About the work
Zigeunerliebe (Gipsy Love) is a romantic operetta in three scenes with music by Franz Lehár and a libretto by Alfred Maria Willner and Robert Bodanzky. Written alongside "The Count of Luxembourg," it premiered on 8 January 1910 at the Carltheater in Vienna.
Plot
Zorika is about to become engaged to the steady Jonel but feels drawn to the passionate violinist Józsi. Following an old folk custom, she drinks water from the river Czerna to glimpse her future and dreams of a life at Józsi's side. On waking, she recognizes her true feelings and commits to Jonel after all.
Cultural significance
Lehár drew on Hungarian colour, csárdás rhythms and cimbalom sound for one of his musically richest scores; musicologists count it among his most inventive works. In 1943 he reworked the material as an opera titled "Garabonciás" for the Budapest State Opera.