Beethoven - "Leonora", Overture No 1, in C major, Op 138

Beethoven wrote only one opera - Fidelio - and, while it may have its share of dramatic flaws relative to works by those who specialized in the genre, it is true music drama full of heroic themes and equally heroic music.

He wrote four overtures for the work (the three Leonore overtures as well as the Fidelio overture). Each in its way can be said to represent dramatic themes in the opera, and no one by itself captures the full essence of the work. (Interestingly, various conductors - including Gustav Mahler when he had been the music director of the Vienna Court Opera - have utilized all four overtures in the course of a single performance of Fidelio, to good effect one could imagine.)

Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized 17 December 1770 - 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. The crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.

Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of the Holy Roman Empire, Beethoven moved to Vienna in his early 20s, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist.

His hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, conduct, and perform, even after becoming completely deaf.

University of Chicago Orchestra (orchestra)
Barbara Schubert (conductor)
Publisher Info.:

Chicago: University of Chicago Symphony
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