Le Stravaganze del Conte was Cimarosa's first opera buffo, and began him on a long and illustrious career as Italy's leading opera buffo composer. It was composed for the Carnivale celebrations in Naples. Carnivale in Cimarosa's day began on December 26 and lasted all the way until Shrove Tuesday, or the day before the beginning of Lent. The celebrations were marked by all kinds of festivities, but most of all there were extravagant theatrical productions. The people came out to celebrate every night, and wanted elaborate entertainments. Cimarosa's first opera is a two-act opera buffa to a libretto by Pasquale Milliotti. This was not enough to fill out the evening, so he composed a second opera, Le Magie de Merlina e Zoroastro, a one-act farce which helped complete the entertainments. But even that was not enough for the insatiable Neapolitans. In between acts, sumptuous ballets were performed. The premiere took place at the Teatro dei Fiorentini. The two types of operas performed in Naples were the opera seria and opera buffo. Because of the immense popularity of opere buffe, additional theaters were built just for their production. The Teatro dei Fiorentini was one of the main theaters to stage opere buffe, and the most opulent. This first opera of Cimarosa's shows his flair for spontaneous melodic invention, transparent textures and harmonies, and comic gifts. Both of these operas make use of accompanied recitative, which Cimarosa would learn to exploit in later operas. In addition, both also contain quick paced ensembles. The overture is tightly structured, and the opera pleasing and satisfying.

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