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{{short description|none}}
This page lists '''important ]s''' by date of first performance, together with brief notes on their importance. (Important in this context is used of works that are significant for historical or artistic reasons, or because of the position that they occupy in the repertory.)
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}


Since the ] in late 16th century Italy, a central ] has developed, shepherded by ]. The earliest major opera composer is generally considered to be ],{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=18}} who wrote the first prominent opera, '']'', followed by two others. Throughout the later 17th century, his successor ] and the Englishman ] wrote numerous prominent operas. The early 18th century was dominated by the operas of ], while other important works include Pepusch's '']'', Pergolesi's' '']'', and various works by ].
====1600 – 1699====


This list provides a guide to the most prominent operas, as determined by their presence on a majority of ], which date from between 1984 and 2000. The operas included cover all important genres, and include all operas regularly performed today, from seventeenth-century works to late twentieth-century operas. The brief accompanying notes offer an explanation as to why each opera has been considered important. The organisation of the list is by year of first performance, or, if this was long after the ]'s death, approximate date of composition.
*1600 '']'' (]) (Florence); the first opera that survives to the present day.


==1600–1699==
*1607 '']'' (]) (Mantua); first operatic masterwork<ref>Howard Goodall, ''Big Bangs''</ref>.
] by ], 1640]]
* 1607 '']'' (]). Widely regarded as the first operatic masterwork.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author-link=John Whenham |author=John Whenham |title=Orfeo (i) |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O005849 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1640 '']'' (Monteverdi). Monteverdi's first opera for Venice, based on Homer's '']'', displays the composer's mastery of portrayal of genuine individuals as opposed to stereotypes.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author-link=Ellen Rosand |author=Ellen Rosand|title=Ritorno d'Ulisse in patria, Il |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004922 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1642 '']'' (Monteverdi). Monteverdi's last opera, composed for a Venetian audience, is often performed today. Its Venetian context helps to explain the complete absence of the moralizing tone often associated with opera of this time.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Ellen Rosand|title=Incoronazione di Poppea, L' |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O902316 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1644 '']'' (]). One of the first of Cavalli's operas to be revived in the 20th century, ''Ormindo'' is considered one of his more attractive works.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Ellen Rosand|title=Ormindo |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004544 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1649 '']'' (Cavalli). In ''Giasone'' Cavalli, for the first time, separated ] and ].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Ellen Rosand|title=Giasone |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O003539 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref> ''Giasone'' was the most popular opera of the 17th century.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=191}}
* 1651 '']'' (Cavalli). Ninth of the eleven operas that Cavalli wrote with Faustini is noted for its satire of the deities of classical mythology.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Martha Novak Clinkscale|title=Calisto |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004390 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1683 '']'' (]). Often considered to be the first genuine English-language operatic masterwork. Not first performed in 1689 at a girls' school, as is commonly believed, but at Charles II's court in 1683.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author-link=Curtis Price |author=Curtis Price|title=Dido and Aeneas|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O006883 |date=2002 |isbn=978-1-56159-263-0 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1692 '']'' (Purcell). A ] rather than a genuine opera, this is often thought to be Purcell's finest dramatic work.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Curtis Price|title=Fairy-Queen, The |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009948 |date=2002 |isbn=9781561592630 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
{{clear}}


==1700–1749==
*1625 '']'' (]) (Florence); first opera by a woman.
] by Balthasar Denner, 1733]]
* 1710 '']'' (Handel). Handel's last opera that he composed in Italy was a great success,{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=418}} and established his reputation as a composer of Italian opera.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author-link=Anthony Hicks |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Agrippina |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O900058 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1711 '']'' (Handel). Handel's first opera for the London stage was also the first all-Italian opera performed on the London stage.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Rinaldo |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004199 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1724 '']'' (Handel). Noted for the richness of its orchestration.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Giulio Cesare in Egitto (ii) |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004424 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1724 '']'' (Handel).<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Tamerlano (opera by Handel) |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O007352 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref> Described by ], writing in '']'', as possessing a "taut dramatic power".<ref name="Hicks-Handel">{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Handel , George Frideric |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.40060 |date=2001 |orig-year=2001}}</ref>
* 1725 '']'' (Handel). ''Rodelinda'' is often praised{{by whom|date=April 2022}} for the fullness of the melodic writing among Handel's output.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Rodelinda |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004237 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1728 '']'' (]). A satire of Italian '']'' based on a play by ], the ballad opera format of ''The Beggar's Opera'' has proved popular even up to the current time.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Robert D. Hume |title=Beggar's Opera, The |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O002751 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1731 '']'' (Handel). Handel's only work for the theatre that is set to an English libretto.<ref name="Orrey">{{harvnb|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=64}}</ref>
* 1733 '']'' (Handel).<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Orlando (ii)|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O903662 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref> An opera that is described by ] as "remarkable"<ref name="Hicks-Handel" /> and by Orrey as one of Handel's "best works".<ref name="Orrey" />
* 1733 '']'' (]). Became a model for many of the '']s'' that followed it, including those of Mozart.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|pp=90–91}}
* 1733 '']'' (]). Rameau's first opera caused great controversy at its premiere.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Graham Sadler |title=Hippolyte et Aricie |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009340 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1735 '']'' (Handel). Both this opera and ''Alcina'' enjoy high critical reputations today.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Ariodante|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O900182 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1735 '']'' (Handel). Both this work and ''Ariodante'' were part of Handel's first opera season at ].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Alcina |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O900075 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1735 '']'' (Rameau). In this work Rameau added emotional depth and power to the traditionally lighter form of '']''.<ref name="Graham Sadler 2002">{{cite encyclopedia |author=Graham Sadler |title=Platée |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O903916 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1737 '']'' (Rameau). Initially only a moderate success, when it was revived in 1754 ''Castor et Pollux'' was regarded as Rameau's finest achievement.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Graham Sadler |title=Indes galantes, Les |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O005181 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1738 '']'' (Handel). Deviation from the usual model of ''opera seria'', ''Serse'' contains many comic elements rare in Handel's other works.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Hicks |title=Serse |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O904536 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1740 '']'' (]). An English opera of all times, famous for the patriotic song "Rule Britannia".
* 1744 '']'' (Handel). Originally performed as an ], Semele's dramatic qualities have often led to the work being performed on the opera stage in modern times.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author-link=Stanley Sadie |author=Stanley Sadie |title=Semele (ii)|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O904697 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1745 '']'' (Rameau). Rameau's most famous comic opera. Originally a court entertainment, a 1754 revival proved extremely popular with French audiences.<ref name="Graham Sadler 2002"/>


==1750–1799==
*1627 ''Dafne'' (]) (Torgau); first German opera. Music now lost.
] aged 21 in 1777]]
* 1760 '']'' (]). Piccinni's work was initially immensely popular throughout Europe. By 1790 over 70 productions of the opera had been produced and it had been performed in all the major European cities.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Mary Hunter |title=Buona figliuola, La |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009956 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1762 '']'' (]). Gluck's most popular opera. The first work in which the composer tried to reform the excesses of Italian '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=375–376}}
* 1762 '']'' (]). The first '']'' in English. After Metastasio's 1729 libretto '']''.
* 1767 '']'' (Gluck). Gluck's second "reform" opera, nowadays usually given in its French revision of 1776.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=378–379}}
* 1768 '']'' (]). Mozart's one-act '']'' was set to a parody of Rousseau's '']''.<ref name="Rushton">], writing in ''Grove''{{Full citation needed|date=November 2018}}<!--title of article, id "Grove" (i.e., Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 5th ed.? Grove Dictionary of Opera? New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians?--></ref>
* 1770 '']'' (Mozart). Composed when Mozart was 14, ''Mitridate'' was written for a demanding cast of star singers.<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1772 '']'' (Mozart). from Mozart's teenage years, was not revived until 1929 after its initial run of 25 performances.<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1774 '']'' (Gluck). Gluck's first opera for Paris.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=381}}
* 1775 '']'' (Mozart). Generally recognised as Mozart's first ''opera buffa'' of significance.<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1775 '']'' (Mozart). Mozart's last opera of his adolescence was set to a libretto by ].<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1777 '']'' (]). Last of three that Haydn set to libretti by ].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Caryl Clark |title=Mondo della luna, Il (ii) |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009280|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1777 '']'' (Gluck). Gluck used a libretto originally set by Lully for this French work, his favourite among his own operas.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=393}}
* 1779 '']'' (Gluck). Gluck's "last and perhaps greatest masterpiece".{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=370}}
* 1781 '']'' (Mozart). Usually thought of as Mozart's first mature opera, ''Idomeneo'' was composed after a lengthy break from the stage.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=110}}
* 1782 '']'' (Mozart). Often thought of as the first of Mozart's comic masterpieces, this work is frequently performed today.<ref name="Orrey p. 113">{{harvnb|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=113}}</ref>
* 1782 '']'' (]). Paisiello's most famous comic opera, later eclipsed by Rossini's work of the same name.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=752}}
* 1786 '']'' (Mozart). Another ''Singspiel'' with much spoken dialogue taken from plays of that time, the plot of ''Der Schauspieldirektor'' features two sopranos vying to become ''prima donna'' in a newly assembled company. Premiered together with ]'s '']''<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1786 '']'' (Mozart). The first of the famous series of Mozart operas set to libretti by ] is now Mozart's most popular opera.<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1787 '']'' (Mozart). Second of the operas that Mozart set to Da Ponte's libretti, Don Giovanni has provided a puzzle for writers and philosophers ever since its composition.<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1790 '']'' (Mozart). Third and last of the operas that Mozart set to libretti by Da Ponte, ''Così fan tutte'' was scarcely performed throughout the 19th century, as the plot was considered to be immoral.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=107}}
* 1791 '']'' (Mozart). Mozart's last opera before his early death was extremely popular until 1830, after which the work's popularity and critical reputation began to decline; they did not return to their former levels until after the Second World War.<ref name="Rushton" />
* 1791 '']'' (Mozart). Has been described as "the apotheosis of the ''Singspiel''", ''Die Zauberflöte'' was denigrated during the 19th century as confused and lacking in definition.<ref name="Orrey p. 113"/>
* 1792 '']'' (]). Usually regarded as Cimarosa's best opera,{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=114}} ] enjoyed the three-hour-long premiere so much that, after dinner, he compelled the singers to repeat the opera later during that same day.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author-link=Gordana Lazarevich |author=Gordana Lazarevich |title=Matrimonio segreto, Il |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O008882 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1797 '']'' (]). Only French opera of the ] period to be regularly performed today. A famous showcase for ]s such as ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=210–211}}


