Today : world première of 'Jack the Ripper' by Iain Bell in London (ENO)

Today, the English National Opera in London presents the world première of Jack the Ripper : The Women of Whitechapel, an opera composed by Iain Bell with a libretto by Emma Jenkins.

© Frances Marshall

It is the composer's fourth opera, after A Harlot's Progress (Vienna, October 2013), A Christmas Carol (Houston, December 2014), and In Parenthesis (Cardiff, May 2016).

A disadvantaged group of working-class women are drawn together in their determination to survive the murderous terror that stalks London's Whitechapel in 1888. Mary Kelly, who runs a doss house with her grandmother Maud, is teaching her daughter Iris to read and write to give her a chance to have a better life. But as the darkness descends and Mary watches the women in her life start to disappear, the community turn to her to find a way out of the labyrinth. (reproduced from the ENO website)

The cast includes soprano Claudia Boyle (Mary Kelly), soprano Josephine Barstow (Maud), soprano Janis Kelly (Polly Nichols), soprano Marie McLaughlin (Annie Chapman), soprano Susan Bullock (Liz Stride), soprano Lesley Garrett (Catherine Eddowes), baritone Alan Opie (The Pathologist), bass baritone Robert Hayward (Commissioner of Police) and tenor Nicky Spence (Sergeant Johnny Strong). Martyn Brabbins conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the English National Opera. Daniel Kramer directs.

The required orchestra is the following (reproduced from the Music Sales Classical website) :

- 2 flutes (doubling piccolo), 2 oboes (doubling English horn), 2 clarinets (doubling bass clarinet), 2 bassoons (doubling contrabassoon) ;
- 2 horns, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones, 1 tuba ;
- timpani, percussion, cymbalum, harp ;
- strings (12.10.8.6.4).

The opera is co-produced with Opera North.

Today : world première of 'The Monstrous Child' by Gavin Higgins in London

Today, the Royal Opera House in London presents the world première of The Monstrous Child, an opera composed by Gavin Higgins, with a libretto by Francesca Simon based on her own children book.

It is the composer's first opera.

Hel is the daughter of Norse god Loki and the giantess Angrboda. She’d be an ordinary teenager if it wasn’t for the fact that she’s half girl and half corpse. A prophecy predicts that Hel’s brothers are fated to bring forth the end of days, and in an attempt to prevent this the Gods kidnap all three of Loki’s monstrous children and take them to Asgard. Here, Hel becomes infatuated with Baldr, son of Odin (the king of the Gods). Odin banishes her to Niflheim to rule over the dead for eternity, where she continues to dream of Baldr. When Baldr unexpectedly appears in Nifelheim, Hel is forced to face up to reality and her fate. (reproduced from the Royal Opera House website)

The cast includes mezzo Marta Fontanals-Simmons (Hel), mezzo Rosie Aldridge (Angrboda), tenor tom Randle (Loki / God), mezzo Lucy Schaufer (Modgud) and bass Graeme Broadbent (Odin). Jessica Cottis conducts the Aurora Orchestra. Timothy Sheader directs.

The venue is the Linbury Theatre. The performance should last about 2 hours, including one interval.

New programme books in my collection

I have recently acquired several programme books for contemporary operas :

- Jonas S. Bohlin, Tristessa, Stockholm, October 6, 2018
It is a 28 pages brochure. It contains :
- complete cast and crew with B & W headshots ;
- synopsis (in Swedish and English) ;
- Torbjörn Elensky : Angela Carter satte allt på spel (Angela Carter put everything at stake) ;
- Torbjörn Eriksson : interview with Katharina Thoma ;
- Katarina Aronsson : Operan är scenkonstens moder (Opera is the mother of the performing arts), interview with visual artist Ann-Sofi Sidén ;
- Jonas S. Bohlin : Känslan av att stå utanför är en erfarenhet som påverkat mitt liv (The feeling of standing outside is an experience that has affected my life) ;
- Tiina Rosenberg : Divor är trasiga tanter, excerpt of HBTQ spelar roll (LGBT plays a role) ;
- several color photos.
The brochure is entirely in Swedish, unless otherwise stated.

