Musicology Annotation << Back The Musical Theatre of Ecuador in the 19th and 20th Centuries: Towards the Creation of a National Opera Diego Fernando Carrion Granda Batagova Tatiana This article examines the formation and development of Ecuadorian opera. It examines the development of national academic art in Ecuador, beginning with the Spanish conquest of the territory in the early 16th century and continuing through the historical processes of the conquest and Christianization. It is emphasized that the spiritual conquest was accompanied by the construction of temples, educational institutions, and the teaching of crafts, arts, and music. The connection between the initial stage of development of professional musical art in Ecuador and the education of mestizos, Indians, and Creoles in Christian monasteries, churches, and schools, including the San Andrés School of Arts and Crafts (Colegio de San Andrés), founded in 1555 in Quito by the Franciscans, is noted. The interaction between European and indigenous musical traditions is analyzed in the works of Ecuadorian musicians. With the establishment of the independent state of Ecuador in the 19th century, the development of musical culture received additional impetus. Alongside touring Spanish and Italian musical troupes, by the turn of the 20th century, national troupes emerged, producing zarzuelas, melodramas, and even operas. Ecuadorian composers whose work dates back to the first half of the 20th century – F. Salgado Ayala, S.L. Moreno, P.P. Traversari, S.M. Duran – paved the way for the creation of the fi rst national opera, which became L.U. Salgado’s “Cumanda.”. Keywords: Ecuadorian musical culture, Ecuadorian academic music, musical theater, and Ecuadorian national opera. DOI: 10.25791/musicology.7.2026.1498 Pp. 37-44.