The silent serenade
| Work data | |
|---|---|
| Original title: | The silent serenade |
| Original language: | German |
| Music: | Erich Wolfgang Korngold |
| Libretto : | Victor Clement |
| Premiere: | November 10, 1954 |
| Place of premiere: | Dortmund , city theater |
| Playing time: | approx. 180 min |
| Place and time of the action: | Naples 1820 |
| people | |
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Singer
actor
Judges, clerks, soldiers, spectators in the courtroom |
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The silent serenade (op. 36) was composed by Erich Wolfgang Korngold between 1946 and 1950 as a full-length opera. Korngold himself described the piece as a “musical comedy” and is one of the highlights in Korngold's oeuvre, which includes stage works, film music, piano and chamber music in a wide variety of genres and is characterized by the idiom of the early 20th century. Initially conceived for Broadway in English, the staged world premiere of the German version took place in 1954 at the Dortmund Theater; The piece was performed in concert for Radio Vienna in 1951. After the premiere, opinions about the work differed among critics and audiences. The audience was thrilled, but the critics panned it. It was not until 2007 that the work was performed again.
The work is neither an opera nor a musical comedy , but actually a late operetta , which with its dances and jazz insertions can be assigned to the Berlin operetta .
The stage version is divided into a prelude, six images and four interludes.
The work is designed for eight singers and eight actors. The text book for the spoken texts connecting the musical numbers comes from Victor Clement ; the piano reduction also refers to the German institution of Raoul Auernheimer . The texts for the music numbers are penned by Bert Reisfeld and Korngold himself.
Unusually for an opera, the “Stumme Serenade” produced real hits like “ Luise, Luise, you have something ” and “ I'll go with you to the end of the world ”.
action
One night the villa of the famous actress Silvia Lombardi is broken into. A man is standing by her bed and tries to kiss her. When Silvia wakes up and calls for help, the perpetrator has disappeared. At the same time, an assassin breaks into the bedroom of her fiancé, Prime Minister Lugarini, and places a bomb under his bed. There is great excitement in Naples (the death penalty is written on “abducting women” in Naples in 1820) and it is suspected that the same perpetrator was behind both crimes. During his investigation, the police minister Caretto becomes aware of the famous tailor Andrea Coclé. This is the designer of Silvia and obviously in love with his customer. Caretto arrests Andrea on his suspicion.
The reporter Sam Borzalino is about to write an article about this arrest and meets Luise, who is the first tasting lady in Andrea Coclé's salon. They both start an affair.
Andrea Coclè admits during interrogation that she broke into Silvia's garden in order to offer her a serenade . Since no one has heard the song, Andrea says that the song sprang from his soul and was therefore a “silent serenade”. But he has nothing to do with the attempted assassination attempt on the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Lugarini demands from Police Minister Caretto to track down the assassin and arrest him: if that has not happened before the end of the day, he threatens Caretto with the loss of his post. Caretto is desperate. At that very moment, Father Orsenigo brought the news that the King of Naples wanted to pardon a convict on his 80th birthday. Caretto comes up with an idea: In addition to breaking into Silvia Lombardi's villa, Andrea should also confess the attack on Lucarini and the king would pardon him. Coclè gets involved in the deal.
In court, Coclè admits the crimes, although his manager Laura (secretly in love with her boss) tries to save him with a false alibi. The chairman sentenced him to death by hanging. Sam is present as the court reporter and is shocked when the convict is charged with the costs of the trial.
But fate wants it different. The king dies overnight and a pardon on the occasion of his 80th birthday can no longer be granted. Caretto, who knows Father Orsenigo's plan and has a good name, is appalled. But before the execution, Andrea Coclé has one last wish to be granted. He wishes to have dinner with Silvia Lombardi. At this dinner they both fall madly in love.
