Leipzig Opera
The Leipzig Opera (in German: ) is an opera house and opera company located at the Augustusplatz in Leipzig, Germany. History. Performances of opera in Leipzig trace back to Singspiel performances beginning in the year 1693. The composer of many early operas at the first opera house, the Oper am Brühl, was Telemann. He was director of the house from 1703 to 1905. The Leipzig Opera does not have its own opera orchestra – the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra performs as its orchestra. This relationship began in 1766 with performances of the Singspiel "" by Johann Adam Hiller. Opera House, 1868. The  previous theater (the "") was inaugurated on 28 January 1868 with "Jubilee Overture" by Carl Maria von Weber and the overture for "Iphigénie en Aulide" by Gluck and Goethe's play "Iphigenia in Tauris". From 1886 to 1888, Gustav Mahler was the second conductor; Arthur Nikisch was his superior. During an air raid in the night of 3 December 1943, part of the bombing of Leipzig in World War II, the theater was destroyed, as were all of Leipzig's theatres. Opera House, 1960. Construction of the modern opera house began in 1956. The theater was inaugurated on 8 October 1960  with a performance of Wagner's "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg". Since 2009, Ulf Schirmer is the "Generalmusikdirektor" (General Music Director, or GMD); he was elected artistic director in 2011 for a five-year term. General music directors. Among the people with the title Generalmusikdirektor (GMD) were World premieres. Several operas received their premiere in Leipzig, including: