German musical composer, born at Siegburg, in the Rhine Province, and studied under F. Hiller at Cologne, and F. Lachner and J. Rheinberger at Munich. In 1879, by means of a scholarship, he went to Italy, where he met Wagner at Naples; and on the latter’s invitation he went to Bayreuth and helped to produce Parsifal there next year. He travelled for the next few years in Italy and Spain but in 1890 became a professor at Frankfort, where he remained till 1896. In 1900 he became the head of a school in Berlin. His fame as a composer was made by his charming children’s opera Hänsel und Gretel in 1893, founded very largely (like his later operas) on folk-tunes; but his works also include other forms of music, in all of which his mastery of technique is apparent. He produced in 1897 the opera Königskinder, which, with some later additions, became very popular. Another opera, Die Heirat wider Willen, appeared at Berlin in 1903, and in 1912 Humperdinck produced the incidental music for the English production of The Miracle, himself coming to England to superintend the rehearsals. His last opera, Die Marketenderin, was played at Cologne in 1914. He died at Neu Strelitz on the 27th of September 1921.
