Paul Hindemith's opera "Cardillac" (1925/26) was his first full-length stage work, following three one-act operas and two ballets.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Hindemith's "Cardillac" is considered an 'artist opera of the modern age' that explores the 'point of separation between conscious and unconscious action' in music.
Critical Reception
Despite its radical structure, "Cardillac" was well-received at its 1926 premiere in Dresden and saw 13 subsequent productions in its first season.
Compositional Technique
The opera features 18 precisely delineated 'numbers' with historicizing titles like 'Arie' or 'Duett', and uses polyphony as a unifying element.
Performer Biography
Conductor Stefan Soltész, who leads this recording, was General Music Director of the Essen Philharmonic Orchestra and Artistic Director of the Essen Aalto Music Theatre from 1997 to 2013.
Composition History
The opera "Cardillac" is based on E. T. A. Hoffmann's novella "Das Fräulein von Scuderi" (1819), but the libretto by Ferdinand Lion fundamentally changed the story, removing the title character and the detective plot.
Compositional Technique
In a pivotal scene, the music abruptly stops with the stage direction 'Die Musik setzt aus' ('The music stops') as the masked murderer Cardillac attacks, only to resume with a terrible scream.