Now fate again plays an important role. The people of Naples love the tailor Coclè and overthrow the hated prime minister in a revolution. Andrea uses it as the new head of government, and he can now marry Silvia appropriately. Luise comes to the government palace as an "old" colleague Andreas to ask for a permanent position for her fiancé Sam so that they too can get married. Andrea makes Sam the press officer, who faints out of joy.
Andrea doesn't really feel ready to rule and so fate comes on the scene for the third time. The real assassin Carlo Marcellini proudly reports to Andrea and claims the government chair for himself. Andrea Coclè is very happy to give him the place and his brief adventure in politics is over.
Performances
premiere
November 10, 1954 World premiere at the Dortmund city theater . The premiere cast is no longer known. After that, the piece was never performed again on any stage for 53 years.
Revival 2007
On the 50th anniversary of Erich Wolfgang Korngold's death , the Bayerische Staatsschauspiel, in cooperation with the Munich University of Music and Theater, brought "The Silent Serenade" back onto the stage: in the theater in the Haus der Kunst in Munich . The premiere took place on May 12, 2007. 70 years earlier, the performance location was the scene of the National Socialist propaganda event “The Great German Art Exhibition ” and thus formed a deliberate counterpoint to Korngold's biography, who was classified by the Nazis as the “degenerate” artist and had to go into American exile. The conductor was Professor Philipp Vogler , and Nico Trees was in charge of the scenic direction.
The Munich cast of 2007 is the first fully known stage cast of this work:
| Andrea Coclé | Christian Sturm |
| Silvia Lombardi | Brigitte Bayer |
| Luise | Johanna Maria Zeitler |
| Sam Borzalino | Anton Leiss-Huber |
| Caretto | Max Lika |
| 1. Trial lady | Yan Ping Tu |
| 2. Trial lady | Susanne Drexl |
| 3. Trial lady | Susanne Steinle |
| Bettina | Kathrin Anna Stahl |
| Laura | Cathrin Kagermaier |
| Benedetto Lugarini | Benjamin Hakim Belmedjahed |
| his servant | Franck Schindler / Stefan Mühlbauer |
| Father Orsenigo | Steffen Wolf |
| The Chairman | Steffen Wolf |
| An officer | Franck Schindler / Stefan Mühlbauer |
| Carlo Marcellini | Benjamin Hakim Belmedjahed |
| a page | Katrin Hermann |
| dancer | Elena Pankova / Claudia Meyer-Rassow / Raphael Peter / Dimitri Katunin |
More productions
In 2009, The Silent Serenade was staged twice: in February / March in the Lokremise in St. Gallen (as a co-production of the St. Gallen Theater with the St. Gallen Music School) and in Freiburg im Breisgau as a production by the Young Opera Company in the Freiburg E-Werk . In 2014 the play was staged at NJO Muziekzomer Arnhem. Another production premiered in February 2017 at the Landestheater Coburg. She was awarded the Bavarian Radio Operetta Prize, the BR-Klassik "Frosch Award 2017".
Orchestration
The piece is arranged for a chamber orchestra . To its cast:
- two pianos (the first also plays celesta )
- two violins
- a violoncello
- a flute
- a clarinet (also plays tenor saxophone )
- Percussion: timpani , glockenspiel , xylophone , vibraphone , triangle , snare drum , tambourine , bass drum , cymbals , gong
- a trumpet to the left of the scene
Recordings
The recording from the archive of the ORF under the direction of the composer, shortened to approx. 100 minutes, was released in 2011 by the Line Music company on their label “cantus classics” (CACD 5.01371). Cast: Hilde Ceska (Silvia), Fred Liewehr (Andrea Cocle), Egon von Jordan (Benedetto), Rosl Schwaiger (Luise), Franz Böheim (Borzalino), Kurt Preger (Caretto), Susi Witt (managing director), Liane Synek , Tonja Sontis , Hansi Schenk (tasters), Felix Dombrowsky (Carlo Marcellini), Herbert Hauk (father).