opera's librettist Emanuel Schikaneder. Schikaneder was the impresario for whom the opera was written as well as the first performer of the role of Papageno. O zittre nicht, mein lieber Sohn, du bist unschuldig, weise, fromm Ein Jüngling so wie du, vermag am besten, dies tiefbetrübte Mutterherz zu trösten. Zum Leiden bin ich auserkoren, denn meine Tochter fehlet mir. Durch sie ging all mein Glück verloren, ein Bösewicht, entfloh mit ihr. Noch seh' ich ihr Zittern mit bangem Erschüttern, ihr ängstliches Beben, ihr schüchternes Streben. Ich mußte sie mir rauben sehen. "Ach helft!" – war alles was sie sprach allein vergebens war ihr Flehen, denn meine Hilfe war zu schwach. Du wirst sie zu befreien gehen, du wirst der Tochter Retter sein! Und werd' ich dich als Sieger sehen, so sei sie dann auf ewig dein. Oh, don't tremble, my dear son! You are innocent, wise, pious; A youth like you is best able to console this deeply troubled mother's heart. I am chosen for suffering For my daughter is gone from me; Through her all my happiness has been lost, A villain, fled with her. I can still see her trembling with fearful shaking, her frightened quaking, her timid effort. I had to see her stolen from me. "Oh help!" – was all that she said But in vain was her pleading, For my powers of help were too weak. You will go to free her, You will be my daughter's savior. And if I see you return in triumph, Let her then be yours forever. There are five quatrains, of which the third is written in amphibrachic dimeter and the remaining ones in iambic tetrameter, which is the normal meter for The Magic Flute. Mozart repeats the words "ach helft!" ("Oh, help!") and "Du" ("you", three times), so the lines with these words are not iambic tetrameters as they are actually sung. The rhyme scheme is [AABB][CDCD][EEFF][GHGH][IJIJ]. Music The soprano soloist (vocal range: D4 to F6) performs with an orchestra consisting of pairs of oboes, bassoons, horns, and strings. The three parts of the Queen's discourse are set as musically separate items, each marked by a change in key: Recitative (B-flat major) – continues the Allegro maestoso tempo marking of the entrance music, but often performed in free tempo First part of the aria (G minor) – Andante Second part of the aria (back to B-flat major) –