Today : world première of Kris Defoort's 'The Time of Our Singing' in Brussels

Today, the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels presents the world première of The Time of Our Singing, an opera composed by Kris Defoort with a libretto in English by Peter van Kraaij, after Richard Powers' novel.

 

It is the composer's third opera after The Woman Who Walked Into Doors (Brussels, November 23rd, 2001) and House of the Sleeping Beauties (Brussels, May 8th, 2009).

Black Lives Matter, police brutality, rigged elections : these are themes that have remained at the forefront of current affairs over the past year. The work depicts the life of a mixed-race family that is both united and divided by music, against the backdrop of segregation in the post-war United States. The composer conjures an imaginary space in which official history and personal histories intertwine, in which people come together to weave a narrative, and in which jazz and classical music are enriched by one another. (reproduced from the Monnaie website)

The cast includes soprano Claron McFadden (Delia Daley), bas baritone Mark S. Doss (William Daley), bass baritone Simon Bailey (David Strom), tenor Levy Sekgapane (Jonah), baritone Peter Brathwaite (Joey) and jazz singer Abigail Abraham (Ruth). Kwamé Ryan conducts the La Monnaie Chamber orchestra, a jazz quartet and La Monnaie's Children's and Youth Choir.

A recording of the performances will be broadcast by Klara and Musiq3 on November 6.

Today : world première of Kris Defoort's 'Daral Shaga' in Limoges

Today, Kris Defoort's new opera, Daral Shaga, will be performed for the first time in Limoges, France.

It is the composer's third opera, after The Woman who Walked into Doors (Ghent, 2001) and The House of Sleeping Beauties (Brussels, 2009). The libretto in French has been written by Laurent Gaudé.

Daral Shaga is the story of a wall standing between two worlds, a wall some manage to get across, but others may never reach. That wall shuts one out from everything especially freedom.
Young Nadra and her migrant father, along with the choir, tell about a voyage, a crossing and the loss of identity. It is about a contemporary and timeless issue : the dream of an exile, in which all kinds of arts combine, and eventually narrate a universal tale about indignation as a way to stand up against despair and freedom, against oblivion. In the very middle of all this, a God gets created as he gives up the race : Daral Shaga is, indeed, the one who has not succeeded in crossing the wall. (reproduced from www.operalimoges.fr)

The opera should last about 90 minutes. It is conceived for three singers (mezzo soprano Michaele Riener, bass Maciej Straburzynski and baritone Tiemo Wang), three musicians (Fabian Fiorini, piano, Lode Vercampt, cello and Bogdan Varlan, clarinet) and circassian artists (Feria Musica). Philippe de Coen conducts and Fabrice Murgia directs.

The opera will also be performed in Besançon (October 2014), Strasbourg (December 2014) and Grenoble (March 2015).

New Season 2014-2015 at La Monnaie (De Munt) in Brussels

During the 2014-2015 season, the following operas will be performed at La Monnaie (De Munt) in Brussels :

- Richard Strauss : Daphne, conducted by Lothar Koenigs, directed by Guy Joosten ;
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart : Don Giovanni, conducted by Ludovic Morlot, directed by Krzysztof Warlikowski ;
- Georg Friedrich Haendel : Tamerlano, conducted by Christophe Rousset, directed by Pierre Audi ;
- Georg Friedrich Haendel : Alcina, conducted by Christophe Rousset, directed by Pierre Audi ;
- Wolfgang Rihm : Jakob Lenz, conducted by Franck Ollu, directed by Andrea Breth ;
- Pascal Dusapin : Penthesilea, conducted by Ludovic Morlot,directed by Katie Mitchell ;
- Giuseppe Verdi : Un Ballo in maschera, conducted by Carlo Rizzi, directed by Alex Ollé ;
- Sergei Rachmaninov : Aleko, The Miserly Knight and Francesca da Rimini, conducted by Mikhail Tatarnikov, directed by Kirsten Dehlholm.

and in concert :
- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart : Die Entführung aus dem Serail, conducted by René Jacobs ;
- Franz Schubert : Fierrabras, conducted by Adam Fischer ;
- Giovanni Paisiello : Il Barbiere di Siviglia, conducted by René Jacobs ;
- Frank Martin : Le Vin herbé, conducted by Hans-Christoph Rademann.

1 world première : Penthesilea ;
4 new productions : Daphne, Don Giovanni, Jakob Lenz and the Rachmaninov trilogy ;
3 revivals : Tamerlano (first performed in Stockholm in 2000, then in Munich in 2008), Alcina (first performed in Stockholm in 2000, then in Amsterdam in 2005) and Un Ballo in maschera (first performed in January 2013).

Since 2007, the following operas received their world première performances in Brussels :
- Luc Brewaeys, L'Uomo dal fiore in bocca, in February 2007 ;
- Benoît Mernier,  Frühlings Erwachen, in March 2007 ;
- Pierre Bartholomée, La Lumière Antigone, in April 2008 ;
- Kris Defoort, House of the Sleeping Beauties, in May 2009 ;
- Toshio Hosokawa, Matsukaze, in May 2011 ;
- Benoît Mernier, La Dispute, in March 2013 ;
- Howard Moody, Sindbad - A Journey through Living Flames, in February 2014 ;
- Philippe Boesmans, Au Monde, in March 2014.

With an average of one new opera every season, La Monnaie in Brussels remains one of the most interesting opera theatres in Europe.