11 Great Overtures

Overtures are most often short pieces that introduce a larger piece, such as an opera, ballet, or play. Overtures can also be stand-alone pieces, also known as concert overtures. I have selected 11 great overtures that I highly recommend for the classical music listener.

1. Mozart – Overture from The Marriage of Figaro

• The overture to Mozart's opera The Marriage of Figaro. 
  

2. Beethoven – Leonore Overture No. 3

• This is one of four versions of an overture originally intended for Beethoven's opera Fidelio.

3. Beethoven – Egmont

• Composed for a production of Goethe's play Egmont. 
  

4. Mendelssohn – Overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream

• Composed as a stand-alone concert overture, inspired by Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream.

5. Mendelssohn – The Hebrides

• A concert overture inspired by Mendelssohn's visit to Scotland. 
  

6. Wagner – Overture to The Flying Dutchman

• The overture to Wagner's opera The Flying Dutchman . 
  

7. Wagner – Overture to Tannhäuser

• The overture to Wagner's opera Tannhäuser.

8. Tchaikovsky – Romeo and Juliet 

• A concert overture inspired by Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.

9. Rimsky-Korsakov – Russian Easter Festival Overture

• A concert overture inspired by sights and sounds of the Russian Orthodox Church's Easter service. 
  

10. Nielsen – Helios Overture

• A concert overture depicting the rising and setting of the sun over the Aegean Sea. 
  

11. Leonard Bernstein – Overture to Candide 

• An overture to Bernstein's operetta Candide.

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