==1800–1832==
*1632 '']'' (]) (Rome); first opera on a historical rather than mythological subject, that breaks new dramatic and musical ground in a number of ways.
]]]
* 1805 '']'' (]). Beethoven's only opera was inspired by the composer's passion for political liberty.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=59}}
* 1807 '']'' (]). Spontini's opera about a ] in love was a great influence on ] and a forerunner of French ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=1002–1004}}
* 1812 '']'' (]). An early Rossini work, this opera is outright ''] comica''.<ref name="Osborne">{{cite encyclopedia |author=Richard Osborne|title=Scala di seta, La ('The Silken Ladder')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009899|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1813 '']'' (Rossini). This opera is described by Richard Osborne, writing in ], as "Rossini's first ''buffo'' masterpiece in the fully fledged two-act form".<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1813 '']'' (Rossini). This ''melodramma eroico'' was described by poet ] thus: "It is ] and always cantilena: beautiful cantilena, new cantilena, magic cantilena, rare cantilena".<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1814 '']'' (Rossini). This opera stands out among Rossini's output for its frequent ensembles and absence of aria.<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1816 '']'' (Rossini). This work has become Rossini's most popular ''opera buffa''.<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1816 '']'' (Rossini). The composer ] described the third act of ''Otello'' thus: "The third act of Otello established its reputation so firmly that a thousand errors could not shake it".<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1817 '']'' (Rossini). Rossini's comedy was composed in just over three weeks.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia
| last1 =Osborne
| first1 =Richard
| encyclopedia = ]
| title = Cenerentola, La
| year =2002
| publisher = ]
| doi =10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O008249
}}</ref>
* 1817 '']'' (Rossini). In this opera Rossini drew upon ] ].<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1818 '']'' (Rossini). This work was originally conceived of as a sacred drama suitable for performance during ].<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1819 '']'' (Rossini). Another Romantic-era opera inspired by the works of ].<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1821 '']'' (]). Weber's masterpiece was the first great German Romantic opera.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1212–1214}}
* 1823 '']'' (von Weber). Despite its weak libretto, ''Euryanthe'' had a great influence on later German operas, including Wagner's ''Lohengrin''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=1214–1215}}
* 1823 '']'' (Rossini). This is the last opera that Rossini composed in Italy.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia
| last1 =Osborne
| first1 =Richard
| encyclopedia = ]
| title = Semiramide ('Semiramis')
| year =2002
| publisher = ]
| doi =10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O904698
}}</ref>
* 1825 '']'' (]). Boieldieu's most successful '']'' was one of many 19th century works inspired by the novels of ].{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=136}}
* 1826 '']'' (Rossini). For this work Rossini heavily revised his earlier ''Maometto II'', placing the action in a different setting.<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1826 '']'' (von Weber). Weber's last opera before his early death.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Clive Brown|title=Weber, Carl Maria (Friedrich Ernst) von|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004022|date=2002 |isbn=978-1-56159-263-0 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1827 '']'' (]). Bellini's second professional production established his international reputation.<ref name="Simon Maguire, writing in Grove">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Clive Maguire|author2=Elizabeth Forbes|title=Pirata, Il ('The Pirate')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O003633|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1828 '']'' (]). Marschner was a key link between Weber and Wagner, as this Gothic opera shows.<ref>{{cite thesis|url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/194143336|title=HEINRICH MARSCHNER AND HIS OPERA "DER VAMPYR".|last=Palmer|first=Allen Dean|year=1975|publisher=University of California, Los Angeles|type=Master's thesis|access-date=27 August 2022|id={{ProQuest|194143336}} }}</ref>
* 1828 '']'' (Rossini). Rossini's opera has enjoyed a high critical reputation throughout the years: 19th-century critic Henry Chorley said that "there is not a bad melody, there is not an ugly bar in ''Le comte Ory''", and Richard Osborne, writing in ], calls details that the work is one of the "wittiest, most stylish and most urbane of all comic operas".<ref name="Osborne" />
* 1829 '']'' (Bellini). ''La straniera'' is rare among ''bel canto'' operas in that it offers remarkably few opportunities for vocal ostentation.<ref name="Simon Maguire, writing in Grove"/>
* 1829 '']'' (Rossini). Rossini's last opera before his retirement is a tale of liberty set in the ]. It helped to establish the genre of French ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=884, 917–918}}
* 1830 '']'' (]). This was Donizetti's first success on the international scene and helped greatly to establish his reputation.<ref name="Ashbrook">{{Cite journal|title=Anna Bolena|last=Ashbrook|first=William|year=1965|journal=The Musical Times|volume=106|number=1468|pages=432–436|doi=10.2307/951045|jstor=951045 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/951045}}</ref>
* 1830 '']'' (]). One of the most popular '']s'' of the 19th century, Auber's tale loosely based on an important Neapolitan rebel leader even inspired a film by ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=38}}
* 1830 '']'' (Bellini). Bellini's version of '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=66}}
* 1831 '']'' (Bellini). The concertato "D'un pensiero e d'un accento" from the finale of Act 1 of this work was later parodied by ] in '']''.<ref name="Budden">{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=The New Grove Dictionary of Opera|volume=4|title=La sonnambula|last1=Budden|first1=Julian|last2=Forbes|first2=Elizabeth|last3=Maguire|first3=Simon|year=1998|editor-last=Sadie|editor-first=Stanley}}</ref>
* 1831 '']'' (Bellini). Bellini's best-known opera, paradigm of Romantic operas. The final act of this work is often noted for the originality of its orchestration.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=132}}
* 1831 '']'' (]). Meyerbeer's first ] for Paris caused a sensation with its ballet of dead nuns.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=659–660}}
* 1832 '']'' (Donizetti). This work was the most often performed opera in Italy between 1838 and 1848.<ref name="Ashbrook" />


==1833–1849==
*1640 '']'' (]) (Venice); Monteverdi's second surviving opera, based on the '']''.
]]]
* 1833 '']'' (]). Bellini's tragedy is notable for its extensive use of the chorus.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=70}}
* 1833 '']'' (]). Another important Gothic horror opera from Marschner.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=609}}
* 1833 '']'' (]). One of Donizetti's most popular scores.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=277}}
* 1834 '']'' (Donizetti). This work was dismissed as a failure in the 19th century, but since its revival in 1958 it has made frequent appearances on stage.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=278}}
* 1835 '']'' (]). An early work by Wagner loosely based on Shakespeare's '']''. The composer later disowned it.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1176}}
* 1835 '']'' (Bellini). Bellini's drama, set during the ], is one of his finest achievements.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=71}}
* 1835 '']'' (]). This grand opera rivalled the works of Meyerbeer in popularity. The tenor aria "Rachel quand du seigneur" is particularly famous.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=412}}
* 1835 '']'' (Donizetti). Donizetti's most famous tragic opera, notable for Lucia's mad scene.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=280}}
* 1836 '']'' (]). Glinka established the tradition of Russian opera with this historical work and the later ''Ruslan and Lyudmila''.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=246 ff}}
* 1836 '']'' (]). Perhaps the most famous of all French grand operas, widely regarded as Meyerbeer's masterpiece.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=660}}
* 1837 '']'' (Donizetti). Donizetti wrote this work as a distraction from the grief he felt at the death of his wife.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=282}}
* 1838 '']'' (]). Berlioz's first opera is a virtuoso score which is still highly difficult to perform.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=92}}
* 1839 '']'' (]). Verdi's first opera is a sensational melodrama.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1125}}
* 1840 '']'' (Donizetti). A grand opera in the French tradition.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=285}}
* 1840 '']'' (Donizetti). Donizetti's venture into French ''opéra comique''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=285}}
* 1840 ''] ''(Erkel). Erkel's first opera was also the first true opera written in Hungarian and is based on the story of Ines de Castro in '']''' '']'', the Portuguese national epic.<ref name=Penguin265>''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', p. 265</ref>
* 1840 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi's only comedy apart from his last opera, ''Falstaff''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1125}}
* 1842 '']'' (]). Lortzing's "comic masterpiece", intended to show a German work could rival Italian ''opera buffa'' and French ''opéra comique''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=584}}
* 1842 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi described this opera as the genuine beginning of his artistic career.<ref name="Parker">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Roger Parker|title=Nabucco |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O008126|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1842 '']'' (Wagner). Wagner's contribution to the ] tradition.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1177}}
* 1842 '']'' (Glinka). This episodic version of a ] fairy tale was a major influence on later Russian composers.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=368}}
* 1843 '']'' (Wagner). Wagner regarded this German Romantic opera as the true beginning of his career.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1179}}
* 1843 '']'' (Donizetti). Donizetti's "comic masterpiece" is one of the last great ''opera buffas''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=288}}
* 1843 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi's follow-up to ''Nabucco'' was the first of his operas to be performed in America.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1127}}
* 1843 '']'' (]). One of the few notable 19th-century English-language operas apart from the works of ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=48}}
* 1844 '']'' (Erkel). Erkel's second opera is generally considered his best, but is second in popularity to his later opera '']'' which is considered the Hungarian "National Opera".<ref name=Penguin265 />
* 1844 '']'' (Verdi). One of the most dramatically effective of Verdi's early works.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1128}}
* 1845 '']'' (Wagner). Wagner's "most medieval work" depicts the conflict between pagan love and Christian virtue.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1181}}
* 1846 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi was troubled by ill health during the writing of this piece, which was only a moderate success at the premiere.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1132}}
* 1846 '']'' (Berlioz). Frustrated at his lack of opera commissions, Berlioz composed this "dramatic legend" for concert performance. In recent years, it has been successfully staged as an opera, though the critic ] describes it as "cinematic".{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=94}}
* 1847 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi's first venture into Shakespeare.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1132}}
* 1847 '']'' (]). Flotow unashamedly aimed at satisfying popular taste in this comic and sentimental work set in the England of ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=328}}
* 1849 '']'' (]). Nicolai's only German opera has been his most lasting success.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=726}}
* 1849 '']'' (Meyerbeer). A grand opera about the life of the religious fanatic, ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=661}}
* 1849 '']'' (Verdi). Fans of Verdi think that this setting of ]'s "bourgeois tragedy" has been underrated.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1138}}


