' (''Songs of Gurre'') is a tripartite

oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...

followed by a melodramatic epilogue for five vocal soloists, narrator, three choruses, and grand orchestra. The work, which is based on an early song cycle for soprano, tenor and piano, was composed by the then-Austrian composer

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian and American composer, music theorist, teacher and writer. He was among the first Modernism (music), modernists who transformed the practice of harmony in 20th-centu ...

from 1900 to 1903. After a break, he resumed orchestration in 1910 and completed it in November 1911. It sets to music the poem cycle ''Gurresange'' by the Danish novelist

Jens Peter Jacobsen Jens Peter Jacobsen (7 April 1847 – 30 April 1885) was a Danish novelist, poet, and scientist, in Denmark often just written as "J. P. Jacobsen". He began the naturalist movement in Danish literature and was a part of the Modern Br ...

(translated from Danish to German by ). The

Gurre Castle Gurre Castle () was a royal castle situated in North Zealand, Denmark. Its ruins lie on the outskirts of Helsingør, close to the town of Tikøb on lake Gurre Sø at Gurre, Denmark, Gurre. The ruins have been excavated and are now restored. His ...

and its surrounding areas in

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

are the settings of the plot, which involves the mediæval love-tragedy (related in Jacobsen's poems) revolving around a legend of the love of king Valdemar Atterdag (Valdemar IV, 1320–1375, German: Waldemar) for his mistress, Tove, and her subsequent murder by Valdemar's jealous wife, Queen Helvig of Schleswig, (a legend which is historically more likely connected with his ancestor Valdemar I). It is the most important tonal work of the composer, alongside '' Verklärte Nacht''.

Composition

In 1900 Schoenberg began composing the work as a

song cycle A song cycle () is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in sequence, as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combinat ...

for

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

, and piano for a competition run by the ''Wiener Tonkünstler-Verein'' (Vienna Composers' Association). It was written in a lush, late-Romantic style heavily influenced by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

and

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

. According to Schoenberg, however, he "finished them half a week too late for the contest, and this decided the fate of the work." Later that year, he radically expanded his original conception, composing links between the first nine songs as well as adding a prelude, the ''Wood Dove's Song'', and the whole of Parts 2 and 3. By the time he returned to the piece in 1910, he had already written his first acknowledged

atonal Atonality in its broadest sense is music that lacks a tonal center, or key. ''Atonality'', in this sense, usually describes compositions written from about the early 20th-century to the present day, where a hierarchy of harmonies focusing on ...

works, such as the '' Three Pieces for Piano'', Op. 11, ''

Five Pieces for Orchestra The ''Five Pieces for Orchestra'' (''Fünf Orchesterstücke''), Op. 16, were composed by Arnold Schoenberg in 1909, and first performed in London in 1912. The titles of the pieces, reluctantly added by the composer after the work's completion up ...

'', Op. 16, and ''

Erwartung ' (''Expectation''), Op. 17, is a one-act monodrama in four scenes by Arnold Schoenberg to a libretto by . Composed in 1909, it was not premiered until 6 June 1924 in Prague conducted by Alexander Zemlinsky with Marie Gutheil-Schoder as the sop ...

'', Op. 17. He had also come under the spell of

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...

, whom he had met in 1903 and whose influence may be discernible in the orchestration of the latter parts of the ''Gurre-Lieder''. Whereas Parts 1 and 2 are clearly Wagnerian in conception and execution, Part 3 features the pared-down orchestral textures and kaleidoscopic shifts between small groups of instruments favoured by Mahler in his later symphonies. In ''Des Sommerwindes wilde Jagd'', Schoenberg also introduced the first use of ''

sprechgesang (, "spoken singing") and (, "spoken voice"), more commonly known as speak-singing in English, are expressionist musical vocal techniques between singing and speaking. Though sometimes used interchangeably, is directly related to the operatic re ...

'' (or ''sprechstimme''), a technique he would explore more fully in '' Pierrot lunaire'' of 1912. The orchestration was finally completed in November 1911.