- Niklas Brommare, När då då, Stockholm, October 13, 2018
It is a 28 pages brochure. It contains :
- complete cast and crew with B & W headshots ;
- color photos of rehearsals and drawings (sketches of characters), with quotes of the libretto.
The brochure is entirely in Swedish.

- Christian Diendorfer, Die Wand, Linz, Septembre 16, 2018
It is a 32 pages brochure. It contains :
- complete cast and crew ;
- synopsis ;
- Ira Goldbecher : Marlen Haushofer, kurze biografische Einblicke ;
- Hermann Schneider : Zum Libretto ;
- Dialogue with Eva-Maria Melbye (director) and Marcus Olson (set designer) : Eine poetische Neufassung ;
- Composer's biography ;
- several color photos.
The brochure is entirely in German.

 - Adam Gorb, The Path to Heaven, Leeds, June 19, 2018
It is a 20 pages brochure. It contains :
- complete cast and crew ;
- synopsis ;
- biographies of artists with color headshots ;
- color photos of rehearsals ;
- complete libretto.
The brochure is entirely in English.

- Michael Jarrell, Bérénice, Paris, September 29, 2018
It is a 136 pages book. It contains :
- Complete cast ;
- In Brief (French and English) ;
- Synopsis and Characters (Franch and English) ;
- Timeline (French and English) ;
- Michael Jarrell : Faire chanter le français de Racine ;
- Philippe Albèra : Un portrait de Michael Jarrell ;
- Julia de Gasquet : L'instant et le moment : l'alexandrin métamorphosé ;
- Georges Forestier : Racine et le choix de Bérénice ;
- Christian-Georges Schwentzel : La reine "amie" et l'empereur ;
- Konrad Kuhn : Une pièce contemporaine ;
- Nathalie Azoulai : Tous les cahots de l'abandon (excerpt of Titus n'aimait pas Bérénice) ;
- complete libretto ;
- B & W photos of rehearsals ;
- biographies of the artists, with B& W headshots.
The book is entirely in French, unless otherwise stated.

- David Sawer, The Skating Rink, Wormsley (Garsington Opera), July 5, 2018
It is a 128 pages book that contains information on all four operas performed this year. There are actually 10 pages about The Skating Rink, not included the artists' biographies. It contains :
- complete cast and crew ;
- synopsis ;
- Creative Collaboration, David Sawer and Rory Mullarkey in conversation with Fiona Maddocks ;
- Chris Andrews : Roberto Bolaño and 'The Skating Rink' ;
- Enric's dream of skating, excerpt of Bolañ's The Skating Rink.
Biographies of artists with B & W headshots are included in the general roster for the Festival.

Other new programmes for past operas :

- Thomas Adès, Powder Her Face, Irish National Opera, Wexford, February 24, 2018. The opera was first performed in 1995. I also have the programme book for performances in Bologna (November 2010) ;
- Harrison Birtwistle, The Last Supper, Berlin (Staatsoper Unter den Linden), April 18, 2000 (world première). It contains a leaflet with complete cast and crew and another leaflet with biographies ot the artists ;
- Friedrich Cerha, Onkel Präsident, Munich (Gärtnerplatztheater im Prinzregententheater), June 1st, 2013 (world première) ;

- Silvia Colasanti, La metamorfosi, Firenze (Teatro Goldoni), March 9, 2014. The opera was first performed in the same theatre in May 2012 ;
- Nico Muhly, Two Boys, London (English National Opera), June 24, 2011 (world première) ;

- Hans Schanderl, Der Maschinist, Magdeburg, September 23, 2000. The opera was first performed on September 16, 2000 in Hannover. It contains a separate leaflet with the complete cast and crew ;
- Marco Tutino, Le Braci, Firenze, November 5, 2015. The opera was first performed in Budapest in October 2014.

I now have 599 programme books for contemporary operas. I have scanned all the covers and uploaded them to this flickr folder.

