Ubiquitous Desire the Salzburg Festival from 20Th July to 30Th August Features Works of Passion and Ecstasy
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11. 5. 2018 Spezial Salzburger Festspiele Ubiquitous Desire The Salzburg Festival from 20th July to 30th August features works of passion and ecstasy. Spezial Salzburger Festspiele Cover. Sonya Yoncheva, Foto: Sony Classical/ Kristian Schuller Preface estivals may have been invented to pre- interesting of these Festival novelties years and vent us from losing sight of the larger decades after their world premieres and to picture. The immensely rich heritage of ascertain what they, brand-new in the 1950s or F our culture, which the founding fathers 1960s, still have to say to us. of the Salzburg Festival, Max Reinhardt, Hugo von Hofmannsthal and their associates, left us to Thus, the Salzburg summers have long featured foster and cultivate, seems to have multiplied in Mozart next to Richard Strauss, classics of Greek a wondrous way, especially where it has been antiquity next to contemporary drama. In this thoroughly explored. Any survey of this cultural spirit, the 2018 programme juxtaposes a for- heritage which pays attention not only to its merly controversial author such as Knut Ham- main highways, but also to byways and detours, sun with Kleist and Aeschylus, and mixes ‘Die enriches the canon of repertoire. Zauberflöte’ and ‘Salome’ with the Russian high romanticism of Tchaikovsky and pieces premie- And anyone reviewing the achievements of ear- red in Salzburg in 1953 – by Gottfried von Einem lier generations in this field will find many a title – and in 1966 – by Hans Werner Henze. In this in the Salzburg Festival’s archived programmes spirit, the tradition-steeped major symphonic meriting renewed attention and discussion. In concerts and summit meetings of the foremost 2020 we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the interpreters of chamber music are complemen- Salzburg Festival. In the spirit of comprehensive ted by series focusing on Galina Ustvolskaya and preparation for this anniversary, last year Artis- Beat Furrer. The palette has never been so rich tic Director Markus Hinterhäuser already began and diverse, the challenges to artists and examining the Festival’s history. After all, many audience never greater. Ladies and gentlemen, leading poets and composers wrote and compo- we give you – the Salzburg Festival. sed especially for Salzburg. One of the pro- grammer’s noblest tasks is to revisit the most Wilhelm Sinkovicz Imprint Media Owner, Editorial Office and Publisher: „Die Presse“ Verlags-Ges.m.b.H. & Co KG, Hainburger Straße 33,1030 Wien, Austria Tel.: +43 1/514 14-ext. Publisher and Chief Editor: Rainer Nowak. Managing Directors: Mag. Herwig Langanger, Dr. Rudolf Schwarz. Staff for this publication: Barbara Petsch, Dr. Wilhelm Sinkovicz, Mag. Walter Weidringer, Mag. Daniela Tomasovsky, Mag. Norbert Mayer, Mag. Ann-Catherine Simon, Dr. Walter Dobner, Mag. Günther Haller. Art Direction: Matthias Eberhart. Production/Layout: Patricia Varga, Christian Stutzig, Alexander Schindler. Coordination: Mag. Astrid Müllner. Advertising: „Die Presse“ Verlags-Ges.m.b.H. & Co KG, Advertising Department, Tel. +43 1/514 14-535, Email: [email protected]. Printed by: Druck Styria GmbH & Co KG, Styriastraße 20, 8042 Graz, Austria. A special supplement published by the „Presse“ Verlags GmbH & Co KG in cooperation with the Salzburg Festival, financially supported by Rolex S.A. 4 Kultur spezial Content 8 6 12 Markus Hinterhäuser. The Salzburg Literary Operas. When Oscar Wilde, Helga Rabl-Stadler. The Festival’s Festival’s Artistic Director on Pushkin or Franz Kafka become President on the past, present emotion, passion, obsession. unwitting opera librettists. and future. 14 20 22 24 Opera Directors. Four formidable Cecilia Bartoli. The mezzo-soprano Queen of Spades. Star director Doublings. Bettina Hering stage directors make their opera sings her first Isabella in Rossini’s Hans Neuenfels discusses love with presents extraordinary dramatic debuts at the Festival. ‘L’Italiana in Algeri’. the theatre critic Barbara Petsch. pairings. 28 30 32 Ancient Tales. The Bacchae, Poppea, Hunger. Knut Hamsun’s Literature. From Euripides to Salome – antiquity as inspiration for coming-of-age novel of an artist Grossman: the works behind the musical theatre. is staged by Frank Castorf. current pieces. 