Mathis the Painter
| Work data | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Mathis the Painter |
| Original language: | German |
| Music: | Paul Hindemith |
| Libretto : | Paul Hindemith |
| Premiere: | May 28, 1938 |
| Place of premiere: | Zurich |
| Playing time: | about 3 hours |
| Place and time of the action: | Mainz , in Königshofen , in the Martinsburg and in the Odenwald . 16th century, at the time of the Peasant Wars |
| people | |
|
|
Mathis der Maler is an opera in seven pictures by Paul Hindemith , who also wrote the libretto . The focus of the opera is the life of the painter Matthias Grünewald during the turbulent times of the Reformation and the Peasant Wars . Hindemith was inspired for this work by the pictures of the Isenheim Altarpiece , which he dealt with in the Mathis der Maler symphony even before the opera was worked out.
action
First image: Antonite monastery courtyard
Mathis, court painter to the Archbishop, paints the walls of the cloister in the Antonite Monastery in Mainz. Suddenly Hans Schwalb, the leader of the rebellious farmers, rushes in, followed by his daughter Regina. To save Schwalb from his pursuers, Mathis lends him his horse. When the captors arrive, Mathis confesses to his deed.
Second picture: Hall in the Martinsburg in Mainz
Citizens have come to greet Cardinal Albrechts. The officer Silvester von Schaumberg recognizes Mathis as the man who made it possible for Schwalb to escape. In a passionate speech, Mathis confesses his sympathy for the farmers. The cardinal then dismisses him from his service.
Third picture: Market square in Mainz
The Protestants' books are to be burned. Many citizens are outraged about it. To reassure them, Capito, a confidante of Albrecht, reads a letter from Luther, in which the latter calls on the cardinal to accept the new faith and to marry. Capito, who sees something sensible in his master's marriage to a wealthy town girl, wants to persuade Albrecht to comply with Luther's request. Ursula, the daughter of the respected Mainz citizen Riedinger, wants to give in to it, even though she has been in love with Mathis since her youth. But he does not want to bind the girl to himself because he is no longer the youngest and cannot offer her a secure existence.
Fourth picture: The destroyed Königshofen
The farmers conquered Königshofen and largely destroyed it. While they lead Count Helfenstein to execution, his wife has to serve the farmers. Mathis stands by the countess and is knocked down for it. Schwalb rushes to incite the farmers to a new fight. In the following battle the rebels suffer a severe defeat. Swallow falls before his daughter's eyes. Mathis is to be executed. At the intercession of the now widowed Countess Helfenstein, however, they refrain from doing this.
_(M%C3%BCnchen,_1948).JPG)
_(M%C3%BCnchen,_1948).JPG)
Fifth image: the cardinal's study
Ursula Riedinger, her father and Capito try to get the cardinal to marry. But he wants to stay true to his old faith.
Sixth picture: In the Odenwald
Mathis and Regina are on the run. The latter is deeply saddened by the death of her father. While the two were resting in the Odenwald, Mathis told the girl about angels making music. Regina falls asleep over it. Reality and dreams are condensed into the images of the Isenheim Altarpiece: "The Temptation of St. Anthony" and "Antonius in the Hermitage". Cardinal Albrecht appears in the form of St. Peter and orders Mathis: "Go and educate!"
Seventh picture: Mathis' studio in Mainz
Mathis created the wonderful altar. The effort over it has worn out his strength. Regina, who was lovingly cared for by Ursula, dies in Mathis' workshop. Albrecht comes to Mathis one last time and asks him to stay with him for the rest of his life. Mathis wants to end his life alone. In a chest he puts a roll of paper that gives information about his deeds, as well as a yardstick, compass, paints and brushes. He longs for eternal rest.
music
Orchestral line-up
Two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, a bass tuba, timpani, percussion, strings.
