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The Worlds of Gilbert and Sullivan

Jacques Offenbach was actually born near Cologne in Germany in 1819. His original surname was Eberst, Wiener, or Levy, but he took the name Offenbach because his family came from Offenbach-am-main. His father was cantor of Cologne synagogue. Jacques was a very fine conductor, cellist and of course a prolific and brilliant composer. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire, and produced some ninety operettas over 25 years.

One of these operettas: La Perichole (1868) was running in London when Gilbert & Sullivan put on their supporting operetta Trial By Jury in the same show. Up to this point there had been no competition for Offenbach's operettas. Trial changed all that.

Jacques only wrote one grand opera Les Contes d'Hoffmann, (The Tales of Hoffmann) 1881, but left it incomplete at his death in 1880. It was from this opera that the famous Barcarolle came. It was written for another piece but is included in the Giulietta act, and as an intermezzo before the epilogue.

In the meantime we have included the Act II version, and also a superb piece of Opera-bouffe (comic opera), the equally famous Gendarmes Duet from Genevieve. We hope you will enjoy these two wonderful pieces from the pen of an extraordinary, world famous German-French composer, who powerfully influenced the English stage (and Gilbert & Sullivan) at that time.

So. Like to hear the famous Gendarmes Duet . . .?

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