"Die Hochzeit des Camacho" Overture

The overture to the opera Camacho’s Wedding by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartoldi was completed on February 12th, 1825. By the time the fifteen-yearold composer began work on his comic opera in 1824, his earlier four Singspiels had already been performed within the family circle.

Mendelssohn's musical talent was evident from an early age. The opera Camacho's Wedding (orig. Title in German: Die Hochzeit des Camacho) is in two acts, its plot presenting the episode in which Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are invited to Camacho's wedding party. He wants to marry Quiteria, but her true love is Basilio. After a number of stratagems Camacho admits defeat and the opera has a happy ending for the lovers. Don Quixote's eccentric behaviour creates many mishaps during the course of the action. Like the opera, the overture displays Mendelssohn's talent and imagination. One can feel the influence of Mozart and Carl Maria von Weber, the founder of German Romantic opera, in its brilliant orchestration. The overture is programmatic; it is a vivid musical narrative in which instrumental 'choruses' and voices come to life, portraying individual characters.

The opera was premiered on April 29th, 1827 on the stage of the Schauspielhaus, the City Theatre in Berlin. But although the work was well received by the public, the reviews of it were hostile. Mendelssohn was unhappy with being forced to make changes to the score. And, after just one performance, the opera sank into oblivion. The overture to it is performed as one of the masterpieces of the Romantic era.