Rosamunde
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Rosamunde (disambiguation).
The Rosamunde incidental music Op. 26 (D. 797) was composed by Franz Schubert for an 1823 play by Helmina von Chézy. The full name of that play was Rosamunde, Fürstin von Zypern ("Rosamunde, Princess of Cyprus"). Schubert's music is scored for soprano, chorus, and orchestra. The play, it seems, was a failure and has been permanently lost, but the music remains, and some of its excerpts remain among Schubert's most famous pieces.
Excerpts from the Rosamunde music are frequently played, but the complete score, lasting a full hour, is seldom heard. It has been issued on an acclaimed recording conducted by Kurt Masur. Rosamunde was played at the entrance of Auschwitz when new prisoners arrived.
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[edit] Other Rosamunde music by Schubert
A melody of the Rosamunde incidental music was re-used by Schubert in chamber music, notably in the Rosamunde string quartet and in the Impromptu Op. 142 No. 3, in B flat major, where it is the theme for a set of 6 piano variations.
[edit] In popular culture
The Overture was used for a ballet sequence in the 1952 Samuel Goldwyn film Hans Christian Andersen, starring Danny Kaye. [1] The ballet sequence was danced by Zizi Jeanmaire. Another one of its excerpts was incorporated into the Christmas carol Mille cherubim in coro, a song made popular by Luciano Pavarotti on his 1980 Christmas special. [2]
[edit] Audio file
- Impromptu in B-flat, Andante (theme) (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- The "Rosamunde" theme of the Impromptu Op. 142 No. 3 for piano
- Problems playing the files? See media help.