36 38 42 44 Heartfelt Passion. The ‘Ouverture Beat Furrer. Dramas of listening, Guest Appearances. Concert Director Song Recitals. Jonas Kaufmann, Plá- spirituelle’ is dedicated to passion and thus of life, fascinate in ‘Time Florian Wiegand brings the world’s cido Domingo and Rolando Villazón this year. with Furrer’. leading orchestras and conductors. dedicate themselves to art song. Fotos: Getty Images; Rolex/Hugo Glendinning, Benoit Peverelli; Salzburger Festspiele/Leo Neumayr, Lydia Gorges, Sandra Then, Monika Rittershaus, Wildbild, Julia Wesely, Wesely, Wildbild, Julia Rittershaus, Then, Monika Sandra Gorges, Lydia Neumayr, Festspiele/Leo Salzburger Glendinning, Benoit Peverelli; Getty Rolex/Hugo Images; Fotos: Furrer; David Press; Heerde/Action Picturedesk.com/David William Minke, Borelli; Marco Borggreve, Marco Kultur spezial 5 “A ‘Salome’ without a drop of blood – that’s amazing!” Festival Artistic Director Markus Hinterhäuser about power without a system and art as the geography of our existence. Interview: Anne-Catherine Simon, Translation: David Tushingham Neumayr Festspiele/Leo Salzburger Foto: 6 Kultur spezial Markus Hinterhäuser: “We have to question works over and over again.” The festival programme is held together by a common thread. extreme tensions that are present. Though Mozart’s utopia has How do you manage to find that? nothing at all to do with rendering anything harmless. It’s much The density and heterogeneity of the events that make up the fes- more connected to what the English call the “Age of Enlighten- tival give it a highly individual dimension with the widest range of ment”: the theme that writer and historian Philipp Blom will talk expectations and needs. This vast system also has to be organi- about in his opening address to this year’s festival. zed in terms of communication – for which you have to think very To what do extent do you think that the effectiveness of art is precisely. What does it mean when we produce six operas, when due to its direct contemporary nature? we do 90 concerts, when we’ve got five theatre premieres, and all I don’t think simplistic contemporary equivalents do any good at kinds of additional events and a dozen venues? How do you bring all. What image will a director find for the moment in ‘Salome’ all that together? I see this as another artistic task and for me art when Jochanaan’s head is brought in? A moment that to this day is impossible without form. Other people might be able to leave and perhaps especially today remains incomparably shocking. If things to chance but not me. And I also have to know why I’m the director of ‘Salome’, Romeo Castellucci, now says: I’d like to doing something. If I haven’t sorted out the why for myself then I make a Salome without a drop of blood – then I think that’s abso- can’t find an answer to the question of how. The essential, most lutely amazing because then he avoids everything overt. The enduring artistic expressions form the geography of our exis- great ideas in art don’t fit simplistic contemporary references, tence and can always be seen in a broader context. Nothing though a revival that is purely backward-looking isn’t going to do comes from nothing. anything for me either. It is an undertaking whose aim I would Strategies of Power was the theme in 2017, this year it is Pas- find too modest. I firmly believe that we have to question great sion. That’s not so far away from 2017, where Shostakovich’s works over and over again, we have to investigate them for what ‘Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk’ and Wedekind’s ‘Lulu’ for example we now find essential. The breath and vitality of great art comes were also about power in relationships, the “battle of the sexes” from this constant new scrutiny. Ultimately it is about something you could might it… that Flaubert described as ‘L’Éducation Sentimentale’, educating 2017 was about strategies of power, the mecha- our hearts. nics of power, excesses of power. If you are Greek tragedy is very prominent in both the going to engage with that theme then you also “Ultimately it is opera and theatre programmes, either directly have to think about power systems. But there such as with ‘The Persians’ and also through are also forms of power that don’t belong in any about educating our artists such as Kleist or Henze, who were inspi- system, that are much harder to control or to red by ancient dramatists. Did your interest in tame, that are tied to emotion, passion and hearts.” them come in a roundabout way through the obsession, to things that are uncontrollable. music? Richard Strauss’ ‘Salome’ is the story of an No, it’s something I’ve been interested in for a obsession that goes to the very boundaries of what is acceptable. long time. Perhaps it’s connected to the fact that I’m increasingly Tchaikovsky’s ‘Queen of Spades’ is ultimately another story of attracted to art as a continuum. Of course there are breaks, crises, destructive submission and Hans Werner Henze’s ‘The Bassarids’ but still – it’s possible to arrange works from Euripides to Heiner tells of nothing less than the victory of the irrational over reason, Müller in an intellectual choreography. one might also call it hedonism’s conquest of power. Montever- The Salzburg Festival has a number of initiatives for young di’s ‘Poppea’, too, as Harnoncourt already pointed out, is a deeply audiences, however, it is obvious that these are a minority in amoral story. Salzburg. Does this issue concern you, one which is also con- In 2017 Mozart had delivered a positive work that contrasted nected to the sustainability of the festival as an institution? with all the impositions of power: ‘La clemenza di Tito’ celebra- What we have to do in order to open Salzburg up to new audien- tes forgiveness.