Work of the week

For the 500th anniversary of the year that priest and scholar Martin Luther made his new theses public there is no shortage of performances commemorating the Protestant Reformation. On 26 May, the Staatskapelle Weimar and Chor des Deutschen Nationaltheaters will perform Krzysztof Penderecki’s Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott at the Nationaltheater Weimar under the baton of Kirill Karabits. The title translates as “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” and is based on Luther’s hymn of the same name.

Composed in 2010 for mixed choir, brass, percussion and string orchestra, Penderecki’s Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott is a relatively short work that was written to mark the 1200th anniversary of the city Cieszyn in Poland, Penderecki’s native country. There is a tradition of composers setting Luther’s text and in the past Mendelssohn, Reger and Handel have all written works based on the hymn. One of the best known adaptations is J.S. Bach’s chorale cantata BWV 80, a work which Penderecki quotes in the final chord.

The orchestration of the work is carefully considered with no woodwind; instead the brass instruments are the focus of the piece and open the work. Initially the music is solemn but as more brass followed by percussion join, the music develops a strong, romantic and celebratory character, highlighting the festivity of the anniversary for which it was composed. Finally the strings and choir are added to start the hymn.

“I have spent decades searching for and discovering new sounds. At the same time, I have closely studied the forms, styles and harmonies of past eras. I have continued to adhere to both principles … my current creative output is a synthesis.” - Krzysztof Penderecki

Further performances take place at the Nationaltheater Weimar on 4 and 30 June.

• Krzysztof Penderecki - Profile


• Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott - Workdetails


• Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar

 

Photo: © Marek Beblot (Krzysztof Penderecki)

Thomas Larcher’s A Padmore Cycle for tenor and orchestra receives its German premiere at the Philharmonie im Gasteig, Munich, on 18 May performed by Mark Padmore (Photo) and Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks with conductor Mariss Jansons. Originally written for tenor and prepared piano in 2010-2011, Larcher orchestrated the work in 2014 for Padmore and the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Edward Gardner.



A Padmore Cycle consists of eleven songs on short but enigmatic texts by writers Alois Hotschnig and Hans Aschenwald. The poems are about the mountains and rural environment of Larcher’s native Tyrol, Austria, and more generally our changing relationship to nature. Larcher illuminates these fleeting images with fragile, transparent music laden with crystalline percussion.

Larcher’s A Padmore Cycle: A musical arc through the disparate texts

Despite the fragmentary nature of the short movements, a continuum is created with each song leading seamlessly on to the next. The vocal line remains true to the simplicity of the original poems and favours a pure sound with little experimentation in phrasing or syllables. This leaves space for the orchestra to reflect on the text after it has been sung. Though the orchestral version is melodically similar to the original piano version, Larcher considers this to be more than a mere transcription, but rather an enormous expansion of the piano’s soundworld.

Even while writing the original version for tenor and piano, I thought about the possibility of setting this piece for tenor and orchestra. I wanted to let the sound-world of the piano (the ‘reflections’) explode … just like projecting the thoughts and feelings of the inside of a human head on a very large screen, and thus sensing all the details and the dimensions of them. – Thomas Larcher

Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks will perform A Padmore Cycle on 18 and 19 May in Munich, and on 20 May in Hamburg. A new version of the work for tenor and piano trio will be premiered by Mark Padmore and Wiener Klaviertrio on 20 June in Vienna, with performances following throughout June in Ludwigsburg, London and Amsterdam.

• Thomas Larcher - Profile


• A Padmore Cycle - Workdetails


• Das Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks


• Philharmonie im Gasteig

 

Photo: © Marco Borggreve (Mark Padmore)

Peter Eötvös’ new orchestral work Alle vittime senza nome is a memorial for refugees from Middle Eastern and African countries who have drowned in the Mediterranean. It receives its world premiere on 8 May at Teatro alla Scala in Milan with the Filarmonica della Scala conducted by the composer.



