Germany has produced a number of great opera composers in its history. Richard Wagner stands supreme among all others, but right after him comes Richard Strauss, born on June 11, 1864. After the great composer from Munich is everyone else. And it isn\u2019t really all that close.<\/p>\n
Strauss received a thorough musical education throughout his youth and was inspired by his first Wagner operas, which he heard when he was just 10. Unfortunately, his father forbade that he listen to Wagner and it wasn\u2019t until 16 that he obtained a score of \u201cTristan und Isolde.\u201d A survey through his greatest works and overall musical style reveals a major debt to Wagner\u2019s deeply symphonic style.<\/p>\n
He was also a prominent conductor in his time and championed many of the operas that had a profound effect on his musical style.<\/p>\n
He composed his first opera “Guntram” in 1892 and his final such work, “Capriccio,” came in 1940. His operas have become among the most popular in the repertoire and Strauss is undeniably one of the top 10, if not five, composers to ever create for the art form.<\/p>\n
Strauss died on Sept. 8, 1949.<\/p>\n
Signature Work<\/strong><\/p>\n Strauss has a wide range of major operas and vocal pieces. For many, his \u201cLast Four Songs\u201d are the height of his vocal art.<\/p>\n But in theatrical terms, his finest work comes down to his collaboration with librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Among those famed works are \u201cDer Rosenkavalier,\u201d \u201cElektra,\u201d and \u201cSalome.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cElektra\u201d and \u201cSalome,\u201d while earlier works in his oeuvre, are renowned for their dramatic urgency and orchestral depth and intensity. Both operas are in fact performed without any intermission or act breaks.<\/p>\n \u201cDer Rosenkavalier\u201d is perhaps his most beloved opera, presented around the globe on a regular basis. It is a work filled with incredible musical depth and ever-fascinating investigations on love and age with some of opera\u2019s most iconic characters.<\/p>\n