The Sound of a Fairytale Engelbert Humperdinck is a classic composer remembered most for a single piece of enchanting work, his fairytale opera, Hansel und Gretel. Humperdinck was born in Siegburg, near Bonn and at a young age presented traits of a natural musician. Piano lessons from the age of seven unleashed his creative talent, and he began to compose. By the age of 14, he had written two operas. Nevertheless, his parents were set against him pursuing music as a career, and pushed him instead, unsuccessfully, towards architecture.
Instead of following his parents direction, Engelbert Humperdink was mentored by conductor and composer Ferdinand Hiller, and under his advice, the 18-year-old Humperdinck devoted himself fully to music. Studying at the…show more content… The idea had come from his sister, Adelheid Wette, who had asked him to write the music for a piece she had written for her children which were a collection of Christmas songs and other pieces based on the famous tales of the Brothers Grimm. Humperdinck went a step further than what was asked, gradually adding to the collection and turned it into a complete opera. With the help of Richard Strauss it was premiered at the Opera House in Weimar on 23 Dec 1893. It was an immediate success and over the following year over 50 German opera companies took the show on tour, the success allotted Humperdinck with financial freedom, a luxury he, like most of the country, had not experienced.
With his new found freedom, Humperdinck was able to devote himself wholeheartedly to composition. He wrote incidental music for multiple Shakespeare plays and another opera with fairytale origins: Köningskinder ('The King's Children'). Despite being hailed a masterpiece at its New York premiere in 1910 Köningskinder is rarely staged for modern
