Rescue opera tradition that would influence German Romantic opera and French grand opera. The most famous rescue opera is Ludwig van Beethoven's "Fidelio". "Rescue opera" was not a contemporary term. Dyneley Hussey used the term in English in 1927 as a translation of Karl M. Klob's 1913 reference to "Fidelio" as "das sogenannte Rettungs- oder Befreiungsstück" in "Die Oper von Gluck bis Wagner". David Charlton believes that rescue opera is not an authentic genre, and that the concept was coined to make what he believes is a nonexistent connection between Beethoven's work and French opera. Patrick J. Smith, on the other hand,
The Diary of a Madman (opera) The Diary of a Madman (opera) The Diary of a Madman is a one-act chamber opera by the composer Humphrey Searle. It is based on the short story of the same name by Nikolai Gogol. The opera was premiered in 1958 in Berlin. The libretto is by the composer. The work, which is the first of Searle's operas, was commissioned by Hermann Scherchen, then the director of the Berlin Festival. Scherchen gave Searle complete choice of subject, stipulating only that the orchestra be of no more than 15 players, and that there should be no more than four singing roles.