==1850–1875==
*1642 '']'' (]) (Venice); often regarded as Monteverdi's masterpiece.
]]]
* 1850 '']'' (]). Schumann's only excursion into opera was a relative failure, though the work has had its admirers from ] to ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=968}}
* 1850 '']'' (]). The last of Wagner's "middle period" works.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|pp=1184–86}}
* 1850 '']'' (]). Verdi's tale of adultery among members of a German Protestant sect fell foul of the censors.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1139}}
* 1851 '']'' (Verdi). The first – and most innovative – of three middle period Verdi operas which have become staples of the repertoire.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=192}}
* 1853 '']'' (Verdi). This Romantic melodrama is one of Verdi's most tuneful scores.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=193}}
* 1853 '']'' (Verdi). The role of Violetta, the "fallen woman" of the title, is one of the most famous vehicles for the soprano voice.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1143}}
* 1855 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi's opera displays the strong influence of Meyerbeer.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1144}}
* 1858 '']'' (]). An oriental comedy drawing on the tradition of German Romantic opera.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=228}}
* 1858 '']'' (]). Offenbach's first full-length ], this cynical and satirical piece is still immensely popular today.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=735}}
* 1858 '']'' (]). Berlioz's greatest opera and the culmination of the French Classical tradition.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=94}}
* 1859 '']'' (]). Of all the musical settings of the ] legend, Gounod's has been the most popular with audiences, especially in the Victorian era.<ref>''Penguin Guide to Opera on CD'', p. 114</ref>
* 1859 '']'' (Verdi). This opera ran into trouble with the censors because it originally dealt with the assassination of a monarch.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1147}}
* 1861 '']'' (Erkel). Erkel's third opera is considered the Hungarian "National opera".<ref>''The New Penguin Opera Guide'', p. 266</ref>
* 1862 '']'' (Berlioz). The last opera Berlioz wrote is the final fruit of his lifelong admiration for Shakespeare.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=97}}
* 1862 '']'' (Verdi). This tragedy was commissioned by the Imperial Theatre, Saint Petersburg, and Verdi may have been influenced by the Russian tradition in the writing of his work.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1149}}
* 1863 '']'' (]). Though a relative failure at its premiere, this is Bizet's second most performed opera today and is particularly famous for its tenor/baritone duet.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=115}}
* 1864 '']'' (Offenbach). Another operetta by Offenbach which pokes fun at Greek mythology.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=736}}
* 1864 '']'' (Gounod). Gounod's work is based on the epic poem by ] and makes use of Provençal folk tunes.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=397}}
* 1865 '']'' (]). Meyerbeer's last ] received a posthumous premiere.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=664}}
* 1865 '']'' (Wagner). This romantic tragedy is Wagner's most radical work and one of the most revolutionary pieces in music history. The "]" began the breakdown of traditional ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1196}}
* 1866 '']'' (]). A lyrical work inspired by ]'s novel '']'', this was Thomas's most successful opera along with ''Hamlet''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1098}}
* 1866 '']'' (]). Smetana's folk comedy is the most widely performed of all his operas.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=988}}
* 1867 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi's French grand opera, after Schiller, is now one of his most highly regarded works.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1152}}
* 1867 '']'' (Bizet). Bizet turned to a novel by Sir Walter Scott for this ''opéra comique''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=116}}
* 1867 '']'' (Gounod). Gounod's version of Shakespeare's tragedy is his second most famous work.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=398}}
* 1868 '']'' (Smetana). One of the most successful of Smetana's operas exploring themes from Czech history.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=990}}
* 1868 '']'' (Wagner). Wagner's only comedy among his mature operas concerns the clash between artistic tradition and innovation.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1198}}
* 1868 '']'' (Thomas). Thomas's opera takes many liberties with its Shakespearean source.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1099}}
* 1868 '']'' (Offenbach). Set in Peru, this operetta mixes comedy and sentimentality.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=738}}
* 1868 '']'' (]). Though most famous as a librettist for Verdi, Boito was also a composer and he spent many years working on this musical version of the Faust myth.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=131}}
* 1869 '']'' (Wagner). The "preliminary evening" to Wagner's epic '']'' cycle tells how the ring was forged and the curse laid upon it.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1188}}
* 1870 '']'' (Wagner). The second part of the '']'' tells the story of the mortals Siegmund and Sieglinde and of how the ] Brünnhilde disobeys her father Wotan, king of the gods.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1190}}
* 1871 '']'' (Verdi). Features one of the greatest tenor arias of all time, ''Celeste Aida''.
* 1874 '']'' (]). Mussorgsky's great historical drama shows Russia's descent into anarchy in the early 17th century.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=718}}
* 1874 '']'' (]). Probably the most popular of all operettas.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1020}}
* 1874 '']'' (Smetana). Another comedy by Smetana, the only one of his operas with a non-Czech subject.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=992}}
* 1875 '']'' (Bizet). Probably the most famous of all French operas. Critics at the premiere were shocked by Bizet's blend of romanticism and realism.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=118}}


==1876–1899==
*1683 '']'' (]) (London or Windsor); arguably the first English-language opera.
] by ], 1886]]
* 1876 '']'' (]). The third part of the '']'' sees the hero Siegfried slay the dragon Fafner, win the ring and free Brunhilde from her enchantment.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1191}}
* 1876 '']'' (Wagner). In the final part of the ''Ring'', the curse takes effect leading to the deaths of Siegfried and Brünnhilde and the destruction of the gods themselves.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1192}}
* 1876 '']'' (]). Apart from Verdi's ''Aida'', this is the only Italian grand opera to have stayed in international repertory.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1877 '']'' (]). This comic piece has been described as "a cross between ''Carmen'' and Gilbert and Sullivan, with plenty of Offenbach thrown in".<ref>''Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Discs'', p. 53</ref>
* 1877 '']'' (]). An opera with that was heavily influenced by those of Wagner.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Hugh Macdonald|title=Samson et Dalila ('Samson and Delilah')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O904621|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1879 '']'' (]). Tchaikovsky's most popular opera, based on the verse novel by ]. The composer strongly identified with the heroine Tatyana.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1087}}
* 1881 '']'' (]). An opera telling the Biblical story of ], Massenet's work was eclipsed by Richard Strauss's treatment of the same subject.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=624}}
* 1881 '']'' (]). Offenbach's attempt at writing a more serious work remained unfinished at his death. Nevertheless, this is his most widely performed opera today.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=738}}
* 1881 '']'' (]). Verdi heavily revised this opera over twenty years after it was first performed.<ref name="Parker" />
* 1882 '']'' (Wagner). Wagner's last opera is a "festival play" about the legend of the ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1201}}
* 1882 '']'' (]). One of Rimsky-Korsakov's most lyrical works.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=866}}
* 1883 '']'' (]). This ''opéra comique'' set in the ] in India is famous for its "Flower Duet" and "Bell Song".{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=252}}
* 1884 '']'' (Puccini). An early operatic work by Puccini with plenty of opportunity for dance.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=807}}
* 1884 '']'' (Massenet). Massenet's most enduringly popular work along with ''Werther''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=625}}
* 1885 '']'' (]). Strauss's operetta was intended to soothe tensions between Austrians and Hungarians in the Habsburg empire.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1022}}
* 1886 '']'' (]). Mussorgsky's second great epic of Russian history was left unfinished at his death.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=720}}
* 1887 '']'' (Chabrier). Ravel claimed he would rather have written this comic opera than Wagner's ''Ring'' cycle, though the plot is notoriously confused.<ref>''Penguin Guide to Opera on Compact Discs'', p. 54</ref>
* 1887 '']'' (Verdi). The first of Verdi's late-period masterpieces was set to a libretto by ].<ref name="Parker" />
* 1888 '']'' (]). A ] folk tale with music heavily influenced by Wagner.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|pp=164–165}}
* 1890 '']'' (]). A perennial favourite with audiences around the world, this one-acter is usually performed alongside Leoncavallo's ''Pagliacci''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=618}}
* 1890 '']'' (]). Borodin spent 17 years working on this opera off and on, yet never managed to finish it. Most famous for its "Polovtsian dances".{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=134}}
* 1890 '']'' (Tchaikovsky). In a letter to his brother and librettist the composer said that "the opera is a masterpiece".<ref name="Taruskin">{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=The New Grove Dictionary of Opera|volume=4|page=669|title=Tchaikovsky|last=Taruskin|first=Richard}}</ref>
* 1891 '']'' (Mascagni). This work has been thought of as a late example of ''opera semiseria''.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Peter Ross|title=Amico Fritz, L' ('Friend Fritz')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O007230|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1892 '']'' (Tchaikovsky). Tchaikovsky's last lyrical opera set to a libretto by his brother Modest.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1094}}
* 1892 '']'' (]). Usually considered Catalani's masterpiece.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=The New Grov Dictionary of Opera|year=1998|volume=4|pages=1096–1097|editor-last=Sadie|editor-first=Stanley|publisher=Macmillan Publishers|title=Wally, La}}</ref>
* 1892 '']'' (]). One of the most famous ] operas, usually paired with Mascagni's ''Cavalleria rusticana''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=564}}
* 1892 '']'' (Massenet). Along with ''Manon'', this is Massenet's most popular opera.<ref name="Milnes">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Rodney Milnes|title=Werther|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O005411|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1893 '']'' (Verdi). Verdi's final opera was set to another of Boito's libretti.<ref name="Parker" />
* 1893 '']'' (]). The well-known fairy tale received a full Wagnerian operatic adaptation at Humperdinck's hands.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Ian Denley|title=Humperdinck, Engelbert|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.13550|date=2001}}</ref>
* 1893 '']'' (]). The success of this work established Puccini's reputation as a composer of contemporary music of the first rank.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1894 '']'' (Massenet). The opera that contains the famous ''Méditation'' interlude.<ref name="Milnes" />
* 1896 '']'' (]). Set to a libretto by ], this ''verismo'' drama is Giordano's most popular opera.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1896 '']'' (Puccini). Debussy is alleged to have said that no one had detailed Paris at that time better than had Puccini in ''La Boheme''.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1897 '']'' (Humperdinck). Originally a melodrama that blended song and spoken dialogue, the composer adapted the work into an opera proper in 1907.
* 1898 '']'' (Giordano). Giordano's second most popular opera.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1898 '']'' (Rimsky-Korsakov). The Viking Trader's song from this opera has become extremely popular in Russia.<ref name="Taruskin"/>
* 1899 '']'' (Massenet). An immediate success at the time of the premiere, the opera enjoyed 50 performances in 1899 alone.<ref name="Milnes" />
* 1899 '']'' (]). The lack of a love interest makes the plot of this work almost unique among Czech comic operas.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Jan Smaczny |title=Devil and Kate, The |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009137 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>


==1900–1920==
*1686 '']'' (Paris); ]'s masterpiece in the form of a ], a genre he invented.
]]]
* 1900 '']'' (]). An attempt to provide a French equivalent for Italian ], ''Louise'' is set in a working-class district of Paris.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=203}}
* 1900 '']'' (]). ''Tosca'' is the most Wagnerian of Puccini's operas, with its frequent use of ''leitmotif''.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1901 '']'' (]). Dvořák's most successful opera with international audiences, based on a folk tale about a water sprite.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=269}}
* 1902 '']'' (]). Unique among Cilea's operas in that it has remained in the international repertory up to the present time.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1902 '']'' (]). Debussy's elusive ] drama is one of the most significant operas of the 20th century.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|pp=281–287}}
* 1902 '']'' (]). This Biblical tragedy was the first of Nielsen's two operas.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=728}}
* 1904 '']'' (]). Janáček's first great success, a naturalistic depiction of Czech peasant life.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=304}}
* 1904 '']'' (Puccini). The first performance of Puccini's now-popular opera was a disaster involving accusations of plagiarism.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1905 '']'' (]). One of the most famous Viennese operettas.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=559}}
* 1905 '']'' (]). A scandalous success at its premiere, Strauss's "decadent" opera set to ]'s play is still immensely popular with today's audiences.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1026}}
* 1906 '']'' (Nielsen). Nielsen's high-spirited comedy looks back to the world of '']'' and has become a classic in the composer's native Denmark.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=729}}
* 1907 '']'' (]). A tragedy of unhappy love set in Switzerland; the most famous music is the interlude "The Walk to the Paradise Garden".{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=256}}
* 1907 '']'' (]). Dukas's only surviving opera, based like Debussy's ''Pelléas'', on a ] drama by ].{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=285}}
* 1907 '']'' (]). A mystical retelling of an old national legend. Sometimes called the Russian '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=871}}
* 1907 '']'' (Janáček). An important transitional work in Janáček's career as the composer began to look beyond the traditional themes of Czech opera.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=502}}
* 1909 '']'' (Strauss). This dark tragedy took Strauss's music to the borders of ]. It was the composer's first setting of a libretto by his long-term collaborator ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1028}}
* 1909 '']'' (]). A comic intermezzo. Susanna's secret is that she smokes.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1241}}
* 1909 '']'' (Rimsky-Korsakov). Often considered Rimsky's greatest work, this satire on military incompetence got the composer into trouble with the censors after Russia's defeat in the ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=872}}
* 1910 '']'' (]). Massenet's last great success is a gentle comedy inspired by Cervantes's '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=635}}
* 1910 '']'' (Puccini). Described by Puccini as his best work.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1911 '']'' (Strauss). Strauss and Hofmannsthal's most popular work, this comedy is set in 18th century Vienna.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1029}}
* 1911 '']'' (]). Ravel's first opera is a bedroom farce set in Spain.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=849}}
* 1912 '']'' (Strauss). A mixture of comedy and tragedy with an opera within an opera.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1031}}
* 1912 '']'' (]). The success of this work established Schreker's reputation as an opera composer.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Peter Franklin|title=Ferne Klang, Der ('The Distant Sound')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O008719|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1913 '']'' (]). A passionate Spanish drama influenced by ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=314}}
* 1914 '']'' (]). Boughton's Celtic fairy tale opera enjoyed great popularity in Britain between the world wars.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=137}}
* 1914 '']'' (]). Stravinsky's style changed radically during the composition of this short opera, moving away from the influence of his teacher Rimsky-Korsakov towards the spiky modernism of the '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1045}}
* 1916 '']'' (]). Holst's interest in ] led him to set this episode from the '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=485}}
* 1917 '']'' (]). Busoni drew on the tradition of Italian '']'' for this one-act piece.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=168}}
* 1917 '']'' (]). Zemlinsky's "decadent" one-acter is based on a short play by ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1251}}
* 1917 '']'' (Puccini). Not an initial success, Puccini heavily revised the opera twice.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1917 '']'' (]). A Wagnerian drama exploring the clash between innovation and tradition in music.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=773}}
* 1918 '']'' (]). Bartók's only opera, this intense psychological drama is one of his most important works.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|pp=286–287}}
* 1918 '']'' (Puccini). One act in structure, Puccini's work is based on an extract from Dante's ''Inferno''.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1918 '']'' (Puccini). The first of the operas that make up ''Il trittico'' – along with ''Gianni Schicchi'' and ''Suor Angelica''
* 1918 '']'' (Puccini). Described by the composer as his favourite among the three operas that comprise ''Il trittico''.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1919 '']'' (Strauss). The third full collaboration between Strauss and the librettist Hofmannsthal gestated for six years before completion, and another two years passed before the first performance.<ref name="Murray">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=David Murray|title=Frau ohne Schatten, Die ('The Woman Without a Shadow')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009306|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1920 '']'' (]). Korngold's best known work for the stage.<ref>], writing in ''Grove''</ref>
* 1920 '']'' (Janáček). A comic fantasy set on the moon and in 15th century ].{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=269}}


