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Die Kathrin

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Die Kathrin
Opera by Erich Wolfgang Korngold
The composer
LibrettistErnst Décsey
LanguageGerman
Premiere
7 October 1939 (1939-10-07)

Die Kathrin, Op. 28, is an opera in three acts by Erich Wolfgang Korngold with a German libretto by Ernst Décsey.

Performance history

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Korngold completed the opera during the summer of 1937. The premiere was set for March 1938 in Vienna, but was cancelled due to Korngold's Jewish ancestry on Nazi instructions after the Nazi invasion of Austria. It finally premiered at the Royal Swedish Opera in neutral Stockholm, Sweden, on 7 October 1939, conducted by Fritz Busch.[1]

A Vienna run of only eight performances in October 1950 met with indifferent reviews, the opera's richly melodic musical language being completely at odds with the austere post-war taste.[2]

Roles

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Roles, voice types, premiere cast
Role Voice type Premiere cast, 7 October 1939[1]
Conductor: Fritz Busch
Kathrin soprano Brita Herzberg
François tenor Einar Beyron
Malignac bass-baritone Sven d'Ailly
Chou-Chou soprano Isa Quensel
Monique mezzo-soprano Gertrud Pålson-Wettergren

Recordings

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References

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  1. ^ a b Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Die Kathrin, 7 October 1939". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).
  2. ^ Carroll, Brendan G. (2003). The Background to the Opera. Die Kathrin (CD liner). Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Germany: CPO. 999602-2.
  3. ^ "Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Die Kathrin". Germany: CPO. Retrieved 26 July 2010.
  4. ^ R.E.B. (May 2003). "Korngold: Die Kathrin". Classical CD Review. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 3 August 2010.