New programme books in my collection

I have recently acquired several programme books for contemporary operas :

 - John Adams, The Death of Klinghoffer, London (ENO), February 25, 2012.
It is a 98 pages book, with only 48 pages related to the opera. The opera was first performed in Brussels in 1991. I already have programme books from Lyon (1991) and Long Beach (2014).
- John Adams, Doctor Atomic, London (ENO), February 25, 2009.
It is a 78 pages book, with 36 pages related to the opera. The opera was first performed in San Francisco in 2005. I already have programme books from Amsterdam (2007) and Strasbourg (2014).
- Gavin Bryars, Doctor Ox's Experiment, London (ENO), June 15, 1998.
It is a 42 pages brochure. This is the programme for the world première performance.

 
- John Cage, Europeras 1 & 2, Braunschweig, November 25, 2017.
It is a 32 pages brochure. The operas were first performed in Frankfurt in 1987.
- Elliott Carter, What Next ?, München, November 20, 2011.
It is a 40 pages brochure. It also includes a separate 12 pages leaflet with biographies of the artists. The opera was first performed in Berlin in 1999. Puccini's Gianni Schicchi was performed as the first part of a double bill evening. I have another programme for a concert version in Paris in 2000.
- Peter Eötvös, Tri Sestri, München, February 8, 2010.
It is a 44 pages brochure. It also includes a separate 12 pages leaflet with biographies of the artists. The opera was first performed in Lyon in 1998. I have the programme book the the world première and another one for performances at the Wiener Staatsoper in March 2016.

 
- Philip Glass, The Making of the Representative for Planet 8, London (ENO), November 17, 1988.
It is a 48 pages brochure. The opera was first performed in Houston in July 1988. The performances in London were the first in Europe.
- Philip Glass, The Perfect American, London (ENO), June 1, 2013.
It is a 76 pages book, with only 38 pages related to the opera. The opera was first performed in Madrid in January 2013. I have the programme book for the world première.
- Iain Hamilton, The Royal Hunt of the Sun, London (ENO), February 2, 1977.
It is a 44 pages brochure. This is the programme for the world première.

- Hans Werner Henze, Die Bassariden, München, May, 19, 2008.
It is a 140 pages book. It also includes a separate 6 pages leaflet with biographies of the artists. The opera was first performed in Salzburg in 1966. I have another programme book for performances in Paris in 2005.
- Helmut Lachenmann, Das Mädchen mit den Schwefelhölzern, Hamburg, January 26, 1997.
It is a 48 pages book. This is the programme book for the world première. I already have two other programme books for this opera : Paris in September 2001 and Stuttgart in October 2001.
- Jost Meier, Dreyfus - Die Affäre, Basel, October 16, 1994.
It is a 112 pages book. The opera was first performed in Berlin in May 1994. I have another programme brochure for performances at New York City Opera in April 1996.

- Lucia Ronchetti, Rivale, Braunschweig, October 29, 2017.
It is a 16 pages leaflet. The opera was first performed in Berlin on October 8, 2017. I have the programme book for the world première.
- Poul Ruders, The Handmaid's Tale, London (ENO), April 3, 2003.
It is a 96 pages brochure, with only 40 pages dedicated to the opera. The opera was first performed in Copenhagen in 2000.
- Aulis Sallinen, The King Goes Forth to France, London (Royal Opera House), April 1, 1987.
It is a 72 pages brochures, with only 32 pages dedicated to the opera. The opera was first performed in Savonlinna in 1984.

- Mark Anthony Turnage, Greek, London (ENO), September 27, 1990.
It is a 64 pages brochure. The opera was first performed in München in June 1988. I have two other programme books for this opera : Wuppertal in 1992 and Paris in 2000.
- Mark Anthony Turnage, The Silver Tassie, London (ENO), February 16, 2000.
It is a 96 pages brochure. This is the programme for the world première.
- Rufus Wainwright, Prima Donna, Augsburg, February 3, 2018.
It is a 24 pages brochure. The opera was first performed in Manchester in 2009.

I now have 586 programme books for contemporary operas. I have scanned and uploaded all the covers to this flickr folder.

