Hindemith: Nusch-Nuschi Tänze, Sancta Susanna, Op. 21 & Symphony "Mathis der Maler"

Featuring

Marin Alsop
Annette Schönmüller
Ausrine Stundyte
Caroline Baas
Enzo Brumm
Renée Morloc

ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien
Wiener Singakademie
Paul Hindemith

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Composition History

Hindemith's discovery of contemporary Expressionist poetry and drama in 1917 was a major turning point, transforming him into a leading new German composer.

Critical Reception

Hindemith's early trilogy of sexually charged one-act operas, including Sancta Susanna and Das Nusch-Nuschi, was condemned by the Nazis as 'Entartete Musik' ('Degenerate Music').

Historical Context

The opera and symphony 'Mathis der Maler' recall the life of German Renaissance painter Matthias Grünewald, who abandoned art to fight in the German Peasants' Revolt of 1525.

Composer Biography

Paul Hindemith's life was significantly shaped by the events of the two world wars, and he was called up for service at the end of 1917.

Performer Biography

Marin Alsop, the chief conductor of the ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, was the first and only conductor to receive a MacArthur Fellowship and the first woman to conduct the BBC's Last Night of the Proms.

Composition History

The three one-act operas Mörder, Hoffnung der Frauen, Das Nusch-Nuschi, and Sancta Susanna are Expressionistic works united by the common theme of sexuality.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Hindemith, initially a Romantic and then an Expressionist, later embraced Neue Sachlichkeit ('New Objectivity'), an artistic movement reacting against overly emotional styles.