By 1817, the 20-year-old Franz Schubert was eager to reach further fame through opera. In an attempt to demonstrate his potential and encouraged by the success of the overtures by Rossini, he would compose two operatic overtures ‘In the Italian style’ (D.590 and D.591) and presented them to theatres around Vienna to gauge their reception. The first overture of the pair, D.590 (published in 1886) was a success, and Schubert employed fragments from it in posterior pieces.
Belgium arranger Yorick De Bruycker transcribed this ‘Overture in the Italian Style’ for Symphonic Band.