Contemporary Opera Newsletter
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Leporello Contemporary Opera Newsletter Nr. 4 December 2011 World Première Performances In December 2011, four new operas, including two operas for children, will be staged for the first time, in Amsterdam, Dresden, Wroclaw and Malmö. Manfred Trojahn follows in the footsteps of Christoph Willibald Gluck, Richard Strauss and Vittorio Gnecchi, among others. For his fifth opera, Zygmunt Krauze adapts a 1982 play inspired by Franz Kafka’s life. Manfred Trojahn : Orest Miroslav Srnka : Jakub Flügelbunt Music theatre work in six scenes (75’) Musical fairy tale Libretto : by the composer. Libretto : by the composer based on a story by Maria Amsterdam, De Nederlandse Opera - Het Muziektheater Procházková December 8, 2011 Dresden, Semperoper December 15, 2011 with Hagen Matzeit, Markus Butter, Valda Wilson conductor : Tomáš Hanus director : Arne Walther with Dietrich Henschel, Rosemary Joshua, Sarah Castle, Johannes Chum, Romy Pietrick 3 singers including a counter-tenor for the 7 parts conductor : Marc Albrecht Orchestra : 5 woods, 7 brass, 3 perc., piano, harp, director : Katie Mitchell strings Orchestra including alto flute, English horn, The young bird Jakub, having overestimated his heckelphone, bass clarinet, contrabassoon, percussion abilities during his first attempts at flying, has suffered Cast : 6 singers an accident and is now unable to take to the air. But the wise owl teaches him that he possesses other This new version of the Atrides myth, Orestes is a qualities, and soon he wins the running event at the sufferer, a victim of persecution, who attempts to forest sports championships. emancipate himself from the power of the gods. more on p. 2 DVD (New acquisition) Unsuk Chin : Alice in Wonderland , Medici Arts, 2072418 with Sally Matthews, Piia Komsi, Dietrich Henschel, Andrew Watts, Guy de Mey. The world première production of Chin’s opera, based on the Lewis Carroll books. Kent Nagano conducts and Achim Freyer directs. Recorded in Munich in June 2007. more on p. 3 Leporello - Nr. 4 - December 2011 page 1 World Première Performances Zygmunt Krauze : The Trap Thomas Lindahl : Karlsson-on-the-Roof Opera in one act Opera in one act. Wroclaw, Opera Wrocławska Malmö, Opera December 17, 2011 December 17, 2011 Libretto : Grzegorz Jarzyna after Tadeusz Ró żewicz's Libretto : Mathias Clason, after Astrid Lindgren’s books drama for children Duration : 100 minutes Duration : 60 minutes Soloists, mixed chorus and orchestra including percussion, electric guitar, piano and accordion Conducted by Tomasz Szreder cast : 7 soloists Directed by Ewelina Pietrowiak Orchestra The Trap dramatizes anxieties and nightmares of the with Samuel Jarrick, Leif Aruhn-Solén, Hanna Husáhr, artist Franz as he himself experiences them in relation Carl Ackerfeldt, Karin Bäckström, Daniel Hällström to his father, his friend, and his fiancée. Conducted by Andreas Lönnquist Directed by Sally Palmquist Procopé Karlsson is a short mischievous man with a propeller on his back allowing him to fly. He gets his neighbors in trouble, but in the end, everyone appreciate his sense of humour, energy and good nature. In my collection Below are listed parts of my collection. There will be more in the next issues. 1) Program books : - John Adams : Doctor Atomic , Amsterdam, June 10, 2007 - Lera Auerbach : Gogol , Vienna, November 15, 2011 - Luke Bedford : Seven Angels , Birmingham, June 17, 2011 - Harrison Birtwistle : The Minotaur , London, April 15, 2008 - William Bolcom : A View From The Bridge , Roma, January 18, 2011 - Luc Brewaeys : L’uomo dal fiore in bocca , Brussels, February 9, 2007 - Johanna Doderer : Papageno, eine Ausflucht , Vienna, November 4, 2011 - Samu Gryllus : Blaubarts , Vienna, November 4, 2011 - Georg Friedrich Haas : Melancholia , Paris, June 9, 2008 - Micha Hamel : Snow White , Enschede, January 19, 2008 - René Koering : Scènes de chasse , Montpellier, March 7, 2008 - Nico Muhly : Dark Sisters , New York, November 9, 2011 - Emmanuel Nunes : Das Märchen , Lisbon, January 25, 2008 - Marcela Rodriguez : Las Cartas de Frida , Heidelberg, October 26, 2011 - Peter Ruzicka : Hölderlin , Berlin, November 16, 2008 - Howard Shore : The Fly , Paris, July 2, 2008 - Elzbieta Sikora : Madame Curie , Paris, November 15, 2011 - Karmella Tsepolenko : Heute Abend Boris Godunow , Vienna, November 4, 2011 - Gerhard Wimberger : Heinrich und Kleist , Frankfurt (Oder), November 4, 2011 Leporello - Nr. 4 - December 2011 page 2 2) Libretti : - Thomas Adès / Meredith Oakes : The Tempest , London : Faber Music, 2004, 48 p. - Harrison Birtwistle / David Harsent : The Minotaur , London : Boosey & Hawkes, 2008, 64 p. - William Bolcom / Arnold Weinstein and Arthur Miller : A View From The Bridge , New York : Edward