Opera in German The years following the French Revolution of 1789 had been some of the most turbulent in European history. In "Fidelio", Beethoven wanted to express the ideals of that Revolution: liberty, equality and fraternity. He was also inspired by contemporary French works, particularly the "rescue operas" of Luigi Cherubini. Beethoven was arguably not a natural composer of opera and, although "Fidelio" was premiered in 1805, it was not until 1814 that he produced its final version. Nevertheless, Fidelio is widely regarded as a masterpiece and is one of the key works in the German repertoire. In the early years of the
The Diary of a Madman (opera) Searle had recently written incidental music for a radio production of Gogol's story, starring Paul Scofield, and decided to choose the story for his opera, providing completely new music. The libretto was written by the composer, based on the translation of Gogol's story by D. S. Mirsky. The opera is scored for an orchestra of single strings, woodwind and brass, with two percussionists. An electronic tape is also specified to produce particular sound effects. The voices of two dogs are directed to be sung by the same performer, using a loudspeaker. The opera was written in London and Amalfi between