Johann Georg Metzler (known as Giesecke) may have been responsible for the actual libretto. Julius Cornet, a tenor and opera director, published "Die Oper in Deutschland und das Theater der Neuzeit," (1849) which stated that Giesecke wrote the libretto. The information was supplied to Cornet by Giesecke himself, so it is largely circumstantial and doesn't seem to warrant any further support.

Schikaneder's standing within Free-Masonry was altogether haphazard to say the least. Research done by Brother Dr. Bernhard Beuer of Bayreuth traces Schikaneder's life as a Mason. Beuer's work states that Schikaneder entered "the craft" for worldly reasons, and was certainly not above anything scandalous or unethical, providing it was profitable. Schikaneder's letters petitioning admission to the Masons shows his need for membership in a vagrant way:

"Deeply revered gentlemen, Not curiosity or selfishness but the most sincere esteem of your exalted assembly motivates by most humble prayer for admission to your sanctuary from which, in spite of the greatest secrecy, radiates a glimmer of nobility, humanity and wisdom. Enlighten me by your wise teachings, make me in your image, and I will remain with warmest thanks, Your most honoring and humble servant, Johann Emanuel Schikaneder"

Schikaneder's letter is revealing, and shows his need for acceptance to a formal organization. The short letter also highlights his ability to stress (or at least react to) the dramatic element and self-promotion…certainly two character traits found in his Papageno.

Singspiel, Opera Comique, Opera Buffa
One of the more intriguing elements of the Magic Flute is its roots in the Singspiel tradition on the one hand, and the opera's ability to move itself outside of that same tradition on the other. Indeed, the opera has never left the active repertoire, and perhaps the proper blend of thematic, formal and musical elements could serve as testimony to its long-standing success.

"Singspiel" as a formal approach to opera-theater has long been associated with the German language. "Singspiel" as a word however, has been loosely translated. Singspiel is generally accepted as the German equivalent to the French Opera Comique. Ironically, Opera Comique has been invariably linked to the French, yet both Singspiel and Opera Comique take their cues from the Italian roots of Opera Buffa.

Singspiel was one of the reactions against opera seria and opera buffa, but for different reasons: Opera Seria had all but died by the end of the eighteenth century. The opera seria audience was ever-smaller, and the patricians seemed to be the only ones interested in the stationary nature of the stories. Opera Buffa suffered a similar fate, yet it was for quite the opposite reason. Italian opera buffa became a revolving door of deceived lovers and cowardly dilettantes. The critics are suspicious…they've seen the show before.

Singspiel was, in Flute's case, to be equated more with the opera-comique tradition. Mozart's reference of the opera-comique tradition combined with the lyric theater could be traced to Jean-Jacques Rousseau's "Le Devin du village." The work dates from 1752 and sets a prototype within the genre. Works such as Philidor's "Le Jardinier et son seigneur," (1761) Monsigny's "Le Deserteur," (1762) and Dalayrac's "Nina" (1786) brought the genre through a genesis that no longer existed solely to amuse. Opera-comique now aimed to make the audience ponder the more humane and philosophical issues. Emotional content and thought-provoking plots become part of the new order, and the French opera-comique lends a springboard from which Singspiel will leap.

Mozart's Magic Flute is without question the strongest example of the Singspiel tradition composed before or since its premiere. Mozart was not new to the Singspiel tradition, and his first attempt within the genre was in 1768. Bastien et Bastienne, composed when Mozart was 12, is treated as a parody on Rousseau's "Le Devin du village." Other pre-Flute examples of Mozart's output in Singspiel include Der Schauspieldirektor, finished in 1786, the unfinished "Zaide" dating from 1780 and a certain pre-cursor to Zauberflote: "Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail."(1782) In the final vaudeville of Entfuhrung, a strong philosophical reference to the future Sarastro character is furnished: "Nothing is more odious than vengeance. On the contrary, to be humane, to have a good heart, and to pardon without personal resentment-that alone is characteristic of great souls