Today : world première of 'Cave' by Tansy Davies in London

Today, the Royal Opera House and the London Sinfonietta present the world première of Cave, a chamber opera in 8 scenes for 2 singers and ensemble with electronics, composed by Tansy Davies, with a libretto by Nick Drake.

(c) Maurice Foxall

It is the composer's second opera after Between Worlds, first performed by English National Opera at the Barbican on April 11, 2015.

This music theatre work follows a grieving man’s quest for survival and renewal, in a dystopian future of desert shopping malls and melting ancient glaciers. Desperate to connect one last time with his lost daughter, he enters a dark cave, and so begins his journey into the underworld of spirits. (reproduced from the Royal Opera House website)

The cast include tenor Mark Padmore (Man) and contralto Elaine Mitchener (Hannah). Geoffrey Paterson conducts the London Sinfonietta. Lucy Bailey directs.

The performance should last about 60 minutes. The venue is Printworks.

Today : world première of 'Mamzer Bastard' by Na'ama Zisser in London

Today, the Royal Opera House and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama present the world première of Mamzer Bastard, a chamber opera by Na'ama Zisser, with a libretto (in English, Hebrew and Yiddish) by Samantha Newton and Rachel C. Zisser.

It is the composer's second opera after Black Sand (London, 2013).

It is the night before Yoel’s wedding, an arranged marriage within his Orthodox Hasidic community. He is wracked with doubt. A chance encounter with a stranger reveals truths about Yoel that change everything. (reproduced from the Royal Opera House website)

The cast includes countertenor Collin Shay (Yoel), baritone Steven Page (Stranger), mezzo Gundula Hintz (Esther), tenor Robert Burt (Menash) and cantor Netanel Hershtik (David). Jessica Cottis conducts the Aurora Orchestra. Jay Scheib directs.

The venue is the Hackney Empire. The performance should last about 90 minutes (no interval).

Today : world première of 'Lessons in Love and Violence' by George Benjamin in London

Today, the Royal Opera House in London presents the world première of George Benjamin's new opera, Lessons in Love and Violence, with a libretto by Martin Crimp.

It is the third opera composed by George Benjamin, after Into the Little Hill (Paris, November 22, 2006) and Written on Skin (Aix-en-Provence, July 7, 2012), both with librettos by Martin Crimp.

A king is forced to choose between love and political expediency. His decisions allow his country to slide into civil war, and turn his wife and son against him. (reproduced from the Royal Opera House website)

The cast includes baritone Stéphane Degout (King), soprano Barbara Hannigan (Isabel) ; baritone Gyula Orendt (Gaveston / Stranger), tenor Peter Hoare (Mortimer) and tenor Samuel Boden (Boy / Young King). The composer conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. Katie Mitchell directs.

The performance should last about 1 hour and 40 minutes. No intermission.

There will be 6 performances in London. Then, the production will travel to Amsterdam (June 2018), Hamburg (April 2019, conducted by Kent Nagano) and Lyon (May 2019).

Vocal score and libretto, published by Faber Music, are already available.

Today : world première of 'Coraline' by Mark-Anthony Turnage in London

Today, the Royal Opera House presents the world première performance of Mark-Anthony Turnage's Coraline, an opera for family audience, with a libretto by Rory Mullarkey based on the novel by Neil Gaiman.

(c) Philip Gatward

It is the composer's fifth opera. His previous works for the stage include Greek (1988), The Silver Tassie (2000) and Anna Nicole (2011).

Coraline opens a mysterious door in her parents’ home to discover an Other World. It is inhabited by her Other Mother and Other Father, who have buttons instead of eyes. Everything seems better in the Other World – to start with, at least…
Coraline discovers that the Other Mother wants to trap her in the Other World forever, and has kidnapped Coraline’s real parents to try to force her hand. But Coraline tricks her and she and her parents finally escape safely back home. (reproduced from the Royal Opera House website)

The cast includes soprano Mary Bevan (Coraline), mezzo Kitty Whately (Moter / Other Mother), baritone Alexander Robin Baker (Father / Other Father), soprano Gillian Keith (Miss Spink), mezzo Frances McCafferty (Miss Forcible) and tenor Harry Nicoll (Mr Bobo). Sian Edwards conducts the Britten Sinfonia. Aletta Collins conducts. The opera is performed at the Barbican Theatre.

