Fidelio discography Fidelio discography This is a partial discography of "Fidelio", a Singspiel in two acts by Ludwig van Beethoven. Beethoven had originally written a three-act version of the opera called "Leonore", first performed in 1805 and then re-staged with revisions in 1806. Despite the name change, the heroine is the title character in both cases. Leonore disguises herself as a boy, Fidelio, in order to find out what has happened to her husband, Florestan, who is being illegally held by Pizarro, a prison governor. The other major characters are the gaoler Rocco and his daughter Marzelline. This is a partial discography
Rescue opera to "Fidelio" is Rossini's "Torvaldo e Dorliska" of 1815. Bedřich Smetana's "Dalibor" (1868), which contains no spoken dialogue and which bears marks of Wagnerian influence, has nonetheless been called a rescue opera, in part because of its political themes. Rescue opera was primarily a product of the French Revolution. The social changes of the period meant that opera must now appeal to the masses, and post-aristocratic, patriotic, idealistic themes—such as resistance to oppression, secularism, the political power of individuals and of people working together, and fundamental changes to the status quo—were popular. The Terror influenced stories of fear and imprisonment;