The piece was co-commissioned by Italy’s four largest orchestras and in its three movements Eötvös reflects upon the current refugee crisis, in particular the thousands that have tried to escape war and persecution in boats, many of whom never reach their destination. It is to these “vittime senza nome” – nameless victims – that Eötvös dedicates his work. Whilst press coverage on the situation has vastly declined, Eötvös calls for a new media presence for the refugees, reminding us that the problem remains unsolved.

Eötvös’ Alle vittime senza nome: An intercultural requiem

The themes of Alle vittime senza nome might suggest it is a requiem, but Eötvös deliberately avoids this label out of respect for the different cultures and religions of those to whom he dedicates the work. The piece is musically diverse and aims to represent the instability of their journey and the sea. A full range of dynamics and orchestration possibilities are used, with quiet solos and wave-like figures growing into expressive tutti passages. Rhythm is central to the music, making it well-suited for the addition of choreography.

While working on this composition, I observed the poignant images: not only the faces of individuals, but also the incredibly dense mass of people crowded together on these vessels. The images are transformed in the composition into tender melodies played on solo instruments and dense masses of sound performed by the whole orchestra. – Peter Eötvös

Following the premiere, Alle vittime senza nome will be performed by the other commissioning orchestras next season: the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Orchestra Sinfonica dell’Opera di Firenze and the Orchestra Nazionale della RAI in Turin.

• Peter Eötvös - Profile 


• Alle vittime senza nome -  Workdetails 


• Filarmonica della Scala

 

Photo: © Klaus Rudolph (Peter Eötvös)

Karl-Birger Blomdahl’s opera Aniara opens on 6 May at Malmö Opera. The new production will be directed by Stefan Johannson and conducted by Tobias Ringborg with choreography by Patrik Sörling. This production is a true rarity: Aniara was last seen on stage in 1994 in Gothenburg.



On Earth, 8000 passengers board the spaceship Aniara. Most are refugees, hoping for a new life on Mars, away from their radiation-polluted planet. Aniara’s journey isn’t unusual – it’s just one of a thousands of ships that make the trip to Mars. But the ship deviates from its course after a collision leaving those on board to come to terms with the fact that they will be lost in space until their death.

Years pass and the hopelessness on the situation takes it toll on the passengers.  The building of cults, consumption of opium, human sacrifice and sexual perversion are part of everyday life. At the bleak 20th anniversary celebration of their voyage, everything changes when a blind poet declares that she has seen the city of heaven which will save them all.

Blomdahl’s Aniara: An opera as historical profile

Aniara was composed in 1957-1959 at a time when space travel was very much in the public conscience.  It is based on the epic poem of the same name by Harry Martinson which recounts the development and danger of atomic energy.

Musically the opera uses a variety of musical styles: chansons, mirrored forms, pluralism, choral polyphony, jazz, twelve-tone music – both in electronic and acoustic music. At the centre of the score lies a basic chord, which develops into a twelve-tone row.

Aniara is not an opera of people nor an opera of plot. Most accurately it could be called an “opera of situations”, a collective drama of mankind in the age of space. – Karl-Birger Blomdahl

After the opening night, Malmö Opera will present six further performances of Aniara throughout May and June.

• Karl-Birger Blomdahl - Profile 


• Aniara - Workdetails


• Malmö Opera

 

Photo: © Malmö Opera (Production of the Malmö Opera 2017)

The world premiere of Toshio Hosokawa’s Umarmung (Embrace) for organ and orchestra takes place on 27 April with organist Christian Schmitt, to whom the work is dedicated, Bamberger Symphoniker and conductor Jakub Hrůša. The work is a co-commission between Bamberger Symphoniker, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Wiener Konzerthaus and Kölner Philharmonie.



Hosokawa' unique musical language is a bridge between cultures, exploring the charged relationship between western avant-garde and Japanese tradition. Umarmung is shaped by the idea of Chi, the source of life. Everything is created and flows from the point where the two types of Chi, Yin and Yang, interact.

Hosokawa's Umarmung: Organ in focus

The solo organ line is shaped by high and low melodies that express the interaction between Yin and Yang. The melodies are then developed by different instruments in the orchestra representing nature and the universe, whilst the organ symbolises the human singing voice. During the piece, there is a moment of dissolution before the orchestra merges with the organ.

