This album features a 1953 radio adaptation of Horneman's Aladdin, which includes a linking narration by Harald Krebs to cover cuts and tell the story, though this narration has been omitted from the digital transfer.
Composition History
The score for Horneman's opera Aladdin was nearly lost when the composer's home in Copenhagen burned down in 1872, but he rescued it from the flames.
Compositional Technique
Horneman's Aladdin uses a loosely Wagnerian scheme of leitmotifs and incorporates traces of orientalism in its choruses and ballet interludes.
Composition History
C.F.E. Horneman, the composer of this opera, spent almost 40 years creating his opera Aladdin, which spanned most of his adult life.
Critical Reception
The initial staging of Horneman's Aladdin in 1888, rushed for King Christian IX's 25th anniversary, received a chilly reception due to poor preparation and rehearsal.
Performer Biography
Many of the soloists on this recording, including soprano Ruth Guldbæk and contralto Else Brems, had operatic careers, mostly at the Royal Theatre, and were familiar with conductor Launy Grøndahl.
Composer Biography
C.F.E. Horneman, the composer, studied at the Leipzig conservatoire where he met Edvard Grieg, a Norwegian composer and pianist, and other creatively progressive students.
You might also enjoy...
Donizetti: La favorita
Verdi: Otello (Recorded 1958)
Bizet: Carmen
Gounod: Le Tribut de Zamora
Mozart: Così fan tutte
GLUCK, C.W.: Orfeo ed Euridice (Opera) [Neumann]
Le Nozze di Figaro
Cherubini: Medea
Verdi: Il Trovatore
Boito: Nerone
Der Schauspieldirektor - The Impressario
Wagner: Das Rheingold (The Rhinegold), WWV 86a [Recorded 1953]
