Offenbach was also well-liked in England, and prompted the birth of a rich tradition of English operetta. This was led by the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842-1900), with his partner William Gilbert (1836-1911), who wrote the words. Gilbert and Sullivan wrote 14 brilliant comedy operettas, such as HMS Pinafore (1878), Iolanthe (1882) and also the Mikado (1885). These had been strongly influenced by the music of Italian comedy operas, but also drew on the tradition of well-liked British music hall.

Operetta lost popularity in Europe during the early 20th century, but took root within the USA, where Gilbert and Sullivan had been much appreciated. The USA then produced its own operetta composers, for example Sigmund Romberg (1887-1951), who was educated in Vienna at the height from the European operetta craze. Among Romberg’s finest functions are The Student Prince (1924) and also the Desert Song (1926).

Musicals

The large popularity of jazz within the I920s, and the arrival of recording, brought a change in musical taste. Operas and operettas were replaced by blockbusting musicals, most of which came from the USA. One of the most successful composers of musicals was George Gershwin (1898-1937), with works such as Lady, Be Good (1924) and Funny Face (1927). But he also had ambitions to compose serious music, and later wrote a magnificent jazz opera, Porgy and Bess (1935).

Stage and screen musicals, however, continued to interest the public more than opera and operetta. The dividing line between these forms is occasionally difficult to define. This is particularly true of 20thcentury musicals performed by artists who could just as well sing significant opera, such as the tenor Mario Lanza (1921-59). Some works are considered too inspired to be described as musicals, yet not significant enough to be called operas. Among these are Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe’s My Fair Lady (1956) and Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story (1958). But usually, modern audiences prefer the ealism of cinema to the artificial sentimentality of operetta.