Spring storms

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Work data
Title: Spring storms
Shape: operetta
Original language: German
Music: Jaromír Weinberger
Libretto : Gustav Beer
Premiere: January 20, 1933
Place of premiere: Berlin , Admiralspalast
Playing time: approx. 2 hours 30 minutes
Place and time of the action: Manchuria in northeast China , San Remo , in the Japanese-Russian War of 1904/05 and shortly thereafter
people
  • Grand Duke Mikhailovich ( speaking role )
  • Rittmeister Strotzky, adjutant to the Grand Duke (speaking role)
  • General Vladimir Katschalow, Supreme Commander of the Russian Armed Forces (speaking role)
  • Colonel Baltischew, chief of the military secret service and confidante of the general (speaking role)
  • Lydia Pawlowska, a young widow from St. Petersburg ( soprano )
  • Tatjana, Katschalow's daughter ( soprano / soubrette )
  • Roderich Zirbitz, war correspondent for a large German newspaper ( Operettenbuffo )
  • Major Ito ( tenor )
  • Lieutenant Colonel Shibato (speaking role)
  • Lieutenant Kawa-Kami (speaking role)
  • Sayuri, Ito's wife (speaking role)
  • Hotel concierge (speaking role)
  • Hotel boy (speaking role)
  • Russian officers, servants, hotel guests

Spring Storms ( Jarní bouře ) is an operetta by Gustav Beer (libretto) and Jaromír Weinberger (music). The premiere took place on January 20, 1933 in Berlin's Admiralspalast .

The work is considered the last operetta of the Weimar Republic . Ten days after the premiere, the National Socialists came to power and ordered the end of the series of performances. After the presentation on March 12, 1933, the work was discontinued.

A new production of the spy operetta, which was no longer performed in Germany, took place in January 2020 at the Komische Oper Berlin under the direction of Barrie Kosky . The conductor Jordan de Souza was the musical director .

Historical context

Spring storms is considered the last operetta of the declining Weimar Republic. Just like Paul Abraham's revue operetta Ball im Savoy , which had been played in the Großes Schauspielhaus with Gitta Alpár in the female lead since Christmas 1932 , Weinberger's work Spring Storms was one of the later works of the Weimar Republic, the performances of which were already overshadowed by the approaching National Socialism .

In contrast to the then popular revue operetta with jazz echoes, Weinberger's work Frühlingsstürme is more "an operetta [...] operetta in the semi-tragic Lehár style". Stylistically, the spring storms operetta belongs to the late foothills of the so-called silver operetta era with musical allusions to Lehár, Puccini and Franz Schreker . The opera composer Weinberger is always noticeable in the score. The orchestra is “gigantic”, with four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , harp , celesta , banjo and four percussionists . Weinberger's composition, even if it was nominally called an operetta, contains elements of great opera, operetta and revue at the same time and contains a variety of melodies, ranging from “classical Viennese operetta to Hungarian sounds, jazz and American big band enough". The music contains “a lot of waltz”, folklore, always with the obligatory sprinkles of foxtrot and jazz, combines to a “stylistic mix in which waltz, foxtrot and tango get along with Bohemian and Viennese elements, where Puccini and Richard Strauss momentarily reinblitzen ”, however, lags behind Paul Abraham in terms of incorporating contemporary soundscapes.

Orchestral line-up

action

The musical confusion affects several love relationships, affairs and marriages in the milieu of politics and espionage, located in China and Italy. The two main roles have a lot of exotic flair, the diva as the Russian general widow Lydia Pawlowska, the heroic tenor as the Japanese officer Ito. Add to that the classic Buffo couple - the German war correspondent Roderich Zirbitz, who also hires out incognito as a cook, and the stubborn Russian general daughter Tatjana Katschalow.

The scenes

Headquarters of the Russian Army in Manchuria . A briefing takes place before the offensive against the Japanese. Regardless of the war preparations, the young widow general Lydia Pawlowska from St. Petersburg invited to the ball for the evening. The commander-in-chief of the Russian armed forces, General Vladimir Katschalow, does not want to take part in the ball because of the tense situation. In reality, however, he is upset that the Pavlovska has rejected his solicitation. Colonel Baltischew, chief of the military secret service and confidante of the general, sees through this. He has his eye on Lydia himself, although he suspects her of espionage. The attractive widow is said to have had an opaque relationship with a Japanese officer named Ito before the war. - Roderich Zirbitz, a German war correspondent who sneaked into the Russian headquarters under a false identity, is exposed. He must fear the anger of the general who is extremely hostile to the foreign press in particular. In addition, Zirbitz makes himself suspicious because he is courting the general's daughter, Tatjana. The worried father then puts his daughter under house arrest and forbids her to attend Lydia Pavlovska's ball.

