Guntram (opera)
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| Operas by Richard Strauss |
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Guntram (1894) |
Guntram (Op. 25) is an opera in three acts by Richard Strauss with a German libretto written by the composer.
It was Strauss's first opera and shows a strong Wagnerian influence. The music of Guntram is quoted in Strauss's tone-poem Ein Heldenleben. The composer revised the score in 1940.
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[edit] Performance history
The opera was not very succesful, and was only staged a few times during Strauss's lifetime:
(1) The first performance took place on 10 May 1894 at the Grossherzogliches Hoftheater in Weimar. The soprano role of Freihild was sung by Pauline De Anha, Strauss's future wife.
(2) Munich, 16 November 1895, cond. R. Strauss
(3) Prague, 9 October 1901, cond. R. Strauss
(4) Frankfurt, 9 March 1910, cond. Ludwig Rottenberg
The revised version was first given in Weimar, 29 Oct. 1940, conducted by Paul Sixt, and later in 1942 in Berlin, conductor Robert Heger.
In Hamburg, on 4 February 1895, Gustav Mahler included the Prelude to Act 1 in his 6th Philharmonic Concert. He included the Preludes to Acts 1 and 2 in a concert in Vienna on 19 February 1899, and in New York on 30 March 1910 with the New York Philharmonic.
[edit] Roles
| Premiere, May 10, 1894 (Strauss conducting) |
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|---|---|---|
| The old Duke | bass | Karl Bucha |
| Freihild, his daughter | soprano | Pauline de Ahna, then Strauss's fiancée |
| Duke Robert, her husband | baritone | Franz Schwarz |
| Guntram, singer | tenor | Heinrich Zeller |
| Friedhold, singer | bass | Hr.Wiedry |
| The Duke's jester | tenor | Hans Giessen |
| An old woman | [[contralto] | Louise Tibelti |
| An old man | tenor | Hr. Lutz |
| Two younger men | basses | Hr. Barth
Hermann Buche |
| Three vassals | basses | |
| A messenger | baritone | Hermann Buche |
| Four Minnesingers | tenors, basses | |
| Vassals, Minnesingers, monks, servants, vagrants | ||
[edit] Synopsis
Set in medieval Germany, the triangular Wagnerian-style story of love and redemption is about the minstrel Guntram, the evil Duke Robert and his saintly wife Freihild. (The story is not connected with the Merovingian king Guntram of Burgundy.)
[edit] Sources
- Murray, David: Guntram in 'The New Grove Dictionary of Opera', ed. Stanley Sadie (London, 1992) ISBN 0-333-73432-7
[edit] External links
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