Oberon (opera) - Music and Noted Arias

Music and Noted Arias

Comparing the unconventional plot and structure of Oberon with that of The Magic Flute, Kobbé contends that 'Oberon is musically strong enough to stand on its own merits'. Grove notes that despite the "unmitigated awfulness" of the libretto, Weber was able to provide musical characterisation for the main characters, at the same time colourfully evoking the mood of the different scenes; the careful recurring use of the horn call motif helps to give the impression of tying the work together. The fairy strands of the opera are given in delicate, beautifully orchestrated music that often anticipates the fairy music of Mendelssohn.

The most famous numbers are the overture (passages of which are quoted by Berlioz in his Treatise on Instrumentation) based on themes from within the opera including the magic horn call, which is played regularly in the concert hall, and Reiza's soprano aria Ozean, du Ungeheuer (Ocean, thou Mighty Monster).