==1921–1944==
*1689 '']'' (]) (London); the earliest English-language opera still in regular performance. Considered a masterwork.
]]]
* 1921 '']'' (]). The first of the great operas of Janáček's late maturity, based on an ] play about religious fanaticism and forbidden love in provincial Russia.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=505}}
* 1921 '']'' (]). A comic opera based on a fairy tale by ].{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=306}}
* 1922 '']'' (]). Another short Zemlinsky opera inspired by a work by ]. The composer personally identified with the dwarf of the title.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1252}}
* 1924 '']'' (]). An intense ] monodrama.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=953}}
* 1924 '']'' (]). A ], much of which is based on ]s.<ref name="Kennedy">], writing in ''Grove''</ref>
* 1924 '']'' (]). A light operetta-style work based on an incident from the composer's own marriage.<ref name="Murray" />
* 1924 '']'' (Janáček). One of the composer's most popular works, the story is based on a cartoon strip about animals in the Czech countryside.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=506}}
* 1925 '']'' (]). Busoni intended this opera to be the climax of his career, but it was left unfinished at his death.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=297}}
* 1925 '']'' (]). Conceived as an opera-ballet, "birds, beasts, insects, even inanimate objects, teach humanity to the child".<ref>Harman A & Mellers W. ''Man and His Music: The Story of Musical Experience in the West.'' Barrie and Rockliff, London, 1962, p. 950.</ref>
* 1925 '']'' (]). One of the key operas of the 20th century. Based on a strikingly unheroic plot, Berg's work blends ] techniques with more traditional ones.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=218}}
* 1926 '']'' (]). An opera in Hindemith's neo-classical style about a psychopathic jeweller.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=477}}
* 1926 '']'' (]). Kodálys ''singspiel'' incorporated many Hungarian folksongs and dances.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Tibor Tallián |title=Háry János |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O005826 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1926 '']'' (]). One of the most important Polish operas, this piece is full of Oriental harmonies.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1076}}
* 1926 '']'' (Janáček). The first performance of ''The Makropulos Affair'' was the last that Janáček survived to see among his operas.<ref name="John Tyrrell, writing in Grove">], writing in ''Grove''{{Full citation needed|date=November 2018}}<!--title of article, id "Grove" (i.e., Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 5th ed.? Grove Dictionary of Opera? New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians?--></ref>
* 1926 '']'' (]). Puccini's last opera was left unfinished at his death.<ref name="Budden" />
* 1927 '']'' (]). Set to a Latin libretto by ], this highly stylised piece fuses opera and ].{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|pp=310–311}}
* 1927 '']'' (]). A "jazz opera" which enjoyed tremendous success in its day.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=542}}
* 1928 '']'' (]). A modern adaptation of Gay and Pepusch's '']''.<ref name="Hinton">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Stephen Hinton|title=Dreigroschenoper, Die ('The Threepenny Opera')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O006155|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1929 '']'' (]). ]'s strange short story provided the plot for this grotesque satire.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=980}}
* 1930 '']'' (Weill). The composition of this opera was problematic, due to tension between the composer and his librettist, Bertolt Brecht.<ref name="Hinton" />
* 1930 '']'' (Janáček). Janáček's last opera inspired by ]'s account of life in a Russian prison camp.<ref name="John Tyrrell, writing in Grove"/>
* 1932 '']'' (Schoenberg). Left unfinished at his death, Schoenberg's opera frequently employs ] techniques.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=220}}
* 1933 '']'' (Strauss). This opera was the last that Strauss set to a libretto by ].<ref name="Murray"/>
* 1934 '']'' (Shostakovich). An attack on the music and subject matter of the opera in the Soviet Union's government journal '']'' meant that this work was Shostakovich's last opera.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Laurel Fay |title=Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O002507 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1935 ''] (usually translated as Ero the Joker)'' by ]. Although he composed many operas, none of the others achieved the enormous success of Ero, in Croatia and abroad. This comic opera based on a Croatian folk tale and brilliant libretto written by ] was praised by many, among whom ] and ]. Inspired by the folklore of ], to the point where the boundary between the folklore and "classical music" ceases to exist, it is considered to be the best and most performed Croatian opera of all time.
* 1935 '']'' (Strauss). A comic opera based on a play by ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1039}}
* 1935 '']'' (]). Initially a financial failure, a 1941 production that replaced the work's recitatives with spoken dialogue was a success.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Richard Crawford |title=Porgy and Bess |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004106 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1937 '']'' (Berg). Berg's second opera was unfinished at his death, but a completion by ] was successfully performed in 1979.{{sfn|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=219}}
* 1937 '']'' (Vaughan Williams). Often rated as Vaughan Williams's finest opera, this short, fatalistic tragedy is set on the Aran Isles in the west of Ireland.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1120}}
* 1938 '']'' (Strauss). A mythological opera with lyrical, pastoral music.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1041}}
* 1938 '']'' (]). This dreamlike work set in a town where people have lost their memory is "Martinu's operatic masterpiece".{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=613}}
* 1938 '']'' (Hindemith). Hindemith's most highly regarded opera is a parable about an artist surviving in a time of crisis, reflecting the composer's own experience under the Nazis.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=480}}
* 1941 '']'' (]). Britten's first venture into opera was a light piece about an American folk hero with a libretto by ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=143}}
* 1942 '']'' (Strauss). Strauss's final opera is a conversation piece about the genre itself.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=316}}
* 1943 '']'' (]). Written in the Nazi concentration camp ] and not performed until 1975. The composer and his librettist were murdered in ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1115}}


==1945–1964==
====1700 – 1799====
]]]
* 1945 '']'' (]). A landmark in the history of British opera, this work marked Britten's arrival on the international music scene.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=144}}
* 1945 '']'' (]). Prokofiev returned to the tradition of Russian historical opera for this epic work based on ]'s novel.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=803}}
* 1946 '']'' (Prokofiev). A romantic comedy with music drawing on the '']'' style of ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=802}}
* 1946 '']'' (]). Considered by many to be Menotti's finest work.<ref name="Archibald">Bruce Archibald, writing in ''Grove''</ref>
* 1946 '']'' (Britten). Britten's first ].<ref name="Whittal">Arnold Whittal, writing in ''Grove''</ref>
* 1947 '']'' (Britten). Britten's comic opera is heavily based upon use of the ensemble.<ref name="Whittal" />
* 1947 '']'' (]). Einem's opera is a compressed setting of ]'s play about the "Reign of Terror" during the ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=307}}
* 1947 '']'' (]). Poulenc's first opera is a short ] comedy based on the play by ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=793}}
* 1947 '']'' (Menotti). An ''opera buffa'' just 22 minutes in length.<ref name="Archibald" />
* 1949 '']'' (]). Much of the music for this opera is based on three ] ]s, which represent the themes of prayer, hope and freedom that dominate the opera.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Anthony Sellors |title=Prigioniero, Il |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O903754 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1950 '']'' (Menotti). This opera contains some of Menotti's most dissonant music.<ref name="Archibald" />
* 1951 '']'' (Menotti). This Christmas story was the first opera specifically written for television.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=649}}
* 1951 '']'' (Britten). The plot for Britten's large-scale opera was based on a story by ].<ref name="Whittal" />
* 1951 '']'' (]). Set to his own libretto, Vaughan Williams's work was inspired by ]'s famous allegory of the same name.<ref name="Kennedy" />
* 1951 '']'' (]). Stravinsky's most important operatic work looks back to Mozart musically and has a ] by ] inspired by the engravings of ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1050}}
* 1952 '']'' (]). Henze's first full-length opera is an updating of the story of '']'', also the source for important operas by Massenet and Puccini.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=462}}
* 1953 '']'' (Britten). Composed for the coronation of ], this opera looks back to the relationship between her namesake ] and the ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=152}}
* 1954 '']'' (Prokofiev). Prokofiev never saw what is often regarded as his most ''avant-garde'' composition performed on the operatic stage.<ref name="Taruskin"/>
* 1954 '']'' (Britten). A chamber opera based on the ghost story by ]. It is remarkable for its tightly laid out key scheme and active orchestral role.<ref name="Whittal" />
* 1954 '']'' (]). Walton's opera about the ] was initially a failure.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1208}}
* 1955 '']'' (]). Tippett's first full-scale opera was set to his own libretto.<ref name="Lewis">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Geraint Lewis|title=Midsummer Marriage, The|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009926|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1956 '']'' (]). Operetta, based on Voltaire. The soprano aria "Glitter and Be Gay" is a parody of Romantic-era jewel songs.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Jon Alan Conrad |title=Candide |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O900983 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1957 '']'' (Poulenc). Poulenc's major opera is set in a convent during the ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=794}}
* 1958 '']'' (]). ''Vanessa'' won its composer a ] in 1958.<ref name="Heyman">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Barbara B. Heyman|title=Vanessa|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O905419|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1959 '']'' (Poulenc). A short opera with a single character: a despairing woman on the telephone to her lover.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=795}}
* 1960 '']'' (Britten). Set to a libretto adapted from the Shakespeare play by himself and his partner ], Britten's work is rare in operatic history in that it features a ] in the male lead role.<ref name="Whittal" />
* 1961 '']'' (Henze). Henze asked his librettists, ] and ], for a scenario that would inspire him to compose "tender, beautiful noises".<ref name="Clements">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Andrew Clements|title=Elegy for Young Lovers|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O901437|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1962 '']'' (Tippett). Tippett's second opera, set to another of his own "recondite" libretti,<ref name="Orrey2">{{harvnb|Orrey|Milnes|1987|p=234}}</ref> was inspired by Homer's ''Iliad''.<ref name="Lewis" />
* 1964 '']'' (Britten). A modern liturgical "church opera" intended for performance in an ecclesiastical setting.<ref name="Whittal" />