Historical templates
For the composition, Hindemith used baroque forms such as Chaconne and Concerto grosso as well as original quotations from the Old German Songbook of 1877 edited by Franz Magnus Böhme .
Emergence
After attempts with well-known writers had failed, Hindemith himself developed the libretto, which he initially wanted to write through the book printer Johannes Gutenberg . But after the National Socialists came to power, he turned to Matthias Grünewald . In September 1933 he finished the first draft of the libretto. He composed the preludes and interludes first and these were premiered in 1934 as the Mathis Symphony , the painter . After revising the libretto, he finished the score on July 27, 1935. In this opera Hindemith dealt with the social tasks of an artist.
Reception history
The world premiere of the symphony "Mathis der Maler" took place on March 12, 1934 under Wilhelm Furtwängler in Berlin, but a campaign led by Alfred Rosenberg brought about a performance boycott of Hindemith's works that same year. This news burst into preparations for the planned performance of the opera. Furtwängler then threatened to resign and campaigned for Hindemith in a sensational newspaper article. However, since the hoped-for NS leadership did not give in, "On December 4th, Furtwängler not only resigned from his young post as State Opera Director, but also resigned the leadership of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and was relieved of the position of Vice President of the RMK " . Since even the scandal triggered by this did not change the rigid Nazi position, Hindemith finally decided to emigrate. The first performance of the complete opera took place on May 28, 1938 in the Stadttheater Zürich . The German premiere followed on December 13, 1946 in the Stuttgart State Theater .
symphony
Far better known than the opera is the symphony, which is an excerpt from the opera of the same name. With the symphony Hindemith aimed to musically implement the Isenheim Altarpiece. According to the altar it consists of three sentences:
- Angel concert
- Entombment
- Temptation of Saint Anthony
The material of these movements can be found in the opera in the following places:
- overture
- Orchestra interlude from the last picture
- Orchestra recapitulation of the scene with Mathis' visions from the sixth picture
literature
- Gudrun Breimann: Mathis the painter and the "Hindemith case": studies on Hindemith's opera libretto in the context of the cultural-historical and political conditions of the 1930s , Frankfurt am Main [u. a.]: Lang, 1997. ISBN 3-631-31219-9
- Siglind Bruhn: The Temptation of Paul Hindemith: Mathis der Maler as a Spiritual Testimony , Stuyvesant, NY: Pendragon Press, 1998. ISBN 1-57647-013-X
- Claire Taylor-Jay: The artist-operas of Pfitzner, Krenek, and Hindemith: politics and the ideology of the artist , Aldershot, England; Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2004. ISBN 0-7546-0578-7
Web links
- libretto
- Action by Mathis the painter at Opera-Guide target page due to URL change currently not available
- The Isenheim Altarpiece on the stage of the music theater
Individual evidence
- ^ Batta, András (ed.) (1999). Opera: composers, works, performers . Cologne: Könemann, ISBN 3-8290-2840-7 , p. 235.
- ^ Batta, András (ed.) (1999). ibid., p. 235.
- ^ Wilhelm Furtwängler: The Hindemith case . In: Deutsche Allgemeine Zeitung , Berlin, November 25, 1934.
- ^ Fred K. Prieberg: Music in the Nazi State , Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1982, ISBN 3-596-26901-6 , p. 66.
Murderer, Hope of Women (Opera, 1921) | Das Nusch-Nuschi (Opera, 1921) | Sancta Susanna (opera, 1922) | The demon (dance pantomime, 1922) | Tutti Coats (Christmas Tales , 1922) | Cardillac (Opera, 1926) | There and back (sketch with music, 1927) | News from the day (opera, 1929) | Lehrstück (music theater, 1929) | We're building a city (Children's Opera, 1930) | Mathis the painter (opera, 1938) | Nobilissima visione (dance legend, 1938) | Hérodiade (orchestral recitation, 1944) | The Harmony of the World (Opera, 1957) | The Long Christmas Supper (Opera, 1961)