About this edition
Der Freischütz stands as the wellspring of German Romantic opera, the work in which Carl Maria von Weber fused folk legend, supernatural dread, and vivid orchestral color into a new national musical language. Its Wolf's Glen scene, with its eerie diminished harmonies and stalking horn calls, remains one of the most theatrically daring passages in opera history, while the beloved Huntsmen's Chorus and the justly famous overture have long stood on their own as concert staples. First performed in Berlin in 1821, the opera opened a path that Wagner and later German composers would follow for the rest of the century.
This full score reproduces the edition issued by C.F. Peters of Leipzig around 1900 (plate number 8449), part of the celebrated Edition Peters catalog that placed reliable, affordable scores in the hands of conductors, répétiteurs, and orchestral musicians throughout Europe. Peters editions of this era were prized for their clean engraving and practical layout, and copies from this print run circulated widely in opera houses and conservatories, making them a familiar working text for generations of musicians studying or preparing Weber's masterpiece.
About this edition:
- Full orchestral score, including vocal and choral parts
- Page size: 8.5 x 11 inches
- Reproduced from a historical public domain source
- Published by Purple 4R Publishing
Because this score's copyright has long since expired, we're able to bring this historical Peters edition back into print, making Weber's landmark opera newly accessible to musicians, students, and scholars who want a faithful, affordable copy for study or performance preparation.