==1965–1999==
*1711 '']'' (Paris); ]'s first opera for the London stage, set during the Crusades, containing the aria ''Lascia ch'io pianga''.
]]]
* 1965 '']'' (Henze). The last composition produced during Henze's dwelling in Italy is considered to be the most Italianate of his dramatic works.<ref name="Clements"/>
* 1965 '']'' (]). The first version of the opera was rejected by Cologne Opera as impossible for them to stage: Zimmermann was required to reduce the orchestral forces required and to cut some of the technical demands previously required.<ref name=Clements />
* 1966 '']'' (Barber). The first version of the opera was set to a libretto consisting entirely of the words of Shakespeare and deemed a failure.<ref name="Heyman" /> Later it was revised by ] and became a success.
* 1966 '']'' (Henze). Henze's opera is set to a libretto by Auden and Kallman, who required that the composer listen to '']'' before starting to compose the music.<ref name=Clements />
* 1967 '']'' (Walton). The libretto for Walton's extravaganza was based on Chekov.<ref name=Clements />
* 1968 '']'' (]). Birtwistle's first opera was commissioned by the ].<ref name=Clements />
* 1968 '']'' (Britten). The third of Britten's parables for church performance.<ref name="Thomas">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Arnold Whittall|title=Prodigal Son, The|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O008108|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1969 '']'' (]). Penderecki's first opera is also his most popular.<ref name="Thomas" />
* 1970 '']'' (Tippett). Tippett created his own modern scenario for the libretto of this work, his third opera.<ref name="Lewis" />
* 1971 '']'' (Britten). Britten's anti-war opera was written especially for ] television.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=159}}
* 1972 '']'' (]). Davies was one of the most significant figures to emerge in British music the 1960s. This opera is based on a legend about the 16th-century composer ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=243}}
* 1973 '']'' (Britten). Britten's last opera was first performed three years before his death.<ref name="Orrey2" />
* 1976 '']'' (]). Philip Glass' first opera conceived together with director Robert Wilson introduced minimalist composition and avantgarde performance to the world of opera and remains one of the best known operas of the twentieth century.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2020-11-18/philip-glass-einstein-on-the-beach-opera|title=Philip Glass and 'Einstein on the Beach': How one opera changed everything|last=Swed|first=Mark|author-link=Mark Swed|date=2020-11-18|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=27 August 2022}}</ref>
* 1978 '']'' (]). First performed at Stockholm in 1978, Ligeti heavily revised the opera in 1996.<ref name="Griffiths">{{cite encyclopedia |author1=Paul Griffiths|title=Grand Macabre, Le ('The Grand Macabre')|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O002356|date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1978 '']'' (]). An ] opera based on Shakespeare's tragedy. The title role was specifically written for the famous ] ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=854}}
* 1980 '']'' (Davies). Davies's second chamber opera was set to his own libretto.<ref name=Clements />
* 1983 '']'' (]). 120 orchestral players are required for this opera, as well as a sizable chorus.<ref name="Griffiths" />
* 1984 '']'' (]). This opera was set to a libretto assembled by the composer from three different texts by three different authors: Friedrich Einsiedel, ] and ].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=David Osmond-Smith |title=Re in ascolto, Un |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O904301 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1984 '']'' (]). Unlike his first opera '']'', the writing and style are more conventional and lyrical and much of the music of ''Akhnaten'' is some of the most dissonant that Glass has composed.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Tim Page|title=Akhnaten|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009554 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1986 '']'' (Birtwistle). Birtwistle's most ambitious opera examines the myth of ] from several different angles.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=108}}
* 1987 '']'' (]). This piece is based on a Chinese play of the ], '']''.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=1232}}
* 1987 '']'' (]). Musically ] in style, this opera recounts ]'s 1972 meeting with ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=18}}
* 1991 '']'' (Birtwistle). Birtwistle's opera is based on the medieval English poem '']''.<ref name=Clements />
* 1995 '']'' (]). The opera is based on the play by ].


==Significant firsts in opera history==
*1724 '']'' (London); ]’s ] on the subject of ] was rediscovered in the 1920s and has become the most popular of his ] operas with more than 200 modern performances in ] and ].
Operas not included in the above list, but which were important milestones in operatic history.
* 1598 '']'' (]). The first opera, performed in Florence (music now lost).{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=8}}
* 1600 '']'' (Peri). The earliest opera whose music survives.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=8}}
* 1625 '']'' (]). First opera by a woman.{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=174}}
* 1627 '']'' (]). First ]. Music now lost.{{sfn|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994|p=31}}
* 1660 '']'' (]). First ]. Music now lost.
* 1671 '']'' (]). Often regarded as the first ].{{sfn|''Viking''|1993|p=180}}
* 1683 '']'' (]). Often considered the first ].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Curtis Price|title=Venus and Adonis (i)|encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O905445 |date=2002 |orig-year=1992}}</ref>
* 1701 '']'' (], born in Spain 1644). Earliest known opera composed in the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mundoclasico.com/articulos/verarticulo.aspx?id=0015763|title=La púrpura de la rosa|last=Stein|first=Louise K.|date=13 May 2004|publisher=Mundo Clasico|access-date=27 August 2022|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120904224247/http://www.mundoclasico.com/ed/documentos/doc-ver.aspx?id=0015763|archive-date=4 September 2012}}<!--paragraph six--></ref>
* 1711 '']'' (]). The first opera written by an ]-born ] and the earliest known full opera produced in North America.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=Craig H. Russell |title=Zumaya , Manuel de |encyclopedia=Grove Music Online |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.31064 |date=2001 |orig-year=2001}}</ref>
* 1755 '']'' (]). First ].{{sfn|Frolova-Walker|2001|loc=§1 "988–1730"}}


==Lists consulted==
*1733 '']'' (Paris); the first and most controversial opera from ], the leading French-born composer of the 18th century.
This list was compiled by consulting nine lists of great operas, created by recognized authorities in the field of opera, and selecting all of the operas which appeared on at least five of these (i.e. all operas on a majority of the lists). The lists used were:
# {{cite web|url=http://www.naxos.com/education/opera_composer.asp?char=A|title=''A–Z of Opera'' by Keith Anderson, Naxos, 2000}}
# "The Standard Repertoire of Grand Opera 1607–1969", a list included in ]'s ''Europe: a History'' (Oxford University Press, 1996; paperback edition Pimlico, 1997). {{ISBN|0-7126-6633-8}}.
# Operas appearing in the chronology by ] in ''The Oxford Illustrated History of Opera'' (Oxford University Press, 1994). {{ISBN|0-19-816282-0}}.
# Operas with entries in '']'', ed. ] (Putnam, 9th ed., 1997). {{ISBN|0-370-10020-4}}
# {{cite book |title=Table of Contents of ''The Rough Guide to Opera''}} by Matthew Boyden. (2002 edition). {{ISBN|1-85828-749-9}}.
# Operas with entries in ''The Metropolitan Opera Guide to Recorded Opera'' ed. Paul Gruber (Thames and Hudson, 1993). {{ISBN|0-393-03444-5}} and/or ''Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas'' ed. John W Freeman (Norton, 1984). {{ISBN|0-393-01888-1}}
# List of operas and their composers in ''Who's Who in British Opera'' ed. Nicky Adam (Scolar Press, 1993). {{ISBN|0-85967-894-6}}
# Entries for individual operas in {{cite book|last1=Warrack|first1=John|author-link1=John Warrack|first2=Ewan|last2=West|year=1992|title=The Oxford Dictionary of Opera|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-869164-8|url=https://archive.org/details/oxforddictionary00warr|ref=none}}
# Entries for individual operas in ''Who's Who in Opera: a guide to opera characters'' by Joyce Bourne (Oxford University Press, 1998). {{ISBN|0-19-210023-8}}


===Operas included in all nine lists===
*1735 '']'' (Paris); ]'s globe-trotting first opera-ballet.
The 93 operas included in all nine lists cited are:

{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*1738 '']'' (London); one of ]'s last operatic masterpieces before he abandoned the genre for oratorio, containing perhaps his most famous aria, ''Ombra mai fu''. ] had written a major opera to the same libretto in 1654.
*'']''

*'']''
*1762 '']'' (Vienna; revised and enlarged French version, 1774, Paris); the first of ]'s reform operas. A compact, moving work which has never been out of the repertory.
*'']''

*'']''
*1767 '']'' (Vienna); ]'s follow-up, today better known in the version he revised for Paris in 1776. The preface set out his project for reforming opera.
*'']''

*'']'' (Rossini)
*1779 '']'' (Paris); the culmination of ]'s reforms.
*'']''

*'']''
*1781 '']'' (Munich); ]'s first mature ], set in ] during the period following the ], demonstrates the composer's mastery of orchestral color and melodic line.
*'']''

*'']''
*1782 '']'' (Vienna); ]’s comic ] ], with its ] music, characterful roles, memorable ]s, and underlying ] values, remains one of his most-loved operas.
*'']''

*'']''
*1786 '']'' (Vienna): an ] ] by ]. It was based on a popular French comedy of the same name by ], satirizing the aristocracy just prior to the ].
*'']''

*'']''
*1787 '']'' (Prague): a ] by ] to an ] libretto by ]. Mozart’s treatment of the legend of the Spanish serial womanizer ] is one of the most popular and frequently performed of all operas.
*'']''

*'']''
*1790 '']'' (Vienna): a ] by ]. ]‘s cynical ] libretto about "fiancée swapping."
*'']''

*'']''
*1791 '']'' (Prague): a last, elegant look at ] by ].
*'']''

*'']''
*1791 '']'' (Vienna): a ] ] by ]. Premiered less than three months before his death, the ]-influenced fairy tale for adults has become one of the composer's most enduring and best loved works. It was also a seminal work in the development of German opera.
*'']''

*'']''
====1800 – 1849====
*'']''

*'']''
*1805 '']'' (]) (Vienna): The story of Beethoven's only opera reflected the composer's passionate feelings about the struggle for political liberty that was sweeping Europe.
*'']''

*'']''
*1816 '']'' (]) (Rome): This comedy, based on part one of the Beaumarchais trilogy, is a prequel to ].
*'']''

*'']''
*1817 '']'' (]) (Rome)
*'']''

*'']''
*1824 '']'' (]) (Berlin) This landmark in the history of ] opera is a supernatural tale about a young marksman and his deal with the Devil. The Wolf's Glen scene is its most famous passage.
*'']''

*'']''
*1829 '']'' (Paris): ]'s final opera, and the first of the ]s to remain in the repertory, although its length, together with the difficulty of the tenor role (Arnold), mean that revivals are infrequent. The ] and the summoning of the men of the three cantons are its most famous passages.
*'']''

*'']''
*1831 '']'' (]) (Milan)
*'']''

*'']''
*1832 '']'' (]) (Milan)
*'']''

*'']''
*1835 '']'' (]) (Naples): Dismissed until the 1950s as a "singer's opera", this work found favor with audiences through the interpretations of ] and ].
*'']''

*'']''
*1836 '']'' (]) (Paris); the most famous French ], an enormous extravaganza set during the French wars of religion.
*'']''

*'']''
*1840 '']'' (]) (Paris)
*'']''

*'']''
*1842 '']'' (Milan): ]'s third opera, and the one which established his reputation, featuring the (now) famous Hebrews' Chorus, ''Va' pensiero, sull'ali dorate'' ''(Fly, thought, on golden wings)''.
*'']''

