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 'Ti vedo, ti sento, mi perdo' by Salvatore Sciarrino in Milan

Today, the Teatro alla Scala in Milano presents the world première performance of Ti vedo, ti sento, mi perdo (To see you, to feel you, to lose me), an opera in two acts composed by Salvatore Sciarrino, with a libretto by the composer.

(c) Luca Carrà

Salvatore Sciarrino has already composed 15 works for the theatre, including Lohengrin (Milano, 1983), Luci mie traditrici (Schwetzingen, 1998), Macbeth (Schwetzingen, 2002), Da gelo a gelo (Schwetzingen, 2006), La porta della legge (Wuppertal, 2009), and Superflumina (Mannheim, 2011).

The subtitle of Ti vedo, ti sento, mi perdo is Waiting for Stradella. This alludes to the fate of Alessandro Stradella, a highly prominent Italian composer during his time, who died in mysterious circumstances in 1682 – the victim of a violent crime. The work is set in the home of Cardinal Colonna in baroque Rome, where a singer, a writer, a musician, a choir and an instrumental ensemble are on stage awaiting the arrival of the composer. But instead of the promised new aria, they receive news of Stradella’s death. In the lead-up, the music and life of this controversial, original artist – a legend during his lifetime – are extensively reported and reflected upon. Different perspectives and values play a role, as do thoughts on human nature, the body, the senses and passion – in other words, the very essence of opera as an art form. (reproduced from the Staatsoper Unter den Linden website)

The cast includes soprano Laura Aikin (La cantatrice), tenor Charles Workman (Musico), bass baritone Otto Katzameier (Letterato), soprano Sonia Grané (Pasquozza), mezzo Lena Haselmann (Chiappina), countertenor Thomas Lichtenecker (Solfetto) and baritone Christian Oldenburg (Finocchio). Maxime Pascal conducts the Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala. Jürgen Flimm directs.

The first performance will be broadcast live by Rai Radio 3. This commission is a coproduction with the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin, where the opera will be performed in July 2018.

New programme books in my collection

I have recently acquired several programme books for contemporary operas :

- Thomas Adès : Powder Her Face, Bologna, November 9, 2010 (95 pages book). First performance in Cheltenham on July 1st, 1995 ;
- Thomas Adès : The Tempest, Wien (Staatsoper), June 14, 2015 (128 pages book). First performance in London (Royal Opera House) on February 10, 2004, for which I also have the programme book ;
- Giorgio Battistelli : Divorzio all'italiana, Bologna, June 11, 2013 (128 pages book). First performance in Nancy on September 30, 2008 ;

 
- Luciano Berio : Cronaca del Luogo, Salzburg, July 24, 1999 (124 pages book, with a 32 pages booklet). World première ;
- Paul Dessau : Einstein, Berlin, February 16, 1974 (16 pages leaflet and 6 pages leaflet in a folder). World première ;
- Moritz Eggert : Linkerhand, Hoyerswerda (Theater Görlitz), May 10, 2009 (182 pages book). World première ;

 
- Peter Eötvös : Tri Sestri, Wien (Staatsoper), March 06, 2016 (124 pages book). First performance in Lyon on March 13, 1998 (for which I have the programme book), and first performance in Wien at the Theater in der Wien on May 25, 2002 ;
- Luca Francesconi : Quartett, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), Avril 26, 2011 (139 pages book). With a separate cast sheet for the third performance. World première ;
- Detlev Glanert : Joseph Süss, München (Gärtnerplatz), March 3, 2012 (48 pages book with a separate 4 pages leaflet with the cast for the 8th performance on April 5 and a 10 pages leaflet with photos). First performance in Bremen on October 13, 1999 ;
- Hans Werner Henze : Phaedra, Firenze, June 5, 2008 (116 pages book). First performance in Berlin on September 6, 2007. I also have the programme book for performances in Brussels in Septembre 2007 ;
- Michael Jarrell : Cassandra, Bologna, October 31, 2014 (73 pages book). First performance in Paris on February 4, 1994, for which I also have the programme ;

 
- Giselher Klebe : Die Fastnachtsbeichte, Darmstadt, Decembre 20, 1983 (40 pages brochure with a separate 8 pages leaflet). World première ;
- Rainer Kunad : Sabellicus, Berlin (Deutsche Staatsoper), December21, 1974 (16 pages brochure with a separate 4 pages leaflet). World première ;
- Alexander Raskatov : A Dog's Heart, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), March 13, 2013 (249 pages book with a separate cast sheet for the third performance). World première in Amsterdam on June 7, 2010. I also have the programme books for the Amsterdam performances and for performances in Lyon (January 20, 2014) ;
- Wolfgang Rihm : Jakob Lenz, Lugo, March 30, 2012 and Bologna, April 12, 2012 (112 pages book). First performance in Hamburg on March 8, 1979. I also have programme books for performances in Strasbourg (September 21, 1993) and Nanterre (October 11, 1995) ;

 
- Salvatore Sciarrino : Luci mie traditrici, Bologna, June 14, 2016 (87 pages book). World première in Schwetzingen on May 19, 1998 ;
- Fabio Vacchi : Teneke, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), September 22, 2007 (192 pages book, with a separate cast sheet for the second performance. World première ;
- Bernd Alois Zimmermann : Die Soldaten, Milano (Teatro alla Scala), January 17, 2015 (200 pages book, with a separate cast sheet for the third performance). The opera was first performed in Köln, on February 15, 1965. I also have programme books for performances in Strasbourg (September 17, 1988), Paris (January 22, 1994), München (May 25, 2014) and Wiesbaden (April 30, 2016).

I now have 469 programme books for contemporary opera. I have uploaded all the scanned covers in this flickr folder.