Composed in 1823 but not performed during his lifetime, Franz Schubert’s Fierabras is a “number opera” with spoken dialogue in the manner of opéra comique. It is based on the medieval legends associated with Charlemagne, including that of Eginhard and Emma, and draws on the old French heroic epic (chanson de geste).

Emma, the daughter of Charlemagne secretly loves the knight Eginhard who is not befitting of her rank. The heathen Moorish prince Fierabras who, after being defeated by Charlemagn...