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Étienne Méhul: La Légende de Joseph en Egypte
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10 works of classical music inspired by the Old Testament
4. Étienne Méhul: La Légende de Joseph en Egypte
After Napoleon's expedition to Egypt in 1798, all of France was intrigued by this ancient land and its stories. Méhul’s opera was a critical success and in 1810 it was awarded a prize for the best piece staged by the Opéra-Comique in the previous decade. It was rarely staged however until there was a new French production in Paris to mark the bicentenary of the French Revolution in 1989.
