Joseph Breil: Intermezzo ('The Legend')

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Phillip Sear plays a published piano arrangement of an instrumental interlude from the 1919 one-act opera 'The Legend' by the influential American composer, conductor, and lyric tenor Joseph (Carl) Breil (1870–1926).
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“Born in Pittsburgh to a family of Prussian heritage, Breil showed musical talent early, composing an opera by age 17. He studied at Duquesne University and later at the Leipzig Conservatory, initially also pursuing law before dedicating himself fully to music. Breil’s career spanned opera, sacred music, theatre, and, most notably, film, where he helped establish the role of dedicated scores in cinema.

Breil’s major contributions lie in his pioneering work composing original music for motion pictures. He scored the 1912 film “Les amours de la reine Élisabeth” and most famously the groundbreaking 1915 epic “The Birth of a Nation” by D.W. Griffith. His film scores combined original themes with classical excerpts, setting a precedent for orchestral film music. He also composed for Griffith’s “Intolerance” and the preview version of "The Phantom of the Opera." Alongside film music, Breil wrote operas, sacred works, and popular songs, though his opera “The Legend” received negative reviews at its 1919 Metropolitan Opera premiere and was not widely continued.

“The Legend” is a tragic melodrama set in a mythical Balkan country named Muscovadia. It centres on Count Stackareff, a nobleman living a double life as the bandit "Black Lorenzo," his daughter Carmelita, and her lover Stephen, a hussar captain sent to capture the bandit. The plot unfolds over a stormy night where love, betrayal, and superstition intertwine, culminating in Carmelita fatally stabbing Stephen to keep him from leaving her, followed by her own likely death at the hands of soldiers. The opera ends with the tragic demise of both lovers against the backdrop of loyalty and doomed passion." (Perplexity AI, August 11th 2025).

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#americanmusic #intermezzo
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Played by Phillip Sear
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