*'']''
*1842 '']'' (]) (Saint Petersburg); Glinka founded the Russian operatic tradition with this work based on a Pushkin fairy tale, and his patriotic ''A Life for the Tsar''.
*'']''

*'']''
*1843 '']'' (]) (Dresden): With the premiere of this work, Wagner started to move away from more conventional models of opera towards his own musico-dramatic form of symphonic commentary interlinked by ].
*'']''

*'']''
*1843 '']'' (]) (Paris): One of the prolific composer's last operas, this engaging comedy contains some lovely, lilting melodies.
*'']''

*'']''
*1845 '']'' (Dresden): ]’s opera on the theme of sacred and profane love combined the legend of ] and the ] with the 13th-century song contest at the ] in ]. Never completely satisfied with the work, Wagner revised it in ].
*'']''

*'']''
*1847 '']'' (Florence): In ]’s powerful version of ]'s ] the three witches are transformed into a female chorus, but the principal roles for ] and dramatic ] are among the most intense and demanding in the Italian repertory.
*'']''

*'']''
====1850 – 1899====
*'']''

*'']''
*1850 '']'' (]) (Weimar) One of Wagner's most popular operas, ''Lohengrin'' also marks the beginning his move toward through-composed operas.
*'']''

*'']''
*1851 '']'' (]) (Venice): The censors almost succeeded in preventing its premiere, and the libretto had to be remodeled to accommodate them. It contains a few of Verdi's most famous pieces, such as "La donna è mobile" and the quartet.
*'']''

*'']''
*1853 '']'' (]) (Rome); containing the famous "Anvil Chorus", in which the Gypsies' song is accompanied by the clanging of their anvils, ] is attributed as saying that all the opera needs is "the four best singers in the world".
*'']''

*'']''
*1853 '']'' (]) (Venice)
*'']''

*'']''
*1859 '']'' (]) (Rome)
*'']''

*'']''
*1859 '']'' (]) (Paris)
*'']''

*'']''
*1862 '']'' (]) (Saint Petersburg)
*'']''

*'']''
*1863 '']'' (]) (Paris)
*'']''

*'']''
*1865 '']'' (]) (Munich): In this opera, Wagner took chromatic harmony to its limit with the ], heavily influencing 20th century composers.
*'']''

*'']''
*1866 '']'' (]) (Prague)
*'']''

*'']''
*1867 '']'' (]) (Paris)
*'']''

*'']''
*1868 '']'' (Munich): ]’s monumental comedy of the burgher mastersingers of 16th century ] was used by the Nazis to glorify German nationalism, but today the universal humanity of the work is emphasized in productions that have reinforced its continuing great popularity.
*'']''

*'']''
*1871 '']'' (]) (Cairo).
*'']''

*'']''
*1874 '']'' (]) (Saint Petersburg): The opera draws on Russian folk music, rejecting the influence of German and Italian opera. It begins with a brutal murder, continues with a clever lie and a great invasion, and ends in guilt-stricken madness and death.
*'']''

*'']''
*1874 '']'' (]) (Vienna):
*'']''

*'']''
*1875 '']'' (]) (Paris): This Spanish story of a gypsy seductress and her doomed lover is one of the most popular operas of all time. Its enduring popularity is due to it being dramatic and psychologically believable, and not without touches of humour.
*'']''

*'']''
*1876 '']'' (Milan): Famous for its convoluted, melodramatic, ] derived plot, this ] ] by ] prefigures later ] operas in its raw emotion and the accessibility of its music, notably the ballet, the ']’.
*'']''

*'']''
*1876 '']'' (complete tetralogy: Bayreuth): A monumental tetraology, based on ancient Norse and Germanic myths, in which Wagner created a new model of opera based on ]. Also famous for being extremely long.
*'']''

{{div col end}}
*1877 '']'' (]) (Weimar)

*1878 '']'' (London): This was ]'s first great success, and contains examples of their affectionate parodies of nineteenth-century Italian opera.

*1879 '']'' (]) (Moscow)

*1881 '']'' (]) (Paris): Offenbach wrote almost 100 operettas, but this last work was his only grand opera. Posthumously produced, it tells three colourful stories about how the devil spoiled his chances for true love.

*1881 '']'' (]) (revised version, Milan)

*1882 '']'' (]) (Bayreuth) Wagner's final stage work was intended not as opera but as a "festival play for the consecration of the stage". He and his descendants prohibited its staging outside Bayreuth until 1903.

*1884 '']'' (]) (Paris)

*1887 '']'' (]) (Milan): Shakespeare's tragic Moor is given a dramatic musical setting to match the famous story of jealousy and treachery. Iago's "Credo" and many other chilling and touching moments add to the impact of the opera.

*1890 '']'' (]) (Rome): The first opera composed in the ] style.

*1890 '']'' (Saint Petersburg): ]’s tuneful epic of Russian history contrasts with the darker mood of ]’s ], both of which were left unfinished for ] to orchestrate. Better known for its parts than the whole, Prince Igor remains an essential part of the Russian repertory.

*1890 '']'' (]) (Saint Petersburg)

*1892 '']'' (]) (Paris)

*1892 '']'' (]) (Milan): This beloved story of the tragic clown involves a play within a play. But fiction turns to reality as the jealous husband kills his wife and her lover onstage and declares "The comedy is over".

*1893 '']'' (]) (Turin): This opera brought Puccini to the international stage and prominence in the opera community, especially since it preceded his previous opera, '']'', which was considered a fiasco at the time.
*1893 '']'' (]) (Milan): Verdi's last opera, and his only frequently performed comedy.

*1893 '']'' (]) (Weimar) Humperdinck wrote this opera specifically for children. It is especially popular at Christmas time.

*1896 '']'' (]) (Turin): Perhaps the opera with most popular appeal, ''La bohème'' masterfully mixes comedy with tragedy and romance, containing a few of Puccini's most popular melodies.

*1896 '']'' (Milan): ]’s highly-charged ] love story, set during the ] and based on real events, contains one of the main roles of the Italian tenor spinto repertory for which ], in particular, was famous.

====1900 – 1944====

*1900 '']'' (]) (Rome): one of the composer's most beloved operas, based on a ] play, "this shabby little shocker" is now more famous than the original. It's the tragic tale of a trio of protagonists: Tosca the opera diva; Cavaradossi, her lover, a painter caught up in political intrigue; and the wicked police chief, Baron Scarpia, who desires Tosca and is determined to have her.

*1902 '']'' (]) (Paris)

*1902 '']'' (]) (Milan)

*1904 '']'' (]) (Brno)

*1904 '']'' (]) (Milan): one of the composer's most popular operas, along with ''La Boheme'' and ''Tosca''. It's the tragedy of a Japanese ] (Cio-Cio-San) who marries an ] navy lieutenant, Pinkerton. Pinkerton is called back to America, and despite Cio-Cio-San's faith, he returns to Japan with an American wife.

*1905 '']'' (]) (Dresden): This operatic version of ]'s infamous play mixes the outrageous and the sensual, culminating in a grotesquely beautiful and shocking ending.

*1909 '']'' (]) (Dresden)

*1910 '']'' (New York): ]’s cowboy opera version of ]’s ''The Girl of the Golden West''. Tightly integrated musically, it has fewer extractable highlights than the earlier operas, but is one of Puccini’s best works in the theatre.

*1911 '']'' (Dresden): after ], ] and ] turned away from modernist psychological drama to write a comedy inspired by ] and ]. The resulting work has no rival as the best loved of all 20th-century German operas.

*1912 '']'' (]) (Stuttgart; revised version with prologue, 1916, Vienna)

*1918 '']'' (]) (Budapest)

*1918 '']'' (New York); The last of ]’s three one-act operas (]) is a comedic farce based on ]. Almost as perfectly constructed as ]’s ], it contains one of the best-loved arias in all opera: Lauretta’s ‘O mio babbino caro’.

*1919 '']'' (]) (Vienna)

*1921 '']'' (]) (Brno)

*1921 '']'' (]) (Chicago)

*1925 '']'' (]) (Berlin)

*1926 '']'' (]) (Milan); Unfinished at his death, with the finale completed from sketches for the premiere by ]; a later version was prepared by ]. Famous for tenor ]'s aria, "Nessun Dorma" ("None Shall Sleep"), which became the "theme song" of the ] soccer finals.

*1934 '']'' (]) (Leningrad)

*1935 '']'' (]) (New York); The music is strongly influenced by jazz styles. The opera's treatment of race relations is controversial, but it is still performed regularly.

*1937 '']'' (]) (Zurich)

*1939 '']'' (]) (] Radio); first opera composed for radio.

====From 1945====

*1945 '']'' (Moscow); ]'s synthesis of the lyrical scenes of ] and the historical tableaux of ] into a massive opera which sets love and personal tragedy against the background of the Russian people's defiance in the face of the invader.

*1945 '']'' (London): the opera which raised ] to fame. An outsider is ground down by small-town narrow-mindedness and his own recklessness; especially notable for the important part played by the chorus.

*1951 '']'' (]) (Venice)

*1951 '']'' (]) (London)

*1951 '']'' (]) (New York); first opera composed for television. The one-act opera contains both drama and humour, and the music is tuneful. These qualities make it a good first opera for children. It is frequently presented by small opera companies with a modest budget.

*1954 '']'' (]) (Hamburg)

*1957 '']'' (]) (Milan)

*1960 '']'' (Aldeburgh); the most recently composed opera with a foothold in the standard repertory. Text almost entirely by ], music by ].

*1976 '']'' (Avignon); ]'s opera was the first opera to be composed using ].

*1983 '']'' (]) (Paris)

*1987 '']'' (Houston): in the words of composer ], "part epic, part satire, part a parody of political posturing, and part serious examination of historical, philosophical, and even gender issues", also an interplay of "six extraordinary personalities".

*2000 '']'' (San Francisco), American composer ]'s first opera with a libretto by ] (based on the book by Sister ]). The book was previously made into a major film.

''Useful lists are either complete lists or selective lists. This page is a selective list.''

