Joan von Zarissa

Joan von Zarissa is Werner Egk’s take on the mythical libertine Don Juan. Unlike Mozart’s operatic figure, Egk makes Don Juan a courtier in 15th century Burgundy. During a jousting tournament, Joan antagonises the duke, kills him and takes his wife – but it is not long before he falls in love with the next woman. He soon tires of his new beloved and loses her to his court jester in a game of dice.

Joan’s actions do not, however, go unpunished. His old flames and the ghost of the duke pursue Joan in a wild, frenzied dance with a fatal end for the libertine. Egk’s colourful orchestration depicts the climate of a culture that is, in his own words, ‘hurrying to its downfall with pomp and decadence.’

In contrast, the composer intersperses three a cappella choruses in madrigal form between each act as a stringent juxtaposition. Egk’s depiction of Joan’s farewell incorporates strains of the dies irae and the tolling of bells. ‘Joan’s downfall […] is Christian, whereas his origins are heathen.’ (Werner Egk)