Work of the Week - Hans Werner Henze: The Bassarids

What triumphs over us humans: libidinous intoxication or disciplined reason? Who wins over the people: Dionysos, god of collective inebriation and lord of the Bassarids or Pentheus, King of Thebes, a man of ice-cold rationality? Euripides exemplarily formulated these questions as the fundamental conflicts facing humanity 2,500 years ago in the "Bacchæ" – and it has remained totally up-to-date right to the present day. Hans Werner Henze's The Bassarids derives from this material. One of the most significant and monumental operatic works of the 20th century. The Bassarids: one of the absolute classics of the contemporary modern repertoire. (World première: 1966) with gigantic orchestral forces and the heaviest demands placed on the chorus and soloists. Now, finally available for rediscovery in Munich. The opening night takes place on 19 May at the Bavarian State Opera.