Opera in German Opera in German Opera in German is that of the German-speaking countries, which include Germany, Austria, and the historic German states that pre-date those countries. German-language opera appeared remarkably quickly after the birth of opera itself in Italy. The first Italian opera was Jacopo Peri's "Dafne" of 1598. In 1627, Heinrich Schütz provided the music for a German translation of the same libretto. Yet during much of the 17th and 18th centuries German-language opera would struggle to emerge from the shadow of its Italian-language rival, with leading German-born composers such as Handel and Gluck opting to work in foreign traditions
Royal Winter Music Royal Winter Music Royal Winter Music is the name given to two solo works for classical guitar by the German composer Hans Werner Henze. Both works are inspired by characters from Shakespeare. The first work (described as a sonata) was completed in 1976, and is in six movements. The first part, "Richard of Gloucester" gives the overall work its name (from Richard's opening monologue "Now is the winter of our discontent"). The first piece was premiered by Julian Bream (at whose request Henze had written it) in Berlin on 20 September 1976. The second sonata, written in 1979, continues the