B. Marks, 2002, 70 p. - Lorin Maazel / J. D. McClatchy and Thomas Meehan : 1984 , London : McClatchy and Meehan, 2005, 70 p. - Nicholas Maw : Sophie’s Choice , London : Faber Music, 2002, 48 p. - Tan Dun / Ha Jin : The First Emperor , New York : G. Schirmer, 2006, 47 p. 3) DVD : Hans Werner Henze : Boulevard Solitude , EuroArts, 2056358 with Laura Aikin, Pär Lindskog, Tom Fox, Hubert Delamboye. This version of the Manon Lescaut story was premiered in Hanover in 1952. Zoltán Peskó conducts and Nikolaus Lehnhoff directs. Recorded in Barcelona in March 2007. Tan Dun : The First Emperor , EMI Classics, 50999 2 15129 9 5 with Plácido Domingo, Michelle DeYoung, Wu Hsing-Kuo, Elizabeth Futral. Centers on the first emperor of China, brutal rule known for unifying the country and building the Great Wall. Tan Dun conducts and Zhang Yimou directs. Recorded at the Met in January 2007, shortly after the world première. 4) CD : John Adams : A Flowering Tree , Nonesuch, 7559-79965-1 with Jessica Rivera, Russell Thomas, Eric Owens. First performed in Vienna on November 14, 2006. The libretto is based on a folktale from the Kannada language of southern India. Recorded in London in August 2007. Conducted by the composer. Thomas Adès : The Tempest , EMI Classics, 6 95234 2 with Simon Keenlyside, Cyndia Sieden, Ian Bostridge, Kate Royal, Toby Spence First performed in London on February 10, 2004. The libretto is adapted from Shakespeare’s play by Meredith Oakes. Recorded in London in March 2007. Conducted by the composer. David Carlson : Anna Karenina , Signum Classics, SIGCD154 with Kelly Kaduce, Christine Abraham, Brandon Jovanovich, Josepha Gayer First performed in Miami on April 28, 2007. Based on Tolstoy’s novel, it focuses on Anna’s tumultuous relationship with her husband and her lover. Recorded in St. Louis in June 2007. Conducted by Stewart Robertson. Jonathan Dove : Siren Song , Chandos, CHAN 10472 with Brad Cooper, Mattijs van de Woerd, Amaryllis Dieltiens, Mark Omvlee First performed in London on July 14, 1994. Based on the book by Gordon Honeycombe, it is about the longing for love and the susceptibility to deception. Recorded in Amsterdam in August 2007. Conducted by Henk Guittart. Lee Hoiby : Summer and Smoke , Albany, Troy 1272/73 with Anna Viemeister, Nickoli Strommer, Audean Farmer, Robert E. Mellon and Claire Coolen. First performed in St. Paul in 1971, it centers on the spiritual/sexual romance between an unmarried minister's daughter, and the young doctor who grew up next door. Recorded in 2010 in New York. Conducted by Steven Osgood. Benoît Mernier : Frühlings Erwachen , Cypres, CYP4628 with Kerstin Avemo, Thomas Blondelle, Nikolay Borchev, Gaële Le Roi First performed in Brussels on March 9, 2007. Based on the play by Frank Wedekind, it speaks of the freedom of bodies and of discovery through sexual experience. Recorded in Brussels in March 2007. Conducted by Jonas Alber Leporello - Nr. 4 - December 2011 page 3 Thomas Pasatieri : Frau Margot , Albany, Troy 965/966 with Lauren Flanigan, Patricia Risley, Morgan Smith, Allan Glassman, Daniel Okulitch. First performed in Fort Worth, on June 2, 2007. It is based on an incident involving the young Leonard Bernstein and the eccentric widow of composer Alban Berg. Recorded live in Fort Worth in June 2007. Conducted by Joseph Illick. Thomas Pasatieri : God Bless Us, Every One ! , Albany, Troy 1265 with Marc Embree, Catherine Clarke Nardolillo, Jonathan Hare, Willy Falk. First performed in New York in December 2010. Based on Charles Dickens, the opera tells the tale of Tiny Tim Cratchit in Civil War America. Recorded in New York in December 2010. Conducted by John Nardolillo. Thomas Pasatieri : The Hotel Casablanca , Albany, Troy 1005 with Darla Diltz, Brandy Lynn Hawkins, David Baker, Natalie Krupansky, Eric Brown. First performed in San Francisco on August 3, 2007. Based on the Feydeau farce A Flea in her Ear , it is set on a wealthy ranch in Texas, 1948. Recorded in Lexington in October 2007. Conducted by John Nardolillo. Aribert Reimann : Melusine , Wergo, WER 6719 2 with Marlene Mild, Teresa Erbe, Gabriele May, Richard Kindley, Song-Hu Liu First performed in Schwetzingen on April 29, 1971. Based on a 1920s play by Ivan Goll, the libretto gives a modern twist to the fable of the half-fish, half-human mermaid. Recorded live in Nürnberg on May 12, 2007. Conducted by Peter Hirsch. Christopher Theofanidis : The Refuge , Albany, Troy 1024/25 with Albina Shagimuratova, Rebekah Camm, Beau Gibson, Liam Bonner First performed in Houston on November 10, 2007. Based on the immigrants’ own words, it tells the journey stories of immigrants to Houston. Live recording of the first performance. Conducted by Patrick Summers. Scott Wheeler : The Construction of Boston , Naxos, 8.669018 with William Hite, Charles Blandy, Marcus