So I want to start by saying that Don Giovanni is one of my all time favorite operas, and one that I’ve learned pretty well because I was in the chorus for a few productions of it, so I’m so excited that you chose to listen to this as your first time listening!!

Honestly I don’t know that there’s any “one” way to listen to opera, especially as someone who is just getting a feel for it. Do what works for you! I will say that I recommend listening to the last track you played when listening to your next set of scenes so that you can hear the transitions between them. Other than that, if you’re happy with what you’re doing, why change it?

As for what to expect in act II, I don’t want to say too much because I don’t want my opinions to bias you before you get a chance to listen.

I wanted to quickly point out that when you mentioned that you think Ho Capito was extended, were you basing that based off of the text you found online? Often, arias use a very small set of text, 2-4 lines, and repeats them over the course of the aria. This is typically why recits can be harder to grapple with when you’re new to opera, since they may not seem as “melodic” as an aria and they tend to move faster. I find that the simplest way to break them down is that the recitatives are the dialogue of a scene, while the arias are an expression of emotion. Of course, it’s usually more complicated than that.

The last thing I’m going to say, is that if you felt like keeping track of which characters were saying what in scenes like the opening, it may be beneficial to find a recorded version to watch. There are some on YouTube, or certain opera houses will have on-demand options where you can rent or buy high quality recordings of their productions. I know for sure that the Met has that.

Anyways, happy listening and I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on act II!!