I see this coalescence as a metaphor for an embrace of two people, hence the title of the work. – Toshio Hosokawa

On 30 April, Bamberger Symphoniker will perform Umarmung again at the ACHT BRÜCKEN festival in Cologne. Further performances can be heard next season at the Philharmonie Luxembourg and Wiener Konzerthaus.

• Toshio Hosokawa - Profile


• Umarmung - Workdetails


• Bamberger Symphoniker


• Festival ACHT BRÜCKEN

 

Photo: © Michael Trippel (Christian Schmitt at the concert-organ of the Bamberger Symphoniker)

Chaya Czernowin’s new opera Infinite Now premieres on 18 April at Vlaamse Opera Ghent directed by Luk Perceval and with conductor Titus Engel. The opera is a co-production with the Nationaltheater Mannheim, Vlaamse Opera and IRCAM Paris.

Czernowin and Perceval worked together to construct the libretto based on a short story by Chinese writer Can Xue, Homecoming, and Perceval’s own play, Front, a dramatisation of the novel All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. Both texts enact a suspension: in Front, soldiers are in the trenches, locked in never-ending fighting. They move some kilometres forward only to return back to their former position. In Homecoming, a woman attempts to pass through a house along her journey but gradually realises that it is impossible to leave. The two seemingly distant worlds fuse in Infinite Now in a search for the will to continue and find hope in the simplest elements of life.

Czernowin’s Infinite Now: Existence here and now

Infinite Now revolves around repeating and growing structures. Each act begins with the sound of an iron gate, often hardly recognisable, and this is followed by an orchestral interlude before the singing starts. The six singers are separated into two trios; the first trio sings material from Front and is comprised of a soprano, alto and bass. The second trio takes on Homecoming with mezzo-soprano, counter-tenor and baritone. The alto and countertenor take the lead roles, and when singing together, they blend into a single androgynous voice.

The opera is about more than Homecoming or the First World War. It is about our existence here and now. How we survive, how we are destined to survive and how even the smallest element of vitality suggests survival and with it, perhaps hope. – Chaya Czernowin

Further performances of Infinite Now follow in Ghent on 20, 22 and 23 April, and in Antwerp on 30 April and 3, 5 and 6 May. The German premiere will take place on 26 April at the Nationaltheater Mannheim followed by the French premiere on 14 June at the Cité de la Musique in Paris.

• Chaya Czernowin - Profile


• Infinite now - Workdetails


• Opera Vlaanderen


• Nationaltheater Mannheim


• IRCAM Paris

 

Photo: Early Infinite Now sketches by composer Chaya Czernowin

The Symphonie "Mathis der Maler" (“Matthias the Painter”) was conceived whilst Paul Hindemith was working on his opera of the same name, and its musical material forms the opera’s orchestral interludes. The piece relates to German renaissance painter Matthias Grünewald and his masterpiece, the Isenheim Altarpiece. An essential work of the 20th century, the symphony will receive three performances over the Easter period by the Filharmonica della Scala and Daniele Gatti (10 April), Philharmonie des Nordharzer Städtebundes and Johannes Rieger (14 and 15 April), and Colorado Springs Philharmonic Orchestra and Thomas Wilson (15 April).



Each of Mathis der Maler’s three movements describes one tableau of the Isenheim Altarpiece. The first, Engelkonzert, corresponds to the opera’s overture and represents an angelic consort for Mary and the baby Jesus. The short second movement Grablegung is centred around the section of the Isenheim depicting Jesus being entombed after the crucifixion. The music here is gentle, countering the violence of the crucifixion. The final movement, Versuchung des Heiligen Antonius is based on Saint Anthony being tortured and led into temptation by demons and grotesque figures. The slow opening of this movement is interrupted by a sudden outburst from the percussion, leading to a fast ostinato section. Medieval song portrays the victory of Saint Anthony over his temptation, and leads back to the angelic consort of the first movement, which concludes the symphony.

