Opera Music of Germany

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Die Zauberflote in the year 1791 is usually said to be the beginning of German-language opera. An earlier beginning date for German opera, however, could be Heinrich Schutz’s Dafne from 1627. Schutz is said to be the first great German singer before Johann Sebastian Bach, and was a major figure in 17^th century music.

source of picture: music.terra.com

In the 19^th century, two figures were significant in German opera: Richard Wagner and Carl Maria von Weber. Wagner brought device like the leitmotiv, a musical theme which recurs for important characters or ideas. Wagner (and Weber) based his operas of German history and folklore; most significantly include the Ring of the Nibelung in the year 1874. Into the 20^th century, opera singers included Richard Strauss (Der Rosenkavalier) and Engelbert Humperdinck, who wrote operas meant for young spectators. Across the border in Austria, Arnold Schoenberg renewed a form of twelve-tone music that used rhythm and dissonance instead of traditional melodies and harmonies, while Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill collaborated on some of the great works of German theater, which include The Three-Penny Opera and Rise and fall of the City of Mahagonny.

When the Nazis came to power in Germany during the 1930s, several artists fled the country. Following the war, German singers such as Hans Werner Henze and Karlheinz Stockhausen began experimenting electronic sounds in classical music.