The 19th century saw a tremendous development of the opera tic repertoire. There was an appetite for new pieces throughout the period, and this creative surge produced the core works of the modern repertoire. Nearly all the operas in performance in 1900 were less than 100 years old, and in the early part of the 20th century, composers struggled to add contemporary masterpieces to those of the past. In the latter part of the century, the impulse has been to return...