 

Hindemith's Symphonie "Mathis der Maler": A sounding triptych

 

Symphonie "Mathis der Maler" marks the beginning of a change in style from Hindemith, who explores new timbres and uses more brass than in previous works. Despite this, he retains elements of his earlier neo-classical music language. Hindemith also incorporates German folk songs, such as Es sungen drei Engel ein’n süßen Gesang (“Three angels sang a sweet song”), which is used as a Cantus firmus. The folk songs are given new life within Hindemith’s music:

What the orchestra plays is not entirely newly created. Old folksongs, controversial songs from the Reformation period and Gregorian chant form the fertile ground for Mathis der Maler. – Paul Hindemith

Further performances of Symphonie "Mathis der Maler" in the coming weeks include those by the Badische Philharmonie Pforzheim on 30 April with conductor Markus Huber and Philharmonisches Orchester Cottbus with Ivo Hentschel on 12 and 14 May. Hindemith’s opera Mathis der Maler runs at Staatstheater Mainz until 7 May.

• Paul Hindemith - Profile


• Symphonie "Mathis der Maler" - Workdetails


• Filharmonica della Scala


• Philharmonie des Nordharzer Städtebundtheaters


• Colorado Springs Philharmony


• Badische Philharmonie Pforzheim


• Philharmonisches Orchester Cottbus


• Staatstheater Mainz

 

Photo: Jörgens.mi (CC BY-SA 3.0)

2019 marks the 100th anniversary of the fairytale opera Die Frau ohne Schatten (“The Woman without a Shadow”). A new production of this major work by the composer-librettist duo Richard Strauss and Hugo von Hofmannsthal will be presented at the Staatsoper Berlin, opening on 9 April directed by Claus Guth and conducted by Zubin Metha, and in co-production with Teatro alla Scala di Milano and the Royal Opera House. A separate new production at Staatsoper Hamburg follows just one week later, with director Andreas Kriegenburgs and conductor Kent Nagano.

The imperial couple at the centre of the story face a problem. The empress - originally from the spirit realm - is without a shadow (representing her inability to bear children) and must gain one within one year or be forced to return to the spirit world and see the emperor turned to stone. In the world of the common people, a dyer named Barak and his wife are also unhappy. Appearing in disguise, the empress’ nurse offers the wife a deal: wealth and beauty in exchange for her shadow and fertility. She agrees, but the empress is torn – she is worried for her husband, but also for the dyers whose lives she will endanger.

Barak’s wife confesses the deal to her husband, who, furious after seeing her without a shadow, attempts to kill her. The empress cannot bring herself to take the now available shadow, and so refuses, saving the dyers and seemingly dooming herself. However, her benevolence results in her gaining a shadow from the spirit world, and she and her husband are set free.

Two worlds, two couples, two conflicts

Die Frau ohne Schatten is considered one of Strauss’ most technically demanding operas. The symphony orchestra is extended to include organ, glass harmonica and percussion with a thunder and wind machine. The work is characterised by the leitmotif representing the empress, which uses the “pure” intervals of fourths, fifths and octaves to give it tonal ambiguity, leaving the music in limbo – just like the empress who is only half human.

Taking inspiration from Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Hofmannsthal created two contrasting couples and strong morals behind the story. His libretto was also shaped by current affairs, including the rise of psychoanalysis and the First World War. Strauss found Hofmannsthal’s text remarkable:

“Hofmannsthal has just left, and he presented a beautiful new subject, the finest of the fine, gallant, fantastic. You will be delighted” Richard Strauss to his wife Pauline Strauss-de Ahna

Die Frau ohne Schatten will be performed in Berlin on 13 and 16 April as part of the Festtage 2017, and in Hamburg from 16 April until 7 May.

• Richard Strauss - Profile


• Die Frau ohne Schatten - Workdetails


• Staatsoper im Schiller Theater Berlin


• Staatsoper Hamburg

Photo: Brescia/Amisano (Coproduction of the Teatro alla Scala di Milano 2012)

Fazil Say’s momentous Istanbul Symphony opens and closes with sounds of the sea. In between, Say creates a portrait of the city in seven contrasting movements. On 29 March, Say's Symphony can be heard in Stuttgart with the SWR Symphonieorchester and conductor Gregor Mayrhofer.



