July 13 — On This Day in Opera

First performance of Antonio Cesti’s opera "Il pomo d’oro" (‘The Golden Apple’) at the Imperial Court Theatre in Vienna, composed for the wedding celebrations of Emperor Leopold I.

Birth of German tenor Karl Erb in Ravensburg, who became a prominent Wagnerian and concert singer.

Italian composer and librettist Cesare Sterbini, best known as the librettist of Rossini's "Il barbiere di Siviglia", died in Rome.

Jacques Offenbach, composer of operas including "Les Contes d'Hoffmann" and "Orphée aux enfers", was born in Cologne.

American operatic soprano Margaret Harshaw was born in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Birth of German mezzo-soprano Irene Ziegler in Munich, noted for her performances in German and Austrian opera houses.

Birth of Italian tenor Carlo Bergonzi in Vidalenzo, Parma, who gained international fame for his interpretations of Verdi at the Metropolitan Opera.

Composer Arnold Schoenberg, whose stage works include "Erwartung" and "Moses und Aron", died in Los Angeles.

Philip Glass's opera "The Making of the Representative for Planet 8" received its world premiere at the Houston Grand Opera.

World premiere of Damien Geter and Lila Palmer’s opera "American Apollo" at Des Moines Metro Opera.