==Principal reference==

*The '']'', edited by Stanley Sadie (1992), 5,448 pages. ISBN 0-333-73432-7 and ISBN 1-56159-228-5

==Other sources==

*''The Viking Opera Guide'' (1994), 1,328 pages, ISBN 0-670812927

*''The Oxford Dictionary of Opera'', by John Warrack and Ewan West (1992), 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5

*''Opera, the Rough Guide'', by Matthew Boyden et al. (1997), 672 pages, ISBN 1-85828-138-5
<references />


== See also == == See also ==
* ]
*] &ndash; A list of more than 1,250 operas by more than 400 individual opera composers, arranged by composer, giving a general idea of the present depth and consistency of coverage of opera on Misplaced Pages.
* ]
*] &ndash; A list of operas with entries in Misplaced Pages sorted alphabetically by title.
* ]


==References==
== External links ==
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}


===Sources===
* Synopsis - Libretti - Highlights
* '']'' ed. L. Macy (Accessed 19 January 2007), subscription access. (Various entries on operas, composers and genres)
* (]); a look at the standard repertory from 1897.
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Frolova-Walker |first=Marina |author-link=Marina Frolova-Walker |year=2001 |encyclopedia=] |title=Russian Federation: I. Art music |publisher=] |location=Oxford |doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.40456 |isbn=978-1-56159-263-0 |url-access=subscription |url=https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000040456 }} {{Grove Music subscription}}
* {{cite book|last1=Orrey|first1=Leslie|last2=Milnes|first2=Rodney|author-link2=Rodney Milnes|title=Opera: A Concise History|year=1987|url=https://archive.org/details/operaconcisehist00orre|publisher=Thames & Hudson|isbn=9780500202173}}
* {{cite book|editor-last=Parker|editor-first=Roger|editor-link=Roger Parker|title=The Oxford Illustrated History of Opera|year=1994|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=London|isbn=978-0-19-816282-7|url=https://archive.org/details/oxfordillustrate00park |ref={{sfnRef|''Oxford Illustrated''|1994}} }}
* Stein, Louise K. (1999), (Introduction to the critical edition of the score and libretto), Ediciones Iberautor Promociones culturales S.R.L. / Instituto Complutense de Ciencias Musicales, 1999, {{ISBN|84-8048-292-3}} (reprinted with permission of the publisher on Mundoclasico.com). Accessed 5 September 2008.
* {{cite book |year=1993 |title=The Viking Opera Guide |publisher=] |location=New York |isbn=0-670-81292-7 |ref={{sfnRef|''Viking''|1993}} }} Contributions are by noted specialists in their fields


==Further reading==
* {{cite book |last=Boyden |first=Matthew |title=Opera, the Rough Guide|editor=Jonathan Buckley|year=1997 |publisher=Penguin|location=London|isbn=978-1-85828-138-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/operaroughguide00boyd |display-authors=etal|ref=none}}


{{Opera lists}} {{Opera topics}}
{{Portal bar|Opera|Music}}



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Latest revision as of 12:12, 29 December 2024

Since the origins of opera in late 16th century Italy, a central repertoire has developed, shepherded by major opera composers. The earliest major opera composer is generally considered to be Claudio Monteverdi, who wrote the first prominent opera, L'Orfeo, followed by two others. Throughout the later 17th century, his successor Francesco Cavalli and the Englishman Henry Purcell wrote numerous prominent operas. The early 18th century was dominated by the operas of George Frideric Handel, while other important works include Pepusch's The Beggar's Opera, Pergolesi's' La serva padrona, and various works by Jean-Philippe Rameau.

This list provides a guide to the most prominent operas, as determined by their presence on a majority of selected compiled lists, which date from between 1984 and 2000. The operas included cover all important genres, and include all operas regularly performed today, from seventeenth-century works to late twentieth-century operas. The brief accompanying notes offer an explanation as to why each opera has been considered important. The organisation of the list is by year of first performance, or, if this was long after the composer's death, approximate date of composition.

1600–1699

Claudio Monteverdi by Bernardo Strozzi, 1640
  • 1607 L'Orfeo (Claudio Monteverdi). Widely regarded as the first operatic masterwork.
  • 1640 Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria (Monteverdi). Monteverdi's first opera for Venice, based on Homer's Odyssey, displays the composer's mastery of portrayal of genuine individuals as opposed to stereotypes.
  • 1642 L'incoronazione di Poppea (Monteverdi). Monteverdi's last opera, composed for a Venetian audience, is often performed today. Its Venetian context helps to explain the complete absence of the moralizing tone often associated with opera of this time.
  • 1644 Ormindo (Francesco Cavalli). One of the first of Cavalli's operas to be revived in the 20th century, Ormindo is considered one of his more attractive works.
  • 1649 Giasone (Cavalli). In Giasone Cavalli, for the first time, separated aria and recitative. Giasone was the most popular opera of the 17th century.
  • 1651 La Calisto (Cavalli). Ninth of the eleven operas that Cavalli wrote with Faustini is noted for its satire of the deities of classical mythology.
  • 1683 Dido and Aeneas (Henry Purcell). Often considered to be the first genuine English-language operatic masterwork. Not first performed in 1689 at a girls' school, as is commonly believed, but at Charles II's court in 1683.
  • 1692 The Fairy-Queen (Purcell). A semi-opera rather than a genuine opera, this is often thought to be Purcell's finest dramatic work.

1700–1749

George Frideric Handel by Balthasar Denner, 1733
  • 1710 Agrippina (Handel). Handel's last opera that he composed in Italy was a great success, and established his reputation as a composer of Italian opera.
  • 1711 Rinaldo (Handel). Handel's first opera for the London stage was also the first all-Italian opera performed on the London stage.
  • 1724 Giulio Cesare (Handel). Noted for the richness of its orchestration.
  • 1724 Tamerlano (Handel). Described by Anthony Hicks, writing in Grove Music Online, as possessing a "taut dramatic power".
  • 1725 Rodelinda (Handel). Rodelinda is often praised for the fullness of the melodic writing among Handel's output.
  • 1728 The Beggar's Opera (Johann Christoph Pepusch). A satire of Italian opera seria based on a play by John Gay, the ballad opera format of The Beggar's Opera has proved popular even up to the current time.
  • 1731 Acis and Galatea (Handel). Handel's only work for the theatre that is set to an English libretto.
  • 1733 Orlando (Handel). An opera that is described by Anthony Hicks as "remarkable" and by Orrey as one of Handel's "best works".
  • 1733 La serva padrona (Giovanni Battista Pergolesi). Became a model for many of the opera buffas that followed it, including those of Mozart.
  • 1733 Hippolyte et Aricie (Jean-Philippe Rameau). Rameau's first opera caused great controversy at its premiere.
  • 1735 Ariodante (Handel). Both this opera and Alcina enjoy high critical reputations today.
  • 1735 Alcina (Handel). Both this work and Ariodante were part of Handel's first opera season at Covent Garden.
  • 1735 Les Indes galantes (Rameau). In this work Rameau added emotional depth and power to the traditionally lighter form of opéra-ballet.
  • 1737 Castor et Pollux (Rameau). Initially only a moderate success, when it was revived in 1754 Castor et Pollux was regarded as Rameau's finest achievement.
  • 1738 Serse (Handel). Deviation from the usual model of opera seria, Serse contains many comic elements rare in Handel's other works.
  • 1740 Alfred (Thomas Arne). An English opera of all times, famous for the patriotic song "Rule Britannia".
  • 1744 Semele (Handel). Originally performed as an oratorio, Semele's dramatic qualities have often led to the work being performed on the opera stage in modern times.
  • 1745 Platée (Rameau). Rameau's most famous comic opera. Originally a court entertainment, a 1754 revival proved extremely popular with French audiences.

1750–1799

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart aged 21 in 1777
  • 1760 La buona figliuola (Niccolò Piccinni). Piccinni's work was initially immensely popular throughout Europe. By 1790 over 70 productions of the opera had been produced and it had been performed in all the major European cities.
  • 1762 Orfeo ed Euridice (Christoph Willibald Gluck). Gluck's most popular opera. The first work in which the composer tried to reform the excesses of Italian opera seria.
  • 1762 Artaxerxes (Thomas Arne). The first opera seria in English. After Metastasio's 1729 libretto Artaserse.
  • 1767 Alceste (Gluck). Gluck's second "reform" opera, nowadays usually given in its French revision of 1776.
  • 1768 Bastien und Bastienne (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart). Mozart's one-act Singspiel was set to a parody of Rousseau's Le devin du village.
  • 1770 Mitridate, re di Ponto (Mozart). Composed when Mozart was 14, Mitridate was written for a demanding cast of star singers.
  • 1772 Lucio Silla (Mozart). from Mozart's teenage years, was not revived until 1929 after its initial run of 25 performances.
  • 1774 Iphigénie en Aulide (Gluck). Gluck's first opera for Paris.
  • 1775 La finta giardiniera (Mozart). Generally recognised as Mozart's first opera buffa of significance.
  • 1775 Il re pastore (Mozart). Mozart's last opera of his adolescence was set to a libretto by Metastasio.
  • 1777 Il mondo della luna (Joseph Haydn). Last of three that Haydn set to libretti by Carlo Goldoni.
  • 1777 Armide (Gluck). Gluck used a libretto originally set by Lully for this French work, his favourite among his own operas.
  • 1779 Iphigénie en Tauride (Gluck). Gluck's "last and perhaps greatest masterpiece".
  • 1781 Idomeneo (Mozart). Usually thought of as Mozart's first mature opera, Idomeneo was composed after a lengthy break from the stage.
  • 1782 Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Mozart). Often thought of as the first of Mozart's comic masterpieces, this work is frequently performed today.
  • 1782 Il barbiere di Siviglia (Giovanni Paisiello). Paisiello's most famous comic opera, later eclipsed by Rossini's work of the same name.
  • 1786 Der Schauspieldirektor (Mozart). Another Singspiel with much spoken dialogue taken from plays of that time, the plot of Der Schauspieldirektor features two sopranos vying to become prima donna in a newly assembled company. Premiered together with Antonio Salieri's Prima la musica e poi le parole
  • 1786 Le nozze di Figaro (Mozart). The first of the famous series of Mozart operas set to libretti by Lorenzo Da Ponte is now Mozart's most popular opera.
  • 1787 Don Giovanni (Mozart). Second of the operas that Mozart set to Da Ponte's libretti, Don Giovanni has provided a puzzle for writers and philosophers ever since its composition.
  • 1790 Così fan tutte (Mozart). Third and last of the operas that Mozart set to libretti by Da Ponte, Così fan tutte was scarcely performed throughout the 19th century, as the plot was considered to be immoral.
  • 1791 La clemenza di Tito (Mozart). Mozart's last opera before his early death was extremely popular until 1830, after which the work's popularity and critical reputation began to decline; they did not return to their former levels until after the Second World War.
  • 1791 Die Zauberflöte (Mozart). Has been described as "the apotheosis of the Singspiel", Die Zauberflöte was denigrated during the 19th century as confused and lacking in definition.
  • 1792 Il matrimonio segreto (Domenico Cimarosa). Usually regarded as Cimarosa's best opera, Leopold II enjoyed the three-hour-long premiere so much that, after dinner, he compelled the singers to repeat the opera later during that same day.
  • 1797 Médée (Luigi Cherubini). Only French opera of the Revolutionary period to be regularly performed today. A famous showcase for sopranos such as Maria Callas.

