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Heinrich Marschner (Zittau, 16 August 1795–Hannover, 16 December 1861), was a German composer of 23 operas and singspiels who was a rival of Carl Maria von Weber and friend of Beethoven and Mendelssohn. Marschner was widely regarded as one of the most important composers in Europe from about 1830 until the end of the 19th century. Even today, he is generally acknowledged as the leading composer of German opera between Weber's death and Wagner, producing many fairy or magic operas with thematic material based on folksong, a genre that had been introduced with Weber's Der Freischütz (1821). His last-mounted production was Austin in 1852, after which the rising star of Richard Wagner eclipsed Marschner's.

Though he considered himself primarily a composer of opera, he did write many lieder and seven piano trios and two piano quartets. These did not escape the notice of Robert Schumann, who praised the piano trios lavishly and for good reason. Marschner did not just toss off these works as an afterthought but clearly devoted considerable time and effort writing them. To each of his works for piano, violin and cello he gave the title "Grand Trio", indicative of the importance he attached to them. In these fine works, one finds all of the emotions prevalent in the romantic movement during the mid-19th century expressed in a fresh, original and captivating manner.

• Titus (1817)
• Der Kiffhäuser Berg (1817)
• Saidar und Zulima (1818)
• Heinrich IV und d'Aubigné (1819)
• Der Holzdieb (1825)
• Lukretia (1827) (Op. 67)
• Der Vampyr (1828)
• Der Templer und die Jüdin (1829) (Op. 60), drawn from Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe.
• Des Falkners Braut (1830) (Op.65)
• Hans Heiling (1833), Marschner's greatest success, which established him as the premier European composer of Romantic opera and influenced Wagner's Der Fliegender Holländer.
• Das Schloß am Ätna (1836)
• Der Bäbu (1838) (Op. 98)
• Das Stille Volk
• Ali Baba
• Der Wiener in Berlin
• Fridthjof's Saga
• Kaiser Adolf von Nassau (1844) (Op. 130)
• Austin (1852)
• Der Sängeskönig Hiarne, oder Das Tyrfingschwert (1861) (posthumously produced in 1863)

• Schön Ella (1822)
• Prinz Friedrich von Homburg (Op. 56)
• Der Goldschmied von Ulm (1856)
• Die Hermannßchlacht

• Piano Trio No.1 in a minor, Op.29
• Piano Trio No.2 in g minor, Op.111
• Piano Trio No.3 in f minor, Op.121
• Piano Trio No.4 in D Major, Op.135
• Piano Trio No.5 in d minor, Op.138
• Piano Trio No.6 in c minor, Op.148
• Piano Trio No.7 in F Major, Op.167
• Piano Quartet No.1 in B Flat Major, Op.36
• Piano Quartet No.2 in G Major, Op.158

• Some of the information on this page appears on the website of Edition Silvertrust but permission has been granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.
• Heinrich Marschner Biography; list of operas and singspiels.

• Heinrich Marschner
• Heinrich Marschner Piano Trio Nos. 2 & 7, Opp.111 & 167 Soundbites & short biography