- Irmelin, op. 3, was Delius’s first opera. He composed it in 1890-92, and he was also the librettist.1
- Though Irmelin was Delius’s earliest opera, the Irmelin Prelude was a late piece. Delius created it in 1931, three years before his death, with the aid of Eric Fenby. The Prelude was based on four themes from Delius’s opera.2
- Delius chose the subject for Irmelin while on a walking tour with his friend Edvard Grieg.3
- Synopsis from Boosey & Hawkes
- According to Sir Thomas Beecham, friend and supporter of Delius, the story combines two traditional fairy tales: that of Irmelin, a medieval princess who rejects many suitors, and The Princess and the Swineherd.4
Sources
- Lionel Carley, Robert Anderson, and Anthony Payne, “Delius, Frederick,” Grove Music Online (2001), accessed August 29, 2019, https://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-0000049095.
- Robert Anderson, “Irmelin,” Grove Music Online (2002), accessed August 29, 2019, https://oxfordmusiconline.com/grovemusic/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.001.0001/omo-9781561592630-e-5000006581.
- Ibid.
- Thomas Beecham, Frederick Delius (London: Hutchinson, 1959), 56.
Cut IDs
42066