Classical Music Forum banner

How do you feel about Lenoroe #3 overture before the finale of Fidelio?

  • It is a real bother and disrupts the flow of the opera.

    Votes: 5 33.3%
  • I don't like it, but live with it.

    Votes: 4 26.7%
  • I think it is good to insert Leonore #4.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I add it in if it is not present in a recording

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I add it in before the Finale of any opera, LvB or not.

    Votes: 2 13.3%
  • What is all the fuss about, it's only an opera.

    Votes: 3 20.0%
  • I don't care.

    Votes: 1 6.7%

Fidelio and the pesky Leonore #3 Overture!

1653 Views 9 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  ScottK
I read that Beethoven had intended for the finale of Fidelio to start within 7 seconds of the last note of the Leonore and Florestan duet. A practice was begun to insert the Leonore #3 overture in between these two parts to accommodate the scene change (from dungeon to prison parade grounds). This I could understand in live performances, yet there are ways to cleverly make that scene change happen fast as in the DVD with Nylund and Kaufmann by having a curtain lift in the back of the dungeon scene exposing the new scene for the finale.

At any rate, I remove the Leonore #3 overture from all my folders before playing them on my MP3 player or burning discs for the car. I would remove the overture from the DVDs but it is probably not easy to do, so instead simply skip over the overture.

Oops: Third option should be Leonore #3, not #4.
1 - 1 of 10 Posts
I'm in the middle of my Fidelio challenge and I really like the performing version with the No.3 overture before the finale. I have too much Wagner in my brain to find where is the "dramatic flow" in Fidelio's recitatives. For me Leonore No.3 inserted improves the experience, but also...

I stress efficiency. Play the Leonore #3 and skip the opera.


This one inserts the overture before the finale. The WPO and Furtwängler give life to this work.
See less See more
  • Like
Reactions: 2
1 - 1 of 10 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top