Istanbul Symphony’s seven movements are inspired by the seven hills that the city is built on, with each movement representing one aspect of life in Istanbul. The first movement, Nostalgia, illustrates historic Istanbul and recalls the 1453 Fall of Constantinople, where the Ottomans conquered the city. The following two movements, Religious Order and Sultanahmet Mosque, show different aspects of religion: whilst the second movement is critical of fanatism, radicalisation and the formation of cults, the third sheds a more positive light, embodying the titular Istanbul landmark.

Say’s Istanbul Symphony: A diverse portrait of a diverse city

Alongside the classical symphony orchestra, Say uses traditional Turkish instruments including the ney, kanun, kudüm, bendir and darbuk. Due to its programmatic nature, Istanbul Symphony could be described as a symphonic poem. In the fourth movement, Merrily clad young ladies aboard the ferry to the Princes' Islands, bursts from the tuba imitate a ship’s horn. The sixth movement begins with an improvisation wherein calmness gradually gives way to upbeat music for dancing, depicting a scene outside of the city. The finale represents modern Istanbul, a bustling metropolis with a population of 15 million. The very end of the piece revisits the old Istanbul, before returning to the sounds of the sea.

You cannot tell the story of Istanbul by using clusters, atonality or twelve-tone technique. Istanbul has to be told romantically or nostalgically. There is nothing of the Avant-garde in it but something new is still needed, I think, to cope with building this bridge from west to east. – Fazil Say

The SWR Symphonieorchester performs Istanbul Symphony again on 30 and 31 March, and further performances will be given by the Philharmonic Orchestra Bremerhaven on 3-5 April.

• Fazil Say - Profile


• Istanbul Symphony - Workdetails


• SWR Symphonieorchester


• Stadttheater Bremerhaven

 

Photo: Ben Morlok (CC by-sa 2.0)

Richard Ayres’ acclaimed chamber opera No. 39: The Cricket Recovers receives its Swiss premiere at Theater Basel on 22 March directed by Daniela Kranz with conductor Stephen Delaney. Premiered at the 2005 Aldeburgh Festival, it has since been presented throughout Europe by the likes of Staatsoper Stuttgart and the Holland Festival.



The Cricket Recovers is based on an award-winning collection of children’s stories by Dutch author Toon Tellgen, adapted by librettist Rozalie Hirs. The story presents an array of animal protagonists overcoming every day human struggles, with the orchestra depicting the surrounding forest.

 

Ayres’ The Cricket Recovers: Animal characters that are all too human

In The Cricket Recovers, Ayres transports us to an extraordinary forest where one morning, the eponymous cricket wakes up with a gloomy feeling in its head. The proceeding voyage of self-discovery to grapple with his depression with the help of his fellow animals is both entertaining and moving. The animals also help an elephant who can’t stop climbing trees. As the sun rises on a new day, the memories of the previous one vanish leaving only the wise owl wondering what sort of world she inhabits.

This is a story for adults and children alike, touching upon the realities of depression in a simple and beautifully direct way. Through its magical setting, very human emotions and desires are brought to light:

In this parallel territory, all sorts of attractive impossibilities become real. Moral absolutes matter: the distinction between good and bad is fundamental and ultimate retribution is always just. Time and the natural world are also magically flexible: one may live forever, or temporarily adopt other shapes; animals can talk, acquire neuroses, live heroically. – Christopher Fox (The Musical Times)

The Cricket Recovers will run at Theater Basel until 21 May. This summer, another of Ayres' theatrical works, the dramatic cantata In the Alps, will be presented in the UK by Aurora Orchestra with soprano Mary Bevan and conductor Nicholas Collon at St John's Smith Square, London on 3 June and at Symphony Hall, Birmingham on 4 June.

• Richard Ayres - Profile


• The Cricket Recovers - Workdetails


• Theater Basel


• Aurora Orchestra

 

Photo: Stefan Odry (Production of Staatstheater Braunschweig 2009)