The Twenty Most Famous Opera Overtures of all Time
Curtain up! When we go to the opera in the evening – unless it's opening night at a weekend – it's probably at the end of a long day. Mozart, Rossini and Co. were well aware of this potential tiredness among their audience: their overtures tend to begin with a powerful chord in the whole orchestra. It’s time for some drama, they seem to announce – you can have a nap during the love duet in Act Three.
Read more…- Wagner • Rienzi, der Letzte der Tribunen WWV 49: Ouvertüre • Molto sostenuto e maestoso – Allegro energico – Un poco più vivace – Molto più stretto
- Bernstein • Candide (New York City 1956): Overture • Allegro molto con brio
- Wagner • Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg WWV 96: Prelude to Act I • Sehr mäßig bewegt – Bewegt, doch immer noch etwas breit – Mäßig im Hauptzeitmaß – Sehr gewichtig
- Weber • Der Freischütz op. 77 J. 277 • Overture • Overture
- Wagner • Tristan und Isolde WWV 90: Prelude (Act I) • Langsam und schmachtend
- Mozart • Don Giovanni KV 527: Ouvertura • Andante – Molto allegro
- Nicolai • Die lustigen Weiber von Windsor: Overture • Andantino moderato
- Mozart • Die Entführung aus dem Serail KV 384: Overture • Presto – Andante – Tempo I
- Wagner • Lohengrin WWV 75: Prelude to Act III • Sehr lebhaft
- Glinka • Ruslan and Lyudmila: Overture • Ruslan und Lyudmila: Overture
- Wagner • Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) WWV 63 • Ouverture
- Rossini • L'Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers): Overture • Andante - Allegro
- Wagner • Tannhäuser WWV 70: Overture • Andante maestoso - Allegro - Tempo I - Molto vivace - Assai stretto
- Rossini • Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville): Overture • Andante maestoso – Allegro con brio
- Offenbach • Orphée aux enfers (Version 1874): Overture • Très large
- Mozart • Le nozze di Figaro KV 492: Overture • Presto
- Rossini • La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie): Overture • Maestoso marziale – Allegro
- Mozart • Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) KV 620: Overture • Adagio – Allegro – Adagio – Allegro
- Rossini • Guillaume Tell: Overture • Andante – Allegro – Andantino – Allegro vivace
- Bizet • Carmen WD 31: Prélude • Allegro giocoso
Bringing together the 20 most famous opera overtures – and yes, we know, but we’re being pedantic and counting Mozart's 'Die Zauberföte' as a Singspiel! – is no easy task. Do we count current fame? Or popularity in our parents' generation? Is Weber’s ‘Freischütz’ Overture really still a hit? And is the overture to Rossini’s 'Thieving Magpie' ('La gazza ladra') more famous now, after its use in Stanley Kubrick's 'A Clockwork Orange', than that to 'Guillaume Tell'?
This list answers all those eternal questions, as well as injecting extra energy into your day. It starts with No. 20 (Wagner's 'Rienzi') and counts down to 'Carmen' at No. 1 – and remember: the judge’s decision is final.