The full score is published by Boosey & Hawkes. It is available for online perusal. According to the score, the requested orchestra is the following :

- flute (doubling piccolo), oboe (doubling Cor anglais), clarinet in Bb, bass clarinet, basson, horn in F ;
- trumpet in C, trombone ;
- harp, piano (doubling celesta), percussion (1) ;
- 1 violin, 1 viola, 2 cellos, 1 double bass.

The performance should last about 90 minutes.

4 new recent program books in my collection

I have recently acquired 4 new program books for contemporary operas :

- Arnulf Herrmann, Der Mieter, Frankfurt, November 12, 2017 ;
- Krzysztof Knittel, The Last Judgement, Gdansk, November 9, 2017 ;
- Nico Muhly, Marnie, London (ENO), November 18, 2017 ;
- Salvatore Sciarrino, Ti vedo, ti sento, mi perdo, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), November 14, 2017.

The first one is a 96 pages book. It contains :

- crew for the production ;
- synopsis of the opera ;
- Das Klopfen der Nachbarn und das zerbrechende Glas, interview of composer Arnulf Herrmann and librettist Händl Klaus by dramatugist Zsolt Horpacsy ;
- Markus Böggemann : Energien, erfahrbar gemarcht (über Arnulf Herrmann) ;
- Kazushi Ono : Ein Gefühl des Schwankens (Anmerkungen zur Musik von Der Mieter) ;
- Alles Falle, interview of director Johannes Erath and set designer Kaspar Glarner by dramaturgist Zsolt Horpacsy ;
- Anja Petersen : Wie im Schwindel ;
- Memoiren eines alten Arschlochs, Portrait von Roland Topor ;
- Alexander Garcia Düttmann : Verwandlung, Gedanken zu Roland Topors Roman Le Locataire chimérique ;
- Georg Hensel : Ein Sonntagsmaler des Grauens ;
- 16 pages of color photos of the production ;
- Händl Klaus : Hausmitteilung, Schutzdichtung für Muriel ;
- the complete libretto.

The programme book is entirely in German. At the end of it, there is a 3 pages synopsis in English. There is a separate 6 pages flyer with the complete cast and crew and a separate 12 pages booklet with biographies of the artists with black and white headshots.

The second one is a 24 pages booklet. It contains :

- complete cast and crew :
- a short article by composer Krzysztof Knittel ;
- biographies of artists with black and white headshots ;
- synopsis ;
- an article on Hans Memling's painting The Last Judgement, by Alicja Andrzejewska-Zajac and Magdalena Podgorzak.

It is entirely in Polish.

The third one is a 62 pages book. It contains :

- complete cast and crew ;
- synopsis ;
- Nico Muhly : Writing 'Marnie' ;
 - a short excerpt of Winston Graham's original novel Marnie ;
- Paul Cremo ; Exploring 'Marnie' ;
- Winston Graham on 'Marnie', excerpt of Graham's Memoirs of a Private Man ;
- Paul Griffiths : Singing by Other Means : An Introduction to Nico Muhly's Music ;
- biographies of cast and crew, with black and white headshots. 

The fourth and last one is a 156 pages book. It contains :

- La scena, il dramma, il mito, l'oblio ;
- Organico strumentale (orchestral setting) ;
- complete libretto only in Italian ;
- synopsis in Italian by Cesare Fertonani, with translations in French, English, German, Japanese and
Russian ;
- Cesare Fertonani : Salvatore Sciarrino ;
- Cesare Fertonani : L'opera in breve ;
- Gianluigi Mattietti : La musica ;
- Enzo Restagno : Ti vedo, ti sento, mi perdo ;
- Andrea De Carlo : Stradella, o dell'atemporalità ;
- Raffaele Mellace : Alessandro Stradella ;
- Anna Paniale : Il teatro nel teatro - Alcune riflessioni di Jürgen Flimm ;
- Luca Chierici : Salvatore Sciarrino alla Scala dal 1969 al 2014 (with 'Cronologia') ;
- biographies of the artists with headshots.

