Fidelio by Ferdinando Paer (a score of which was owned by Beethoven). Beethoven published the 1806 libretto and, in 1810, a vocal score under the title "Leonore", and the current convention is to use the name "Leonore" for both the 1805 (three-act) and 1806 (two-act) versions and "Fidelio" only for the final 1814 revision. The first version with a three-act German libretto adapted by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly premiered at the Theater an der Wien on 20 November 1805, with additional performances the following two nights. The success of these performances was hindered by the fact that
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.