Fredrik Pacius: The Hunt of King Charles

Regarded as the father of Finnish music, Fredrik Pacius was the composer of the first Finnish opera, The Hunt of King Charles, which had its première in Helsinki in 1852. At that time the language of the theatre and the opera house was Swedish, and accordingly the work has a Swedish text, although the opera is often performed in a translated Finnish version, as heard in this live recording. The plot, set in 1671, centres on King Charles XI, ruler of Sweden and Finland, immediately before he reached an age to assume control of his kingdom. The music itself remains close to models such as Weber’s Freischütz and Oberon, and there are also reminders of Beethoven, not least in the choice of the name Leonora for the heroine.