The masterpiece of French Romanticism 

Les contes d’Hoffmann (Paris, 1881) reflects Offenbach's desire to go beyond his successful operettas and enter the world of grand opera. It is a highly inspired work in which fantasy, emotion and the supernatural blend smoothly with satire and the grotesque. Hoffmann, the narrator and protagonist, tells his drinking companions three tales, each of which illustrates a facet of his stormy romance with the singer Stella. The tales are about Olympia, a mechanical doll, Antonia, a singer who sings herself to death, and Giulietta, a courtesan who steals people's reflections.

Opéra Fantastique in five acts by Jacques Offenbach. Libretto by Jules Barbier based on the play by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré.Performing.
Edition based on the integral edition of the opera by Michael Kaye and Jean-Christophe Keck, by arrangement with Schott Music. First performed in Barcelona in Spanish at the Teatre Eldorado on 22 April 1905.

First performance at the Gran Teatre del Liceu on 5 February 1924.

“Barcarola”
Teresa Berganza (mezzosoprano), Cecilia Lavilla Berganza (soprano), Juan Antonio Alvarez Parejo (piano). Liceu, 17 October 2002