Die toten Augen
| Eugen d'Albert |
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Operas
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Die toten Augen (or The Dead Eyes) is an opera (called a Bühnendichtung or 'stage poem' by the composer) with a prologue and one act by Eugen d'Albert to a libretto in German by Hanns Heinz Ewers and Marc Henry (Achille Georges d'Ailly-Vaucheret) after Henry's own 1897 play Les yeux morts.
Performance History
Die toten Augen was first performed on 5 March 1916 at the Hofoper in Dresden under Fritz Reiner.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 5 March 1916 (Conductor: Fritz Reiner) |
|---|---|---|
| Arcesius, Roman envoy to Jerusalem | baritone | Friedrich Plaschke |
| Myrtocle, his blind wife | soprano | Helena Forti |
| Aurelius Galba, a Roman captain | tenor | Curt Taucher |
| Arsinoe, Myrtocle's slave | mezzo-soprano | Grete Merrem-Nikisch |
| Ktesiphar, an Egyptian doctor | tenor | Robert Büssel |
| Jesus | tenor | |
| Mary Magdalen | contralto | Anka Horvat |
| Shepherd | tenor | |
| Shepherd boy | soprano | |
| Reaper | baritone | |
| Rebecca, a Jewish woman | soprano | |
| Ruth, a Jewish woman | soprano | |
| Esther, a Jewish woman | soprano | |
| Sarah, a Jewish woman | soprano | |
| A sick woman | soprano | |
| Arcesius' male and female slaves, reapers etc. | ||
Synopsis
Set in Biblical times, Die toten Augen is a tragic drama involving a Roman envoy called Arcesius, his beautiful but blind wife Myrtocle and Aurelius Galba, a handsome Roman captain.
Recordings
- d'Albert: Die Toten Augen - Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra, Dresden Philharmonic Choir
- Conductor: Ralf Weikert
- Principal singers: Dagmar Schellenberger, Norbert Orth, Hartmut Welker, Olaf Bär
- Recording date: March, 1997
- Label: CPO - B000042OED (CD)
References
- Amadeus Almanac, accessed 10 November 2008
- Forbes, Elizabeth (1992), 'Toten Augen, Die' in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7