1800–1832

Gioachino Rossini

1833–1849

Gaetano Donizetti

1850–1875

Richard Wagner
  • 1850 Genoveva (Robert Schumann). Schumann's only excursion into opera was a relative failure, though the work has had its admirers from Franz Liszt to Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
  • 1850 Lohengrin (Richard Wagner). The last of Wagner's "middle period" works.
  • 1850 Stiffelio (Giuseppe Verdi). Verdi's tale of adultery among members of a German Protestant sect fell foul of the censors.
  • 1851 Rigoletto (Verdi). The first – and most innovative – of three middle period Verdi operas which have become staples of the repertoire.
  • 1853 Il trovatore (Verdi). This Romantic melodrama is one of Verdi's most tuneful scores.
  • 1853 La traviata (Verdi). The role of Violetta, the "fallen woman" of the title, is one of the most famous vehicles for the soprano voice.
  • 1855 Les vêpres siciliennes (Verdi). Verdi's opera displays the strong influence of Meyerbeer.
  • 1858 Der Barbier von Bagdad (Peter Cornelius). An oriental comedy drawing on the tradition of German Romantic opera.
  • 1858 Orphée aux Enfers (Jacques Offenbach). Offenbach's first full-length operetta, this cynical and satirical piece is still immensely popular today.
  • 1858 Les Troyens (Hector Berlioz). Berlioz's greatest opera and the culmination of the French Classical tradition.
  • 1859 Faust (Charles Gounod). Of all the musical settings of the Faust legend, Gounod's has been the most popular with audiences, especially in the Victorian era.
  • 1859 Un ballo in maschera (Verdi). This opera ran into trouble with the censors because it originally dealt with the assassination of a monarch.
  • 1861 Bánk bán (Erkel). Erkel's third opera is considered the Hungarian "National opera".
  • 1862 Béatrice et Bénédict (Berlioz). The last opera Berlioz wrote is the final fruit of his lifelong admiration for Shakespeare.
  • 1862 La forza del destino (Verdi). This tragedy was commissioned by the Imperial Theatre, Saint Petersburg, and Verdi may have been influenced by the Russian tradition in the writing of his work.
  • 1863 Les pêcheurs de perles (Georges Bizet). Though a relative failure at its premiere, this is Bizet's second most performed opera today and is particularly famous for its tenor/baritone duet.
  • 1864 La belle Hélène (Offenbach). Another operetta by Offenbach which pokes fun at Greek mythology.
  • 1864 Mireille (Gounod). Gounod's work is based on the epic poem by Frédéric Mistral and makes use of Provençal folk tunes.
  • 1865 L'Africaine (Giacomo Meyerbeer). Meyerbeer's last Grand Opera received a posthumous premiere.
  • 1865 Tristan und Isolde (Wagner). This romantic tragedy is Wagner's most radical work and one of the most revolutionary pieces in music history. The "Tristan chord" began the breakdown of traditional tonality.
  • 1866 Mignon (Ambroise Thomas). A lyrical work inspired by Goethe's novel Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship, this was Thomas's most successful opera along with Hamlet.
  • 1866 The Bartered Bride (Bedřich Smetana). Smetana's folk comedy is the most widely performed of all his operas.
  • 1867 Don Carlos (Verdi). Verdi's French grand opera, after Schiller, is now one of his most highly regarded works.
  • 1867 La jolie fille de Perth (Bizet). Bizet turned to a novel by Sir Walter Scott for this opéra comique.
  • 1867 Roméo et Juliette (Gounod). Gounod's version of Shakespeare's tragedy is his second most famous work.
  • 1868 Dalibor (Smetana). One of the most successful of Smetana's operas exploring themes from Czech history.
  • 1868 Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner). Wagner's only comedy among his mature operas concerns the clash between artistic tradition and innovation.
  • 1868 Hamlet (Thomas). Thomas's opera takes many liberties with its Shakespearean source.
  • 1868 La Périchole (Offenbach). Set in Peru, this operetta mixes comedy and sentimentality.
  • 1868 Mefistofele (Arrigo Boito). Though most famous as a librettist for Verdi, Boito was also a composer and he spent many years working on this musical version of the Faust myth.
  • 1869 Das Rheingold (Wagner). The "preliminary evening" to Wagner's epic Ring cycle tells how the ring was forged and the curse laid upon it.
  • 1870 Die Walküre (Wagner). The second part of the Ring tells the story of the mortals Siegmund and Sieglinde and of how the valkyrie Brünnhilde disobeys her father Wotan, king of the gods.
  • 1871 Aida (Verdi). Features one of the greatest tenor arias of all time, Celeste Aida.
  • 1874 Boris Godunov (Modest Mussorgsky). Mussorgsky's great historical drama shows Russia's descent into anarchy in the early 17th century.
  • 1874 Die Fledermaus (Johann Strauss II). Probably the most popular of all operettas.
  • 1874 The Two Widows (Smetana). Another comedy by Smetana, the only one of his operas with a non-Czech subject.
  • 1875 Carmen (Bizet). Probably the most famous of all French operas. Critics at the premiere were shocked by Bizet's blend of romanticism and realism.

1876–1899

Giuseppe Verdi by Giovanni Boldini, 1886
  • 1876 Siegfried (Richard Wagner). The third part of the Ring sees the hero Siegfried slay the dragon Fafner, win the ring and free Brunhilde from her enchantment.
  • 1876 Götterdämmerung (Wagner). In the final part of the Ring, the curse takes effect leading to the deaths of Siegfried and Brünnhilde and the destruction of the gods themselves.
  • 1876 La Gioconda (Amilcare Ponchielli). Apart from Verdi's Aida, this is the only Italian grand opera to have stayed in international repertory.
  • 1877 L'étoile (Emmanuel Chabrier). This comic piece has been described as "a cross between Carmen and Gilbert and Sullivan, with plenty of Offenbach thrown in".
  • 1877 Samson et Dalila (Camille Saint-Saëns). An opera with that was heavily influenced by those of Wagner.
  • 1879 Eugene Onegin (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky). Tchaikovsky's most popular opera, based on the verse novel by Alexander Pushkin. The composer strongly identified with the heroine Tatyana.
  • 1881 Hérodiade (Jules Massenet). An opera telling the Biblical story of Salome, Massenet's work was eclipsed by Richard Strauss's treatment of the same subject.
  • 1881 Les contes d'Hoffmann (Jacques Offenbach). Offenbach's attempt at writing a more serious work remained unfinished at his death. Nevertheless, this is his most widely performed opera today.
  • 1881 Simon Boccanegra (Giuseppe Verdi). Verdi heavily revised this opera over twenty years after it was first performed.
  • 1882 Parsifal (Wagner). Wagner's last opera is a "festival play" about the legend of the Holy Grail.
  • 1882 The Snow Maiden: A Spring Fairy Tale (Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov). One of Rimsky-Korsakov's most lyrical works.
  • 1883 Lakmé (Léo Delibes). This opéra comique set in the British Raj in India is famous for its "Flower Duet" and "Bell Song".
  • 1884 Le Villi (Puccini). An early operatic work by Puccini with plenty of opportunity for dance.
  • 1884 Manon (Massenet). Massenet's most enduringly popular work along with Werther.
  • 1885 Der Zigeunerbaron (Johann Strauss II). Strauss's operetta was intended to soothe tensions between Austrians and Hungarians in the Habsburg empire.
  • 1886 Khovanshchina (Modest Mussorgsky). Mussorgsky's second great epic of Russian history was left unfinished at his death.
  • 1887 Le roi malgré lui (Chabrier). Ravel claimed he would rather have written this comic opera than Wagner's Ring cycle, though the plot is notoriously confused.
  • 1887 Otello (Verdi). The first of Verdi's late-period masterpieces was set to a libretto by Arrigo Boito.
  • 1888 Le roi d'Ys (Édouard Lalo). A Breton folk tale with music heavily influenced by Wagner.
  • 1890 Cavalleria rusticana (Pietro Mascagni). A perennial favourite with audiences around the world, this one-acter is usually performed alongside Leoncavallo's Pagliacci.
  • 1890 Prince Igor (Alexander Borodin). Borodin spent 17 years working on this opera off and on, yet never managed to finish it. Most famous for its "Polovtsian dances".
  • 1890 The Queen of Spades (Tchaikovsky). In a letter to his brother and librettist the composer said that "the opera is a masterpiece".
  • 1891 L'amico Fritz (Mascagni). This work has been thought of as a late example of opera semiseria.
  • 1892 Iolanta (Tchaikovsky). Tchaikovsky's last lyrical opera set to a libretto by his brother Modest.
  • 1892 La Wally (Alfredo Catalani). Usually considered Catalani's masterpiece.
  • 1892 Pagliacci (Ruggero Leoncavallo). One of the most famous verismo operas, usually paired with Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana.
  • 1892 Werther (Massenet). Along with Manon, this is Massenet's most popular opera.
  • 1893 Falstaff (Verdi). Verdi's final opera was set to another of Boito's libretti.
  • 1893 Hänsel und Gretel (Engelbert Humperdinck). The well-known fairy tale received a full Wagnerian operatic adaptation at Humperdinck's hands.
  • 1893 Manon Lescaut (Giacomo Puccini). The success of this work established Puccini's reputation as a composer of contemporary music of the first rank.
  • 1894 Thaïs (Massenet). The opera that contains the famous Méditation interlude.
  • 1896 Andrea Chénier (Umberto Giordano). Set to a libretto by Luigi Illica, this verismo drama is Giordano's most popular opera.
  • 1896 La bohème (Puccini). Debussy is alleged to have said that no one had detailed Paris at that time better than had Puccini in La Boheme.
  • 1897 Königskinder (Humperdinck). Originally a melodrama that blended song and spoken dialogue, the composer adapted the work into an opera proper in 1907.
  • 1898 Fedora (Giordano). Giordano's second most popular opera.
  • 1898 Sadko (Rimsky-Korsakov). The Viking Trader's song from this opera has become extremely popular in Russia.
  • 1899 Cendrillon (Massenet). An immediate success at the time of the premiere, the opera enjoyed 50 performances in 1899 alone.
  • 1899 The Devil and Kate (Antonín Dvořák). The lack of a love interest makes the plot of this work almost unique among Czech comic operas.

1900–1920

Richard Strauss

1921–1944

Giacomo Puccini

1945–1964

Benjamin Britten

1965–1999

Harrison Birtwistle

Significant firsts in opera history

Operas not included in the above list, but which were important milestones in operatic history.

Lists consulted

This list was compiled by consulting nine lists of great operas, created by recognized authorities in the field of opera, and selecting all of the operas which appeared on at least five of these (i.e. all operas on a majority of the lists). The lists used were:

  1. "A–Z of Opera by Keith Anderson, Naxos, 2000".
  2. "The Standard Repertoire of Grand Opera 1607–1969", a list included in Norman Davies's Europe: a History (Oxford University Press, 1996; paperback edition Pimlico, 1997). ISBN 0-7126-6633-8.
  3. Operas appearing in the chronology by Mary Ann Smart in The Oxford Illustrated History of Opera (Oxford University Press, 1994). ISBN 0-19-816282-0.
  4. Operas with entries in The New Kobbé's Opera Book, ed. Lord Harewood (Putnam, 9th ed., 1997). ISBN 0-370-10020-4
  5. Table of Contents of The Rough Guide to Opera. by Matthew Boyden. (2002 edition). ISBN 1-85828-749-9.
  6. Operas with entries in The Metropolitan Opera Guide to Recorded Opera ed. Paul Gruber (Thames and Hudson, 1993). ISBN 0-393-03444-5 and/or Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas ed. John W Freeman (Norton, 1984). ISBN 0-393-01888-1
  7. List of operas and their composers in Who's Who in British Opera ed. Nicky Adam (Scolar Press, 1993). ISBN 0-85967-894-6
  8. Entries for individual operas in Warrack, John; West, Ewan (1992). The Oxford Dictionary of Opera. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-869164-8.
  9. Entries for individual operas in Who's Who in Opera: a guide to opera characters by Joyce Bourne (Oxford University Press, 1998). ISBN 0-19-210023-8

Operas included in all nine lists

The 93 operas included in all nine lists cited are:

See also

References

Citations

  1. Orrey & Milnes 1987, p. 18.
  2. John Whenham (2002) . "Orfeo (i)". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O005849.
  3. Ellen Rosand (2002) . "Ritorno d'Ulisse in patria, Il". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004922.
  4. Ellen Rosand (2002) . "Incoronazione di Poppea, L'". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O902316.
  5. Ellen Rosand (2002) . "Ormindo". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004544.
  6. Ellen Rosand (2002) . "Giasone". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O003539.
  7. Viking 1993, p. 191.
  8. Martha Novak Clinkscale (2002) . "Calisto". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O004390.
  9. Curtis Price (2002) . "Dido and Aeneas". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O006883. ISBN 978-1-56159-263-0.
  10. Curtis Price (2002) . "Fairy-Queen, The". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.O009948. ISBN 9781561592630.
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