General's apartment . Enter Lydia. She wants to change the general's mind herself, he should please come to the ball. With her charm she can change the general's mind. Suddenly she sees the Japanese major Ito, who once courted her in her hometown. He is disguised as a Chinese servant and is apparently spying in the middle of the Russian headquarters. Actually, the widow and the officer are in two hostile camps, but the previously suppressed passion is breaking through. - During a conspiratorial meeting between Major Ito and two other Japanese spies, General Katschalov appears and realizes what is going on. He is overwhelmed by the enemy officers, but Lydia's appearance, accompanied by a number of Russian officers, turns the tide. Ito and his followers are arrested. As they face the death penalty, the young widow finds herself in a great conflict of conscience. However, she suppresses the reluctant feelings and takes on the role of the charming hostess.

Ball . Tatjana defies her father's ban and comes to the ball. Roderich Zirbitz has also found a way to combine professional and private interests. Under a new identity, he follows the political events at the ball and continues to flirt intensely with the general's daughter. She is also not averse. Meanwhile, the Japanese spies escape their custody. Ito seeks refuge with Lydia and again confesses his love to her.

After the ball . In order to flee and cross the enemy lines, Major Ito needs the password. Although he loves Lydia, the duty demands to get himself and his comrades to safety. Lydia is also torn, but she promises Ito to get the password. To this end, she arranges an intimate tête-à-tête with the general after the ball. Meanwhile, Katschalow becomes suspicious, because why does a beautiful Russian woman need the password to cross the front. The correct password would have been “spring storms”, but he gives you a wrong one. Ito tries to escape, gives the wrong password and is arrested again. He is angry with Lydia, feels betrayed by her and, jealously, comes to the conclusion that she is the general's lover. Death seems certain to him. However, Lydia tries again to save Ito. She is even ready to give in to the general's wooing and to show her appreciation when he offers her a possible pardon for Ito.

Hotel in San Remo . Months later. The participants meet again in the peace negotiations. General Kachalov fell out of favor for letting Ito go. Major Ito was able to return to his homeland after being rescued at the last minute. Promoted to colonel, he now serves as negotiator for the Japanese delegation. The German journalist Roderich was meanwhile in Switzerland and kidnapped his Tatjana from a boarding school to which her father had brought her. He is supposed to report on the peace negotiations. Tatjana has to hide from her father, who thinks she is in Switzerland. Lydia has come to restore the general's reputation. He had shown himself to be a gentleman and did not accept anything in return for the release of the major. If this were made public, however, the general would be portrayed as an “old donkey”. Vladimir Katschalow loves the beautiful widow with undiminished intensity and, although he expects her refusal, again asked for her hand. To his surprise, Lydia accepts the offer. But a little later, Colonel Ito appears surprisingly, the old love flares up again. Lydia hopes for a future together with the colonel and now gives the desperate Katschalow a basket. Lydia happens to meet a Japanese woman named Sayuri who identifies herself as Colonel Ito's wife. Lydia realizes that there can be no future together with the man from abroad. Roderich and Tatjana, who have secretly married, ask Tatjana's raging father for his blessing. Lydia appeases him and finally gives him her yes. The three couples sing the final sextet, Ito and Lydia, with melancholy and pain over an unfulfilled love.

Work history

The operetta Spring storms premiered on January 20, 1933 Berlin's Admiralspalast, ten days before the seizure of power of Hitler and the Nazi Party . The work was played for almost two months. The “lyrical-romantic” lovers, a diva and a heroic tenor, were embodied in the world premiere by Jarmila Novotná and Richard Tauber , both known from funk and film. The first performance reviews were "mixed". However, the operetta was enthusiastically received by the audience. In particular, the "Tauber song" You would have been the woman for me had to be repeated four times at the premiere.

