Sir Simon Rattle will be conducting Arnold Schönberg’s Gurre-Lieder on 19 August at the Royal Albert Hall.
Schönberg worked on his Gurre-Lieder 1900-1911, a period in which he left the work’s style far behind. For him its completion represented the documentation of a compositional style and spiritual attitude no longer his own. At its 1913 première in the Vienna Musikverein the piece enjoyed overwhelming success; Schönberg’s pupil Webern wrote: What a moment of my life! Unforgettable. The sensation of this tumultuous noise thrills me to the point where I swoon.
Kent Nagano conducts Arnold Schönberg’s Gurre-Lieder tonight at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. Schönberg worked on his Gurre-Lieder from 1900-1911, a period in which he left the work’s style far behind. For him its completion represented the documentation of a compositional style and spiritual attitude no longer his own.
Still, at its 1913 première in the Vienna Musikverein the piece enjoyed overwhelming success; Schönberg’s pupil Anton Webern wrote: “What a moment of my life! Unforgettable… The sensation of this tumultuous noise thrills me to the point where I swoon …”
ONE WHO IS STRUGGLING
In defiance of old wisdom – spoken,
Written and seen for myself –
All of which seemed banal to me,
I innocently sought happiness.
When it was denied me,
I strove for ‘painlessness’ through renunciation
Which also failed. (Arnold Schönberg, Die Jakobsleiter)
Tomorrow, on 12 May, Arnold Schönberg’s fragmentary oratorio Die Jakobsleiter will be performed by the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra (cond. Alexander Liebreich) in Katowice.
Surely there’s an irony in the fact that some of the sweetest love music ever written was penned by the man blamed for the collapse of romanticism. (Kate Molleson, The Guardian, 29 August 2016)
The grand finale of the Edinburgh International Festival’s Usher Hall concerts: on 28 August Donald Runnicles conducted Arnold Schönberg’s Gurre-Lieder.
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The Anglo-Portuguese Ensemble will perform Arnold Schönberg’s Verklärte Nacht, which was inspired by Richard Dehmel’s poem of the same name, as part of their Christmas concert on 10 December at the Church of our Lady of the Assumption and St Gregory in London. They play the piece along with the Symphony in B Flat by Carlos Seixas and Fantasia upon one note by Henry Purcell. |
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“- Welche Bedeutung hat oder hatte Schönberg für Sie?
- Von ihm ging ich aus. Er, Alban Berg und Anton Webern waren für mich musikalisch Grundnahrung in frühester Zeit.“ (Wolfgang Rihm and Tobias Schwartz, Der Tagesspiegel, 3 September 2015)
Composer Wolfgang Rihm talks to Der Tagesspiegel about Arnold Schönberg, twelve-tone technique and sensuous mathematicians.
The interview was held on the occasion of the opening of the Musikfest Berlin.
Great news for Schönberg aficionados: with 19 performances of his works in 16 of the festival’s total 30 concerts the Musikfest Berlin has announced a Schönberg focus for this year.
The festival runs from 2 to 20 September, an opening concert takes place on 3 September with performances of Verklärte Nacht, Variations for orchestra and Five Orchestral pieces.
View the full programme online:
Peral Music has recently released the Vienna Philharmonic’s first recordings of Schönberg’s Piano Concerto with Daniel Barenboim under Pierre Boulez and the Violin Concerto with Michael Barenboim under the direction of his father.
Watch an interview with Daniel Barenboim on the new recordings:
But when I saw the compositions he showed me – songs in a style between Hugo Wolf and Brahms – I recognized at once that he was a real talent. (Arnold Schönberg, Los Angeles, 1949)
More voice recordings of Schönberg are available on the website of the Arnold Schönberg Center.
Tonight the Opéra National de Bordeaux premières Stephan Grögler’s production “Pierrot lunaire Cabaret 30” with Julia Migenes and musicians of l’Orchestre National Bordeaux Aquitaine.
Find the full programme on the website of the Opéra National de Bordeaux.
Further performances will take place on 20, 22 and 23 November.
Arnold Schönberg’s birthday gift from his pupils for his 50th birthday: a beautiful album with their photographs and dedications. Read the whole book on the website of the Arnold Schönberg Center.
Happy Birthday Arnold Schönberg!
This is the perfect opportunity to make mention of the “Schoenberg at 140” conference, which starts today, 13 September, the day of Arnold Schönberg’s 140th anniversary.
The conference is hosted by Department of Music and Performing Arts of the Canterbury Christ Church University, panel topics include 1914: “Pierrot” and His War – Arnold Schönberg’s melodrama Pierrot lunaire and the image of war, The Uncanny Topic in the Fünf Orchesterstücke Op. 16: A “Key” to Schoenberg’s Unconscious and also “Aber Verleger und Autoren können auf Dauer nicht Freunde sein.” Arnold Schoenberg and his Publishers.
View the full programme.
The Dutch National Opera has opened the 2014-2015 season with an absolute first: the scenic world première of Arnold Schönberg’s Gurre-Lieder.
Watch their trailer here:
The Financial Times has reviewed the “hauntingly honest portrait of an era on the brink of extinction, with the frangible beauty of a fairytale castle soon to be crushed forever”, read the full text.
Furthermore, the Arnold Schönberg Center is presenting an exhibition on Arnold Schönberg in The Netherlands and Gurre-Lieder, find out more.
Arnold Schönberg: Gurre-Lieder
for soli, choir and orchestra | 130'
scenic world première, 02.09.2014, Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam; Waldemar, Burkhard Fritz; Tove, Emily Magee; Waldtaube, Anna Larsson; Bauer, Markus Marquardt; Klaus Narr, Wolfgang Ablinger-Sperrhacke; Sprecher, Sunnyi Melles; Chorus of the Dutch National Opera; KammerChor des ChorForum Essen; Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, cond. Marc Albrecht; directed by Pierre Audi
further performances: 07., 12., 15., 18., 21. and 23.09.2014
Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s rendition of Arnold Schönberg’s Verklärte Nacht for string sextet will be performed at the Rosas Performance Space in Brussels on Friday, 5 September, by Samantha van Wissen, Boštjan Antončič and Nordine Benchorf to a recording by Pierre Boulez and the New York Philharmonic.
Further performances take place on 06., 07., 09., 10. and 11.09.2014.
Watch the trailer on YouTube:
From the introductory text on the website of Rosas:
The original choreography as a group piece was created in 1995 as a part of an Arnold Schönberg evening in the Brussels Opera House De Munt / La Monnaie. By rewriting the group piece as a duet, both the narrative and the musical aspect come to the foreground. Expressive crescendos and diminuendos guide us through dramatic events, echoing an ever-modulating stream of emotions. A shameless romantic love story, in the pale light of a transfigured night.