Engel: Grete Minde

[mikehopf]

Eugen Engel: Grete Minde - a late romantic opera of the 1920s on Deutschlandfunk Kultur Saturday night.

Opernbühne (Starts at 1805/1:05PM): Theater Magdeburg
Aufzeichnung vom 13.02.2022
Eugen Engel ,,Grete Minde" – Oper in drei Akten
Libretto von Hans Bodenstedt nach Theodor Fontanes gleichnamiger Novelle Uraufführung

Gerdt Minde – Marko Pantelić, Bariton
Trud Minde – Kristi Anna Isene, Sopran
Grete Minde – Raffaela Lintl, Sopran
Emerentz Zernitz – Jadwiga Postrożna, Mezzosopran
Valtin – Jonathan Winell, Tenor
Der alte Gigas – Paul Sketris, Bass
Peter Guntz – Johannes Stermann, Bass
Der Puppenspieler – Johannes Wollrab, Bariton
Der Hanswurst – Benjamin Lee, Tenor
Zenobia – Na'ama Shulman, Sopran
Die Domina – Karina Repova, Mezzosopran
Ein Wirt – Frank Heinrich, Bariton

Opernchor des Theaters Magdeburg
Magdeburgische Philharmonie
Leitung: Anna Skryleva (2 hrs., 55 min.)

Sounds interesting:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/14/holocaust-victims-opera-stored-for-years-in-trunk-gets-premiere-at-last

[Alan Howe]

There's been some publicity about this opera on national radio too. It'll be interesting to find out exactly what the idiom is. The composer, who was a German Jew, was murdered at Sobibor Concentration Camp - hency the publicity.

https://www.jweekly.com/2022/02/07/rediscovered-in-a-basement-jewish-composers-prewar-opera-will-now-be-staged-in-germany/

[Alan Howe]

Some songs by Engel certainly suggest an attractive idiom:

'Nach dem ersten Kuss' (=After the First Kiss):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in4B07sp-tc

'Herbstgefühl' (=Autumn Feeling):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzpsBMzOxtQ

'Geh!' (=Go!):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbS1fkzMfDY

[Wheesht]

It would appear to be that rare thing, a full opera by a self-taught amateur composer – I have my doubts but I may well want to give it a listen.

[Alan Howe]

'Self-taught' may not mean amateurish, of course. We'll see...

[Ebubu]

"that rare thing, a full opera by a self-taught amateur composer "
Like Joplin's Treemonisha, you mean ?

[Wheesht]

Actually, I was referring to the discussion of whether there can be such a person as an amateur composer in connection with Albert Hurwit's Symphony about a month ago.
I'm no Joplin expert but I do know that he had music lessons from one Julius Weiss and that later, in 1897, he enrolled at George R. Smith College in Sedalia which offered a Bachelor of Arts in music. Apparently he studied piano and theory there.

[Alan Howe]

Until we actually hear the opera we won't know. The songs are beautiful, though.

By the way, what formal musical education did Elgar have? Wasn't he largely self-taught? I can imagine someone born with genius being an auto-didact...

[Mark Thomas]

Raff was entirely self-taught, yet he ended up as Director of a prestigious conservatory and teaching the composition class - hardly an amateur. But we digress...

[Wheesht]

I agree that there's not much point in discussing the opera without having heard it in full. I'll be out tonight but I hope I'll be able to listen later. The songs are beautiful, I agree. Interesting about Elgar.

I was simply reminded of Alan's statement in the Hurwit discussion:

surely it takes professional training to learn how to write music? Even those who are self-taught have to train themselves to do so.

[Alan Howe]

That's where genius comes in.

Even those who are self-taught have to train themselves to do so.

That's exactly what self-taught geniuses do.

Hurwitt isn't that.

[Wheesht]

No, he's not. Now let's hear what Milde turns out to be.

[mikehopf]

Did anyone record this? Colin? PLEASE!

[Wheesht]

It's available to listen to on the Deutschlandfunk Kultur website and there's a download button as well: "Audio herunterladen", but I don't know if this works in every country.

[Mark Thomas]

Yes it does!