With the exception of the translations of the synopsis, the book is entirely in Italian.

I now have 505 programme books for contemporary operas. All covers have been scanned and uploaded to this flickr folder.

Today : world première of Nico Muhly's 'Marnie' in London (ENO)

Today, the English National Opera in London presents the world première of Nico Muhly's new opera, Marnie, with a libretto by Nicholas Wright, based on Winston Graham's novel.

It is the composer's third opera after Dark Sisters (Gotham Chamber Opera, New York, November 9, 2011) and Two Boys (London, ENO, June 24, 2011).

A young woman makes her way through life by embezzling from her employers, before she moves on and changes her identity. When her current boss Mark Rutland catches her red-handed, he blackmails her into a loveless marriage. Marnie is left with no choice but to confront the hidden trauma from her past. (reproduced from the ENO website)

The cast includes mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke (Marnie), baritone Daniel Okulitch (Mark Rutland), countertenor James Laing (Terry Rutland), tenor Alasdair Elliott (Mr Strutt),contralto Kathleen Wilkinson (Marnie's mother) and soprano Lesley Garrett (Mrs Rutland). Martyn Brabbins conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the English National Opera. Michael Meyer directs.

The performance should last about 2 hours and 40 minutes. The opera will be broadcast by BBC Radio 3 on December 9, 2017.

New programme books in my collection : Dove, Schnyder and Zender

I have recently acquired three new programme books for contemporary operas :

- Jonathan Dove, The Day After, London (ENO Studio Live), May 26, 2017 (half of a 32 pages brochure, the other half is about Gilbert & Sullivan's Trial by Jury) ;
- Daniel Schnyder, Charlie Parker's Yardbird, London (ENO at Hackney Empire), June 9, 2017 (24 pages brochure) ;
- Hans Zender, Stephen Climax, Brussels (La Monnaie), Novembre 10, 1990 (144 pages book).

I now have 488 programme books for contemporary operas. All scanned covers are in this flickr folder.

Received this morning : programme book for Wigglesworth's 'The Witner's Tale' in London (ENO)

This Friday morning, I have received in the mail the programme book published by the English National Opera in London for the world première of Ryan Wigglesworth's opera The Winter's Tale.

It is a 68 pages book. It contains :

- complete cast and crew ;
- synopsis ;
- The Winter's Tale : the Composer's View, by Ryan Wigglesworth ;
- Ryan Wigglesworth : An Overview, by Julian Anderson ;
- A Tale of Contrasts, by stage director Rory Kinnear ;
- 'A sad tale's best for winter', by Jonathan Bate ;
- biographies of the artists, with B&W headshots.

It is my 448th programme book for contemporary operas. All covers have been scanned and uploaded to this flickr folder.

Today : world première of Ryan Wigglesworth 'The Winter's Tale' in London (ENO)

Today, the English National Opera in London presents the world première of Ryan Wigglesworth's opera The Winter's Tale, with a libretto by the composer adapted from Shakespeare's play.

It is the composer's first opera.

Many years ago, in the grip of a jealous rage, King Leontes caused the death of his loyal wife Hermione and their young son. All seemed lost for him. But now, as spring blossoms, Leontes stands repentant before a statue of his queen, praying for a miracle of redemption. (reproduced from the ENO website)

The cast includes bass baritone Iain Paterson (Leontes), soprano Sophie Bevan (Hermione), mezzo Samantha Price (Perdita), baritone Leigh Melrose (Polixenes), tenor Anthony Gregory (Florizel) and mezzo Susan Bickley (Paulina). The composer conducts the ENO Chorus and Orchestra. Rory Kinnear directs.