Ernst Josef Aufricht , who had acquired the performance rights to the Weinberger operetta Spring Storms, visited Tauber, who was on tour as Franz Schubert in the operetta Das Dreimäderlhaus at the Schauburg in Amsterdam in November 1932 , and personally committed him to the production. Weinberger himself played Tauber from the score for Spring Storms. Shortly after Christmas 1932, rehearsals began in the rehearsal rooms of the Berlin Admiralspalast. Directed by Heinz Saltenburg . The upcoming premiere was intensively marketed in the press and media in the run-up to the premiere. Recordings of individual songs were made before the premiere. Jarmila Novotná only sang the first performances, however, since she began rehearsing for Hugo von Hofmannsthal's Das Salzburger Große Welttheater at the Deutsches Theater Berlin , Max Reinhardt's last production in Berlin. She then accepted an engagement at the Vienna State Opera and left Germany after being attacked by the right-wing press for "anti-German statements" because she had defended Gustav Mahler's music . From February 7, 1933, Tauber's partner in Dresden and his constant companion, Mary Losseff, took over her role .

The Buffo couple were the actors Else Elster and Siegfried Arno , who "became famous through the film" . For the fifth main role, General Wladimir Katschalow, possibly initially conceived as a singing role due to the rhymed opening verses of the character in the libretto, the then "prominent" actor Oskar Homolka was subsequently created as a pure speaking role . According to Richard Tauber's stepbrother Robert Hasé-Tauber, there were “terrible scenes” backstage between the actress Else Elster, who was a staunch Hitler fanatic, and the Jewish actor Siegfried Arno. During the first performances there were also anti-Jewish interjections. In early January 1933, Tauber recorded two solo numbers from the operetta Spring Storms in the Odeon Studios , while six numbers with Jarmila Novotná and Marcel Wittrisch were created on the same day at Electrola . At the end of January 1933, four more recordings were made with Tauber and Losseff with the orchestra of the Admiralspalast Berlin , conductor: Manfred Gurlitt . Recorded were u. a. the two duets dream sunken, love drunk and spring in Manchuria as well as the "deaf song" you would have been the woman for me, which has been obligatory since his appearances in the Lehár operets .

Because of the upcoming Reichstag election on March 5, 1933 , no performances of the spring storms took place between February 28, 1933 and March 8 . In the performance scheduled for March 9, 1933, Tauber and Losseff could not appear; violent disturbances by the anti-Jewish “mob” in the stands prevented the performance. From March 10, 1933, the production was played again. On March 12, 1933, the operetta was "rude" canceled by the National Socialists after the last performance. After that, the work fell into oblivion.

After 1933 there were still some performances of the operetta in the Czech language in Czechoslovakia in Prague , Pilsen and Brno . In the post-war period, there is only evidence of a scenic production in 1947 in the Moravian Ostrava (Moravian-Ostrau). It is documented that the spring storms were broadcast on Czech radio in the early 1950s .

In the 2019/20 season, the Komische Oper Berlin re-staged the work under the direction of Barrie Kosky . The complete score with instrumentation and orchestral parts could not be found and is considered lost. With the help of saxophonist Tristan Willems, only a few (partly incomplete) individual parts of the score could be found among Weinberger's heirs in Israel . Norbert Biermann , the former head of studies at the Komische Oper Berlin, who has already appeared several times as arranger, therefore spent two years reconstructing the operetta using the printed piano reduction with instrumentation notes, a preserved director's book with the libretto and the shellac recordings made shortly after the premiere with the musical highlights . Biermann wrote a new arrangement for the rediscovery of the operetta. He also composed several new dance interludes and a soloist quartet in the style and based on musical themes of Weinberger. However, according to the director Barrie Kosky, the music still consists of “85 percent original Weinberger” and can be considered as guaranteed by Weinberger.

Occupations

role Pitch First performance
Admiralspalast , January 20, 1933 		Komische Oper Berlin
January 25, 2020
General Vladimir Kachalov Speaking role Oskar Homolka Stefan Kurt
Tatiana, his daughter Soubrette Else Elster Alma Sadé
Lydia Pawlowska, widow general soprano Jarmila Novotná Vera-Lotte Boecker
Roderich Zirbitz Buffo Siegfried Arno Dominik Koeninger
Ito, Japanese officer tenor Richard Tauber Tansel Akzeybek
Colonel Baltischew Speaking role Ferdinand Hart Tino Lindenberg
Grand Duke Mikhailovich Speaking role Georg H. Schnell Luca Schaub
Shibato and hotel concierge Speaking role NN Arne Gottschling
Kawa-Kami / Peter Speaking role NN Yannik Heckmann
Captain Strotzky Speaking role NN Sascha Goepel
conductor Manfred Gurlitt Jordan de Souza
Staging Heinz Saltenburg Barrie Kosky
Stage design Ernst Stern Klaus Grünberg , also light
Costumes Ernst Stern Dinah Ehm
choreography Otto Pichler

Ellen Schwanneke is said to have participated in the world premiere .

