October 6 — On This Day in Opera

First performance of Jacopo Peri’s "Euridice" in Florence, often cited as the earliest surviving opera, performed for the Medici wedding.

Jacques Offenbach's opéra bouffe "La Périchole", with a libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, received its first performance in its original two-act version at the Théâtre des Variétés in Paris.

Alberto Franchetti's "Cristoforo Colombo", with a libretto by Luigi Illica, received its world premiere at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa as part of the celebrations marking the 400th anniversary of Columbus's voyage.

Benjamin Britten's "The Turn of the Screw" received its British premiere by Sadler's Wells Opera in London, only weeks after its world premiere in Venice.

Alexander Zemlinsky's unfinished final opera "Der König Kandaules", completed and orchestrated by Antony Beaumont, received its world premiere in Hamburg.

Italian opera composer Antonio Sacchini died in Paris; his final major work, "Œdipe à Colone", was subsequently acclaimed as his masterpiece and remained in the Paris Opéra repertory for decades.

Moravian-born soprano Maria Jeritza was born in Brno; she became a major star of the Vienna State Opera and Metropolitan Opera and created leading roles in Richard Strauss's "Ariadne auf Naxos" and "Die Frau ohne Schatten".

Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé died in Barcelona; renowned for her bel canto technique, she was especially celebrated in operas by Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti and Verdi.