According the Schott Music publisher website, the required orchestra is the following :

- 4 flutes (3. doubling piccolo, 4. doubling piccolo and alto flute), 2 oboes, 1 English horn, 3 clarinets (2. and 4. doubling bass clarinets), 2 bassoons, 1 contrabassoon ;

- 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba ;

- timpani and  3 percussionists (including suspended cymblas, anvil, tubular bells, maracas, tam-tam crash cymbal and templblocks) ;

- harp and strings (12-10-8-6-5).

The performance should last about 2 h 05 minutes, including a 25 minutes interval.

Received in the mail this morning : program book for 'Morgen und Abend' in London

This Wednesday morning, I have received in the mail the program book for Morgen und Abend, by composer Georg Friedrich Haas.

It was first performed at the Royal Opera House (Covent Garden) in London on Friday November 13th. It is a 100 pages book and it contains :

- complete cast and crew ;
- black and white photos of rehearsals ;
- Waht Can It Mean ?, by Will Richmond ;
- The Music of Georg Friedrich Haas; by Tim Rutherford-Johnson ;
- 'Perhaps...' : Jon Fosse in the Theatre, by Andrew Dickson ;
- The Undiscovered Country, by Andrew Davison ;
- extensive biographies of composer Georg Friedrich Haas and librettist Jon Fosse ;
- biographies of artists, most of them with black and white headshots.

In this flickr folder, you can see the scanned covers of all 382 program books for contemporary operas I have in my collection.

Today : world première of 'Morgen und Abend' by Georg Friedrich Haas in London

Today, the new opera composed by Georg Friedrich Haas, Morgen und Abend, with a libretto by Jon Fosse, will be performed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in London.

It is the composer's seventh opera, since Adolf Wölfli (Graz, 1981). His work for the stage includes Melancholia (Paris, 2008), Bluthaus (Schwetzingen, 2011, revised for Hamburg, 2014) and Thomas (Schwetzingen, 2013).

Johannes the fisherman, a simple man in the autumn of his years, recalls his past life, the two people who meant most to him – his wife and his friend Peter, who have both long since passed away. Johannes’ yearning will come to an end on this day. When his daughter comes to check on him the following morning, she finds him dead. (reproduced from the publisher website)

The cast includes actor Klaus Maria Brandauer (Olai), baritone Christoph Pohl (Johannes), soprano Sarah Wegener (Signe / Midwife), tenor Will Hartmann (Peter) and alto Helena Rasker (Erna). Michael Boder conducts the Royal Opera Chorus and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. Graham Vick directs.

The orchestra is the following :

- 3 flutes (all doubling piccolo), 2 oboes, English horn (3rd doubling oboe), 2 clarinets in B, bass clarinet in B (doubling clarinet in E flat) , 2 bassoons, 1 contrabassoon ;
- 4 horns in F, 2 trumpets in C, 2 trombones, tuba ;
- timpani and 2 percussions, accordion ;
- strings (12-10-8-8-6).

The opera should last about 90 minutes. The opera will be broadcast by BBC Radio 3 on December 5th. The same production will be performed at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin in April 2016. The full score is available for viewing on the Universal Edition website.

Today : world première of Luke Styles' 'Macbeth' in Glyndebourne

Today, Macbeth, the fifth opera composed by Luke Styles, with a libretto by Ted Huffman after William Shakespeare, will be performed in Glyndebourne, at the Jerwood Studio.

Luke Styles is Glyndebourne's recent Young Composer-in-Residence. His first three operas have received their first performance there : Lovers Walk in 2012 (youth opera), Wakening Shadow in 2013 (chamber opera), Tycho's Dream in 2014 (youth opera). The fourth, Unborn in America was performed last January at the Vault Festival London.

This new opera (commissioned by Glyndebourne) is conceived for 12 principals singers and a chamber orchestra of 12 instruments. It will be performed by Ed Ballard (Macbeth), Aidan Coburn (Lady Macbeth), Alessandro Fischer (Banquo), Michael Wallace (Malcolm), Richard bignall (Macduff), accompanied by soloists from the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Jeremy Bines conducts and librettist Ted Huffman directs.

Macbeth will also be performed in London, at the Linbury Studio Theatre (Royal Opera House) next September (first night, September 9th).