Avantasia is Edguy frontman Tobias Sammet's side project. He says: "In my humble opinion, Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose is the perfect overture to the 70-minute journey which the full album is going to be.

"Although Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose is a rather short composition compared to most other Avantasia songs, I wanted to embellish and amplify it with flamboyance and all Avantasia trademarks.

"I wanted to make it a detailed piece of fantasy art, but at the same time it was a big challenge to make that painting look inherently consistant if you view it from the distance. The layered choirs took us forever to record and yet nothing distracts from the main theme and flow of the song. Every time you give it a listen, you will discover something else going on.

"I have a feeling that I have never managed to create such an epic and dreamy atmosphere in just four minutes. I've gotta admit I am slightly proud of it."