We come to the River – Wir erreichen den Fluss

The stage is divided into three performance areas (stages I-III) and each of the three orchestral groups is assigned to one of these areas. The 11 scenes of the action which takes place in an imaginary empire are played on all three levels. The possible doubling of roles within the ensemble is precisely indicated in the score; the percussion will be played by the “Drummer” or the “Wahnsinnige 10” and is an element of the stage set. As well as structuring the various strands of the plot, the three stages have an additional musical-dramatic function: Stage I is defined by Henze as a level of reflection, a place of both genuine and false sympathy, to which a more intimate group of instruments is assigned. Stage II is the principal level of action and creates a tonally neutral and austere atmosphere with the instruments of a symphony orchestra. Stage III is the location for social events and violence in all its public and formal manifestations; Henze has compiled the instrumental group allotted to this level to produce a harsh tonal image. 
1. At headquarters – guardroom, General’s tent, canteen 
An uprising against the empire has been quashed. The General reports the triumph to the Emperor: he has no interest in the 20,000 dead and wounded. He recommends the deployment of a strict Governor to rule the defeated province. Soldiers taunt one of their battle-weary colleagues. Four soldiers form a task force. 
2. Court martial – the General’s tent
The task force bring a deserter before court who is in such a state of shock that he cannot explain why he deserted his post. He is sentenced to death and led away. 
3. Guardroom – social quarters, General’s tent 
While the deserter is attempting to explain his motives to the guards, the high society celebrates victory with a reception for the General. The Doctor takes him aside and informs him that the long-term effects of an old injury will irrevocably lead to progressive blindness.
4. Battlefield – guardroom, parade-ground 
This information opens the General’s eyes; while on the battlefield surveying the innumerable dead and wounded soldiers, he recognises the horror which he and his troops have perpetrated. A young woman and older woman are examining the corpses; the young woman tells the General of the horrors of war; she thinks she can recognise her husband among the dead, but at this moment he is just being led to his execution as a deserter. A military band signals the arrival of the new Governor.
5. The Governor – ceremonial stand
 During the military parade the Governor observes that the General, tormented by the scenes he has just witnessed, turns away and leaves the parade. 
6. On the battlefield 
He is followed to the battlefield; here the General has re-encountered the young woman and advises her to entrust her child to the older woman. The Governor orders the young woman to be shot for looting. The General who pleads for mercy on her part is arrested and taken to a mental asylum. 
7. The river 
The old woman attempts to cross the river with the child. The General who is just being led past them is forced to witness the shooting of the woman and child by the soldiers without being able to intervene. 
8. Garden in the mental asylum 
The General sits amongst lunatics who relate terrible tales from legends and historical events; they are building an imaginary boat which will take them across an imaginary river to freedom. The 2nd soldier utilises a trick to gain access to the asylum in civilian clothes; he pleads to the General to lead a revolt against the Emperor. He is however forced to leave without having achieved anything, as subsequently also the Governor who brings the greetings of the Emperor and his plea for support from the General in the civil war which has just broken out. The General protests against further bloodshed. 
9. The murder – government office, gateway outside the conference room, room in the slums 
The Governor reports to the ministry of his fruitless visit of the General. When he leaves the conference room, he is shot by the 2nd soldier who has been waiting for him at the gateway. The soldier subsequently walks home and encounters his frightened wife. 
10. The emperor’s court 
Picnic on the river bank. The Emperor has been informed that the Governor had been shot by the 2nd soldier who had previously visited the General. He orders the General to be blinded. 
11. Mental asylum 
The Doctor reports to the General that the 2nd soldier has killed the Governor and then killed himself and the members of his family before the followers of the Emperor were able to seize them. In reaction to these new terrible events, the General wants to blind himself, but is tied up in a straitjacket. He is blinded by two murderers sent by the Emperor. Now the General sees in his inward eye all the victims of war who stand and accuse him. The lunatics are afraid of the disfigured General; they consider him to be a spy who is a danger to themselves and their boat and the island to which they intend to flee. They smother him under large sheets, imagining that these represent the water of the river. 

" My compositional activity during the ten-year span between the Bassarids and We come to the River has been a continual process, away from the hedonistic world of the Bacchae and Maenades and towards the contemporary figures, murderers and victims of the new work. This was a path strewn with obstacles, both artistic and moralistic. It was for me a time of study and practising and works such as El Cimarrón, Natascha Ungeheuer and La Cubana must be regarded as preparatory stages. During this period, my music gained in clarity and assertiveness and became more the receptacle for messages and precisely defined content. […] The composition of the texts and scenes of We come to the River represented a learning process and in fact the essence of composition is always a process of learning: realisation, comprehension, and examination. The description of this particular learning process however must inevitably also focus on the powerful forces existing in our world: the moral conflicts of individuals and of the suffering and destitution of the suppressed and exploited. The figures of power, the militia and purveyors of violence are the people we meet on the street, in hotel lobbies and watch on TV news reports. The violability and vulnerability of the weak and poor will be transformed into strength to form a new power which will change the world."