Premieres

Franz Schreker Franz Schreker (originally ''Schrecker''; 23 March 1878 – 21 March 1934) was an Austrian composer, conductor, librettist, teacher and administrator. Primarily a composer of operas, Schreker developed a style characterized by aesthetic pluralit ...

conducted the premiere of the work in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

on 23 February 1913. By this time, Schoenberg was disenchanted with the style and character of the piece and was even dismissive of its positive reception, saying "I was rather indifferent, if not even a little angry. I foresaw that this success would have no influence on the fate of my later works. I had, during these thirteen years, developed my style in such a manner that to the ordinary concertgoer, it would seem to bear no relation to all preceding music. I had to fight for every new work; I had been offended in the most outrageous manner by criticism; I had lost friends and I had completely lost any belief in the judgement of friends. And I stood alone against a world of enemies." At the premiere, Schoenberg did not even face the members of the audience, many of whom were fierce critics of his who were newly won over by the work; instead, he bowed to the musicians, but kept his back turned to the cheering crowd. Violinist Francis Aranyi called it "the strangest thing that a man in front of that kind of a hysterical, worshipping mob has ever done." It would be wrong to assume that Schoenberg considered ''Gurre-Lieder'' a composition of no merit, however. A few months after the premiere he wrote to

Wassily Kandinsky Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky ( – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter and art theorist. Kandinsky is generally credited as one of the pioneers of abstract art, abstraction in western art. Born in Moscow, he spent his childhood in ...

, "I certainly do not look down on this work, as the journalists always suppose. For although I have certainly developed very much since those days, I have ''not improved'', but my style has simply got better ... I consider it important that people give credence to the elements in this work which I retained later." The first Dutch performance, directed by Schoenberg himself, was in March 1921 in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. Schoenberg's champion and former pupil, the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

programme planner Edward Clark, invited the composer to London to conduct the first British performance on 27 January 1928, in a translation by David Millar Craig. Clark had tried to have the premiere the previous year, on 14 April 1927, but these plans fell through.

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British-born American conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra. H ...

conducted the American premiere on 8 April 1932, with the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

, soloists and chorus.

First recording

Stokowski's performances on 9 and 11 April 1932 were recorded 'live' by

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...

(see below). The company issued the 11 April performance on twenty-seven 78rpm sides, and remained the only recording of the work in the catalogue until the advent of the modern Long Play record. RCA Victor eventually reissued the recording on LP and CD. Bell Laboratories had been experimentally recording the Philadelphia Orchestra in

high fidelity High fidelity (hi-fi or, rarely, HiFi) is the high-quality reproduction of sound. It is popular with audiophiles and home audio enthusiasts. Ideally, high-fidelity equipment has inaudible noise and distortion, and a flat (neutral, uncolored) ...

and stereophonic sound; RCA Victor reportedly used the new technology to record the performances on 33 1/3 rpm masters.

Other performances

A performance of ''Gurre-Lieder'' without intermission runs over an hour and a half. Riccardo Chailly's 1990

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

recording, for example, lasts more than 100 minutes and takes two compact discs. In 2014 the

Dutch National Opera The Dutch National Opera (DNO; formerly De Nederlandse Opera, now De Nationale Opera in Dutch) is a Dutch opera company based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its present home base is the Dutch National Opera & Ballet housed in the Stopera building, a m ...

in Amsterdam was the first company to perform the ''Gurre-Lieder'' as a stage presentation, in a production directed by Pierre Audi.

Structure

The cantata is divided into three parts. Whereas the first two parts are scored for solo voices and orchestra only, the third part introduces a further two soloists, a narrator, three four-part male choruses as well as a full mixed chorus.

Plot

In the first part of the work (approx. 1 hour), the love of Waldemar for Tove and the theme of misfortune and impending death are recounted in nine songs for soprano and tenor with orchestral accompaniment. A long orchestral interlude leads to the ''Wood Dove's Song'', arguably the most famous part of the work, which tells of Tove's death and Waldemar's grief. The brief second part (5 mins) consists of just one song in which the bereft and distraught Waldemar accuses God of cruelty. As punishment for this, God curses Waldemar and his dead men to ride across Gurre lake each night. In the third part (approx. 45 mins), Waldemar summons his dead vassals from their graves. The undead's restless roaming and savage hunt around the castle at night is thunderously depicted by the male chorus. During this, a peasant sings of his fear of the eerie army. Waldemar then proclaims that Tove may be watching his actions from heaven. There is a humorous interlude in the grotesque song of the fool Klaus who is forced to ride with the macabre host when he would rather rest in his grave. As the sun begins to rise, the undead begin to recess back into their graves. A gentle orchestral interlude depicting the light of dawn leads into the melodrama ''The Summer Wind's Wild Hunt'', a narration about the morning wind, which flows into the mixed-choral conclusion ''Seht die Sonne!'' ("See the Sun!").

