Beethoven, O Welche Lust

Beethoven completed only one opera: Fidelio. Its premiere in Vienna on November 20, 1805, unfortunately came on the heels of Napoleon’s occupation of that city a few days earlier. Consequently, the audience was comprised mostly of French officers who likely preferred the quite different Parisian style of opera.

It was not an auspicious start. Beethoven shortened the opera for another performance in 1806. After further revision, the opera eventually found success in 1814. Beethoven wrote four different overtures to the opera, searching for the best way to set the stage: the “Fidelio Overture” now commonly used in performances, and the overtures labeled Leonore Overtures 1, 2, and 3. The Leonore Overtures are often performed separately as concert pieces.

The opera concerns a woman, Leonore, and her attempt to free her husband who is being held as a political prisoner. She disguises herself as a young man (named Fidelio) and obtains a position as an assistant to the jailer. The prisoners have been confined to their underground cells in what we can imagine as terrible conditions. Fidelio, however, convinces the jailer to allow the prisoners a brief time out of their cells. In one of the most powerful scenes, the prisoners emerge to see the sunlight and sing O Welche Lust (Oh, What Joy).

You can find a more in-depth look at Fidelio in our ongoing series A Night at the Opera.