Die glückliche Hand
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| Operas by Arnold Schoenberg |
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Erwartung (1924) |
Die glückliche Hand (Op.18), The Fortunate Hand, is a Drama mit Musik by Arnold Schoenberg. It was composed between 1910 and 1913 and is seen as a companion piece to Erwartung, which was written in 1909. Unlike Erwartung, Schoenberg wrote the libretto for Die glückliche Hand and the first performance took place in Vienna on 24th October 1924. The underlying message of the piece is the idea that man continues to repeatedly make the same mistakes and the plot is developed from events in Schoenberg’s personal life.
[edit] Roles
- Solo male character: (baritone)
- Two mimed characters: one woman and one man
- Chorus: six women and six men
[edit] Performance details
The drama has only one act in which there are four scenes and lasts around twenty minutes. The staging of Die glückliche Hand is complex due to the range of scenic effects that must be combined with the use of coloured lighting. The drama represents an inescapable cycle of mans plight as it starts and finishes with the male character struggling with the monster on his back. The male character sings about his love for a young woman (mime) but despite this love she leaves him for a well-dressed gentleman (mime). He senses that she has left him and eventually when she returns he forgives her and his happiness returns but again the woman retreats. The woman is seen later on with the gentleman and the male soloist implores the women to stay with him but she escapes and kicks a rock at him. This rock turns into the monster that was seen on the man’s back in the beginning and so the performance closes where it began.
[edit] Background
The subject of the drama is influenced by personal circumstances in Schoenberg’s life. Schoenberg’s music was not as well received as it had been in previous years. Also two years before the composition of the piece Mathilde, Schoenberg’s wife, had an affair with the painter Richard Gerstl and although she returned to Schoenberg this had a lasting effect on their relationship. Both these things had an effect on the drama.
