Recording of Raff's Samson

[Mark Thomas]

It's beginning to look like Raff's operatic magnum opus, the music drama Samson, may be recorded in 2023. It would be a very big project if the piece is recorded in full: it lasts around two and a half hours and needs a large cast of top flight soloists (and therein lies a major worry). Still, great news if it comes off and I'll keep my ear to the ground.... Details of the opera itself here, by the way.

[Alan Howe]

Which are the major roles - and for which types of voices?

[Mark Thomas]

Main roles: Samson (tenor); Abimelech of Gaza (baritone); Delilah, Abimelech's daughter (soprano); The High Priest of Dagon (bass); Micha, an Israelite deserter (tenor). Other roles:  The High Priestess of Astarte (mezzo-soprano); The Seran of Ascalon (bass); A Gaoler (tenor) A Woman of the People (soprano). Plus a number of tenor and bass soloists or solo groups from the chorus: The Serans (rulers) of Asdod, Ekron & Gath; Three Syrian Seamen; An Israelite Spokesman, Two Levites & Two Israelite Citizens.

The original Samson was to have been Ludwig Schnorr von Carolsfeld, the tenor who created Tristan, which gives us an idea of the range and power of the part, and he was very enthusiastic about its challenges. Samson was to have been his next major role but he died shortly after the premiere of Tristan & Isolde and the planned staging of Samson was abandoned.

[Alan Howe]

For Samson, I'd contact US tenor Andrew Richards: https://www.facebook.com/OperaRocksAndrewRichards/

[Mark Thomas]

I'm not involved in the recording in any way, but I'll pass that on to those moving and shaking this project. Thanks.

[Alan Howe]

Or Joshua Kohl, again an American - who sings Eiolf in the forthcoming Naxos/Hulda set:
http://www.joshuakohltenor.com/about

[Mark Thomas]

Ta.

[adcsound]

Dear Friends,

I'm in charge of this project. The recording session will take place in Basel with the Sinfonieorchester Basel under the baton of Ivor Bolton.
Sessions 'll be in August 2023 and I have two weeks to get everything in the box, which is something exceptional today!
Again for the Schweizer Fonogramm label.

Don't ask for the cast, I'll say nothing until the team is completed...

Cheers from Bern,

Frederic.

[Justin]

I am glad to hear that the recording will be done on a label with a high production quality!

[Mark Thomas]

Thank you Frederic, this is a tremendously exciting project and should prove to be a real revelation!

[Alan Howe]

Yes, absolutely wonderful news! Great for us fans of Raff in general - and great for those (like me!) who want to find out where this opera fits in the history of the genre.

It's good to see a full-sized orchestra being used for this project. The instruments specified are: piccolo; 2 flutes; 2 oboes; 2 clarinets; 2 bassoons; 4 horns; 3 trumpets; alto trombone; tenor trombone; bass trombone; tuba; timpani; triangle; cymbals; bass drum; snare drum; strings.

[adcsound]

Plus English horn, bass clarinet and Harp.
There is also a stage music with trumpets, horns and trombones.

[Alan Howe]

English horn = cor anglais (that's what we call it in the UK!!)

In other words: wow!

[adcsound]

Sorry for the mistake, c'est donc comme en français. Merci Alan!

[Mark Thomas]

The Notes which Frederic has made available are from Edition Nordstern's modern edition of the score, and include the introductory comments from my own Book: The Music of Joachim Raff - an illustrated Catalogue. Samson is the nearest Raff got to Wagnerian music drama, and the work was at least begun when he was in thrall to Wagner, whom he'd encountered when working with and for Liszt in Weimar. By the time Samson was finished, Raff had become quite antipathetic to much of Wagner's musical philosophy, and so it'll be fascinating to hear how the opera turned out. It should certainly be spectacular on stage, something we're promised next year in a production in Weimar, although whether it'll be subjected to the awful German Regietheater aesthetic remains to be seen.