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Composer: Cornelius, Peter

Der Barbier von Bagdad (The Barber of Bagdad): Overture (arr. F. Mottl)

Conductor: Friedel, Lance

Royal Scottish National Orchestra

Video Director: Rowlands, Phil

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Playing Time: 00:08:42

Catalogue Number: NVF0073

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Peter Cornelius was born in Mainz into a theatrical family. He wrote many songs and three operas, the last of which, Gunold, was completed after his death. Der Barbier von Bagdad was written in 1858 to a libretto by the composer himself which he based on a story from The Arabian Nights. The sparkling two-act German comic opera received its premiere in Weimar in December 1858 under the baton of Franz Liszt, the theatre's music director. Following the first performance, Liszt suggested to Cornelius that he write a fresh overture to replace the short prelude but the composer died before he was able to make an orchestration.

Several arrangements of Cornelius's overture exist, including one by Liszt himself - the D major version heard here is by the conductor Felix Mottl. Packed with incident, the overture uses several themes heard later in the opera.