The Bartered Bride dedication of the latter's Opus 1: "Six Characteristic Pieces for Piano" in 1848, and had encouraged the younger composer's career since then. In September 1857 Smetana visited Liszt in Weimar, where he met Peter Cornelius, a follower of Liszt's who was working on a comic opera, "Der Barbier von Bagdad". Their discussions centred on the need to create a modern style of comic opera, as a counterbalance to Wagner's new form of music drama. A comment was made by the Viennese conductor Johann von Herbeck to the effect that Czechs were incapable of making music of their own, a remark
The Bartered Bride premiere "The Bartered Bride" has entered the repertory of all major opera companies, and is regularly revived worldwide. After several unsuccessful attempts to stage it in France, it was premiered at the Opéra-Comique in Paris in 1928, sung in French as "La Fiancée vendue". In 2008 the opera was added to the repertoire of the Paris Opera, in a new production staged at the Palais Garnier. In the English-speaking world, recent productions of "The Bartered Bride" in London have included the Royal Opera House (ROH) presentation in 1998, staged at Sadler's Wells during the restoration of the ROH's headquarters at