Web links

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Jan Krobot: Not just musical fireworks! . Performance review. Online marker from March 4, 2020. Retrieved on May 2, 2020.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Wolfgang Schreiber: Tango in Manchuria . Performance review. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung of January 30, 2020. Retrieved on May 2, 2020.
  3. ↑ a b c d e Manuel Brug: And then came the Nazis: With Jaromir Weinberger's reconstructed “Spring Storms”, Barry Kosky in Berlin recalls the last Jewish entertainment success of the 1930s . Performance review in the category "Brugs Klassiker" on WeltN24 on January 30, 2020. Accessed on May 2, 2020.
  4. ^ A b Thomas E. Schmidt: "Spring Storms": Spring in Manchuria! . Performance review. In: ZEIT from January 29, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  5. ↑ Michael Juergs states in his biography about Richard Tauber that Richard Tauber had its premiere on "Christmas" 1932 in the Berlin Admiralspalast with spring storms. Compare Michael Jürgs : I was happy to kiss women. The Richard Tauber biography . Appendix with life data of Richard Tauber. From page 417, there page 419. List Verlag München 2000. ISBN 3-471-79429-8 . In the Tauber biography of Otto Schneidereit , which he has edited and re-edited, Volker Kühn names "at Christmas" as the date of the premiere in the attached timetable. See Otto Schneidereit : Richard Tauber. One life - one voice . Edited and edited by Volker Kühn. Parthas-Verlag Berlin 2000. Page 156. ISBN 3-932529-25-1 . Schneider’s original edition, published in 1976 by Henschel Verlag in East Berlin , does not contain any information on the time of the premiere. It can therefore be assumed that Jürgs and Kühn are subject to confusion with the rehearsal and rehearsal phase, which began shortly after Christmas.
  6. ^ In his 12th edition of the Richard Tauber Chronology, Daniel O'Hara states on page 16 January 19, 1933 as the opening night, see RICHARD TAUBER CHRONOLOGY . Possibly this is the dress rehearsal or a closed preview.
  7. ↑ a b c d e f g h J. Gahre: BERLIN: Spring storms . Performance review. In: Opera glasses . Edition March 2020. Page 9/10.
  8. ↑ a b c d Michael Jürgs : I was happy to kiss women. The Richard Tauber biography . Page 265. List Verlag München 2000. ISBN 3-471-79429-8 .
  9. ↑ a b c d Daniel O'Hara: TAUBER CHRONOLOGY . 12th edition. May 2012. page 16.
  10. ↑ Michael Jürgs : I was happy to kiss women. The Richard Tauber biography . Page 266. List Verlag München 2000. ISBN 3-471-79429-8 .
  11. ↑ Otto Schneidereit : Richard Tauber. One life - one voice . Edited and edited by Volker Kühn. Parthas-Verlag Berlin 2000. Page 100. ISBN 3-932529-25-1 .
  12. ↑ a b Michael Jürgs : I was happy to kiss women. The Richard Tauber biography . Page 267. List Verlag München 2000. ISBN 3-471-79429-8 .
  13. ↑ RICHARD TAUBER SINGS - You would have been the woman for me (Weinberger) . Sound document with Richard Tauber (1933).
  14. ^ The Richard Tauber Collection, Vol. 15 - Operetta Scenes (1924-1933) . Recording dates. Retrieved May 2, 2020.
  15. ↑ Spring Storms : Spring in Manchuria . Sound document with Richard Tauber and Mary Losseff (1933).
  16. ↑ Spring storms: sunken dream, drunk with love . Sound document with Richard Tauber and Mary Losseff (1933).
  17. ↑ Michael Jürgs : I was happy to kiss women. The Richard Tauber biography . Page 268. List Verlag München 2000. ISBN 3-471-79429-8 .
  18. ↑ Daniel O'Hara in his 12th edition of the Richard Tauber Chronology on page 16 already gives February 28, 1933 as the cancellation date. It is possible that Daniel O'Hara is referring to the state decision-making in the course of the ordinance of the Reich President for the protection of people and state of February 28, 1933.