Elegy for young lovers
| Work data | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Elegy for young lovers |
| Original title: | Elegy for Young Lovers |
| Shape: | Opera in three acts |
| Music: | Hans Werner Henze |
| Libretto : |
Wystan Hugh Auden Chester Kallman |
| Premiere: | May 20, 1961 |
| Place of premiere: | Rococo theater Schwetzingen |
| Place and time of the action: | An alpine hotel in 1910 |
| people | |
Elegy for young lovers is an opera in three acts by the German composer Hans Werner Henze . The English language libretto was written by Wystan Hugh Auden and Chester Kallman . The premiere took place on May 20, 1961 as part of the Schwetzingen Festival in the early classical theater of Schwetzingen Palace in a German translation by Ludwig Prince of Hesse, conductor was Heinrich Bender. The first performance in English took place in Glyndebourne , also in 1961 . A performance took place in 1965 at the Juilliard Opera Theater in New York City under the musical direction of the composer . Henze revised his work in 1987; this version was premiered on October 28, 1988 under the musical direction of Markus Stenz at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice .
Cast for the premiere in 1961
| Lot | Voice compartment | occupation |
|---|---|---|
| Gregor Mittenhofer, a poet | baritone | Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau |
| Elizabeth room | soprano | Ingeborg Bremert |
| Hilde Mack, a widow | Coloratura soprano | Eva Maria Rogner |
| Carolina Countess von Kirchstätten, secretary von Mittenhofer | Old | Lilian Benningsen |
| Toni Reischmann | tenor | Friedrich Lenz |
| Dr. Wilhelm Reischmann, a doctor | bass | Karl-Christian Kohn |
| Josef Mauer, a mountain guide | Speaking role | Hubert Hilten |
action
1st act
The poet Gregor Mittenhofer lives his artistry in a mountain hotel. His lover Elisabeth Zimmer is just as much a part of his environment as the doctor Dr. Reischmann and his secretary. When Toni, the doctor's son, and Elisabeth see each other, they fall in love. Mittenhofer is offended and renounces Elisabeth, but lets the couple promise to help him with his new work and to collect an edelweiss from the Hammerhorn, a dangerous mountain.
2nd act
Elisabeth and Toni get caught in a snow storm while climbing the Hammerhorn and perish in it. Meanwhile, Mittenhofer continues to work on his elegy and answers a mountain guide's question as to whether there are still people on the mountain with "No".
3rd act
The poet reads his new work Elegy for Young Lovers to the audience and is honored with applause for it and on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
Web links
- Elegy for Young Lovers - Elegy for young lovers ( Memento from July 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
- Story of elegy for young lovers on Opera-Guide landing page currently unavailable due to URL change