Aranjuez 1753. The famous castrato Farinelli, at the behest of Queen Bárbara de Braganza, entrusts the not less famous Pietro Metastasio with the compilation of a theatrical feast for the onomastics of King Ferdinand VI. It would also serve to inaugurate a small theater that was thought to be built inside the Royal Palace of Aranjuez. To put music into Metastasio's text, Farinelli thought of Nicola Porpora, but the composer fell ill while the poet was writing his text, and at the suggestion of Metastasio himself, a composer of the Viennese court of Italian origin, Giuseppe Bonno, resumed the commission.

Thus was born L'isola disabitata, an opera in a single act, which was well received at the court of Madrid and full satisfaction by the kings. As a thank-you, the monarchs sent Metastasio a box filled with gold, lavishly adorned with enameled figures and several bri-llantes at the mouth of the lid. For his part, the composer received an original gift: a chocolate bun filled with 100 doubloons of gold.

The success of the premiere in Aranjuez contributed to its extraordinary editorial diffusion. Four editions of the libretto in Italy were published before the end of 1753, transcribing the data of the party of Aran-juez on its cover. In our days the musicologist Juan Pablo Fernández-Cortés has recovered from the forgetfulness this opera that we present here.