1. Vaccai's Metodo pratico di canto [London, 1833] vocal exercises to settings of Metastasio, edited by Elio Battaglia (English translations by Stephen Hastings) [Milano, Ricordi 1990] is published with an accompanying audiocassette. Two exercises have not been identified as Metastasio settings:

Lesson 6, syncopation: "Nel contrasto Amor s'accende"

Lesson 14, on recitative: "La Patria e un tutto di cui siam parti"

2. For the 1970 bicentenary of Beethoven's birth, many new recordings were made, aiming to achieve recorded availability of all his works. However, my searches of recent catalogues have not yielded recordings of Beethoven's setting(s) of this work.

3.The Hyperion Schubert Edition is expected to include all Schubert song settings; but so far (#21) this Schubert setting of Metastasio text has not appeared.

4. In his review [Gramophone Nov. 1994, 145] of Biondi's recording of Händel's PORO, Stanley Sadie mentions, rather disparagingly, an earlier East German recording, but gives no details.

5. "Palido il sole.." is reputedly one of the Hasse songs which Farinelli was employed to sing nightly to the King of Spain; c.f. the Preface [p. xlviii] to Vernon Lee's Studies of the Eighteenth Century in Italy [2nd ed. Chicago, McClurg, 1908].Milner The Operas of Johann Adolf Hasse [UMI Research Press, 1979] indicates that Artaserse was the first Metastasio setting by Hasse but attributes [p.289 n.25] the text of this aria to an amending author Giovanni Boldini. Another setting of this aria (as an independent extract) is:

- BALDUCCI, Romanza: Janet Marsland, B. Greenfield (pf.), Introducing Giuseppe Balducci NZO(pera)S(ociety) [LP] 4*

6. "Un certo non so che" VIVALDI setting ascribed to L'Ateneide, but Metastasio wrote that in 1762 and Vivaldi died 1741; text changes from Catone text after first line, reverts for first line second stanza then again continues differently.

7. The text for Rossini's first operatic composition his so-called setting of DEMETRIO was revised byV. Vigano-Mombelli; for setting 1806-7 revised Mombelli as DEMETRIO E POLIBIO (Rome 1812) becoming almost unrecognisable.

8. DIDONE ABBANDONATA had wide success but has a very familiar story. Some works that might be attributed to the popularity of the Metastasio version include CLEMENTI Piano Sonata op.50, no.3, Didone abbandonata: scena tragica, [e.g. Crowson [pf] OISEAU LYRE [LP ] SOL 306; and MARCELLO / RESPIGHI cantata (is its text Metastasio?)

9. This aria is one of the earliest recorded Metastasio settings to be recorded: the HMV opera catalogue Opera at Home (mine is the 1925 3rd edition, DBe) and its US counterpart, The Victor Book of Opera (the 1915 3rd edition) list the recording of "L'amerò, sarò costante" sung by Nellie Melba with violin obbligato by Jan Kubelik: HMV [78] DK112, VICTOR [78] 89074

10. This was a favourite of Rossini who set it numerous times, sometimes inventing melodies around it that could be used to set other verse at a later date. There are about 50 settings e.g Musique Anodine, six settings for voice and piano, and in others in Peches de Vieillesse.

11. A setting of Metastasio's text as used for the "singing lesson" scene in act 3 of Il Barbiere di Siviglia.

12. A setting of Metastasio's text as used for the "singing lesson" scene in Paisiello's Il barbiere di Siviglia; intended for a 1789 performance of a German version of the opera. The piece remained unfinished.

13. A setting of John Hoole's translation of Aristea's aria "Caro, son tua cosi" from L'Olimpiade, 3,2.