Edda (opera)
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| Original title: | Edda |
| Shape: | Great opera in four acts |
| Original language: | German |
| Music: | Carl Martin Reinthaler |
| Libretto : | Emil Hopffer |
| Literary source: | Josef Weilen |
| Premiere: | February 22, 1875 |
| Place of premiere: | City Theater Bremen |
| Place and time of the action: | East Frisia at the time of the Thirty Years War |
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Edda is an opera in four acts by Carl Martin Reinthaler . Emil Hopffer's text is based on the drama of the same name by Josef Weilen (1864). The first performance took place on February 22nd, 1875 under the direction of Theodor Hentschel at the Stadttheater Bremen .
action
The opera takes place in East Frisia at the time of the Thirty Years War .
first act
The Allmers house is preparing the wedding of Anna, the daughter of the landlord, to Erich. The mood is clouded when Allmers sees his sister Ersabe. Ersabe wants to bless Anna - in memory of her own daughter Edda - but Allmers wants to send her away because he is convinced that she is under a curse. A messenger appears, reporting the incursion of the Mansfeld troops into East Friesland. With the arrival of the soldiers imminent, the wedding is postponed and the men rush to take up arms. But Colonel Carpezan appears with his troops and tries to calm the locals down. He reveals his plan to his wife Edda, whom he has hardly seen since the wedding and whom he has now brought here: He wants to take over rule in the land of the Frisians from the fallen count. Edda worriedly warns him of too much arrogance.
Second act
The Frisians agree to meet under Allmers' leadership for a meeting at the legendary Upstalborn. Ersabe comes up and reveals himself to be Edda's mother, but Edda doesn't believe her. Edda tries again to dissuade Carpezan from his presumptuous plan. He rejects them abruptly. Edda renounces him and confesses to her Frisian origins. She now wants to serve her homeland.
Third act
Ersabe reveals her story to Edda: she had once saved the shipwrecked Konrad von Wildau. He promised her marriage, she became pregnant, but he disappeared and later had the child, Edda, kidnapped to him. Ersabe tried in vain to win him and the child back and returned to Allmer's house as a dishonor. The Frisians advise on the Upstalsbom whether they should defend themselves against the foreign troops. Erik appears, who has killed a soldier to protect Anna from being raped. Now he is threatened with revenge. Edda identifies herself as a Frisian and agrees to support.
Fourth act
Anna's wedding with Erik could finally take place and Edda is celebrated as a savior. When, however, Carpezan is brought in, the Frisians decide his death. Edda stands up for him and hurries away when one does not listen to her. A shot rang out in the distance, quartermaster Jan appeared and boasted that he had killed the traitor Edda. The Frisians pardon Carpezan, who renounced his army.
Work history
The libretto for the opera is by Emil Hopffer . It is based on the drama of the same name by Josef Weilen , published in 1864 . Reinthaler received the text in May / June 1870 on a visit to Berlin. He immediately started composing. The work lasted several years, during which he corresponded with Johannes Brahms about it. Brahms also helped him find a venue. In 1872, on Brahms's recommendation, Reinthaler negotiated unsuccessfully in Lichtenthal with the publisher Fritz Simrock about a publication of the opera. In the late summer of 1873 he made the final corrections and planned the premiere at the Stadttheater Bremen for the end of the 1873/1874 season, which was, however, delayed. Negotiations by Brahms about a performance in Kassel also failed. In the meantime the overture had already appeared in print in Leipzig by the Kistner publishing house , and Brahms advocated a performance of it in Vienna. The overture ultimately developed into Reinthaler's most frequently performed orchestral work.
The opera was finally premiered on February 22nd, 1875 under the direction of Theodor Hentschel at the Stadttheater Bremen. It was a great success, and the reviews in the Bremer Courier and on March 10 in the Allgemeine Musical Zeitung were extremely positive. Nevertheless, Reinthaler subsequently revised the fourth act together with the Bremen author and city librarian Heinrich Bulthaupt . Despite its popularity in Bremen, the new version of the opera was only played in Hanover from November 5, 1876.