Part 1

# Orchestral Prelude # ''Nun dämpft die Dämm'rung'' (tenor = Waldemar) # ''O, wenn des Mondes Strahlen'' (soprano = Tove) # ''Ross! Mein Ross!'' (Waldemar) # ''Sterne jubeln'' (Tove) # ''So tanzen die Engel vor Gottes Thron nicht'' (Waldemar) # ''Nun sag ich dir zum ersten Mal'' (Tove) # ''Es ist Mitternachtszeit'' (Waldemar) # ''Du sendest mir einen Liebesblick'' (Tove) # ''Du wunderliche Tove!'' (Waldemar) # Orchestral Interlude # ''Tauben von Gurre!'' (mezzo-soprano = Wood Dove)

Part 2

:''Herrgott, weißt du, was du tatest'' (Waldemar)

Part 3

# ''Erwacht, König Waldemars Mannen wert!'' (Waldemar) # ''Deckel des Sarges klappert'' (bass-baritone = Peasant, men's chorus) # ''Gegrüsst, o König'' (men's chorus = Waldemar's men) # ''Mit Toves Stimme flüstert der Wald'' (Waldemar) # ''Ein seltsamer Vogel ist so'n Aal'' (Klaus the Jester) # ''Du strenger Richter droben'' (Waldemar) # ''Der Hahn erhebt den Kopf zur Kraht'' (men's chorus) Des Sommerwindes wilde Jagd / The Summer Wind's Wild Hunt

Scoring

''Gurre-Lieder'' calls for exceptionally large forces: some 200 singers and 150 instrumentalists. ;Voices :Narrator : : : : :3 4-part male choruses :8-part mixed chorus ;

Woodwinds Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...

: :4

Flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

s :3 Oboes : :3 Clarinets in B & A : : :3 Bassoons :2

Contrabassoon The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences. Differences from the bassoon The Reed (mouthpie ...

s ;

Brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

: : :

Bass trumpet The bass trumpet is a type of low trumpet which was first developed during the 1820s in Germany. It is usually pitched in 8' C or 9' B today, but is sometimes built in E and is treated as a transposing instrument sounding either an octave, a sixth ...

in E :

Alto trombone The alto trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone alto'') is the alto member of the trombone family of brass instruments, smaller than the tenor trombone. It is almost always pitched in E a fourth higher than the tenor, although examples pitched ...

Tenor trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the air column inside the instrument to ...

s :

Bass trombone The bass trombone (, ) is the bass instrument in the trombone family of brass instruments. Modern instruments are pitched in the same B♭ as the tenor trombone but with a larger bore, bell and mouthpiece to facilitate low register playing, and u ...

Contrabass trombone The contrabass trombone (, ) is the Pitch of brass instruments, lowest-pitched instrument in the trombone family of brass instruments. While modern instruments are pitch (music), pitched in Eight-foot pitch, 12-foot () F with a single slide (w ...

:Tuba ;Percussion :6

Timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion instrument, percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a Membranophone, membrane called a drumhead, ...

Tenor drum A tenor drum is a membranophone without a snare. There are several types of tenor drums. Early music Early music tenor drums, or long drums, are cylindrical membranophone without snare used in Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque music. They cons ...

Snare drum The snare drum (or side drum) is a percussion instrument that produces a sharp staccato sound when the head is struck with a drum stick, due to the use of a series of stiff wires held under tension against the lower skin. Snare drums are often u ...

Bass drum The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter usually greater than its depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. The head ...

Cymbal A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sou ...

s :

Triangle A triangle is a polygon with three corners and three sides, one of the basic shapes in geometry. The corners, also called ''vertices'', are zero-dimensional points while the sides connecting them, also called ''edges'', are one-dimension ...

Ratchet Ratchet may refer to: Devices * Ratchet (device), a mechanical device that allows movement in only one direction * Ratchet effect in sociology and economics * Ratchet, metonymic name for a socket wrench incorporating a ratcheting device * Ratc ...

:Large Iron

Chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A ...

s :

Tam-tam A gongFrom Indonesian and ; ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ; ; ; ; is a percussion instrument originating from Southeast Asia, and used widely in Southeast Asian and East Asian musical traditions. Gongs are made of metal and are circular and fl ...

Glockenspiel The glockenspiel ( ; or , : bells and : play) or bells is a percussion instrument consisting of pitched aluminum or steel bars arranged in a Musical keyboard, keyboard layout. This makes the glockenspiel a type of metallophone, similar to the v ...

Xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Each bar is an idiophone tuned to a pitch of a musical scale, whether pentatonic or heptatonic in the case of many African ...

;Keyboard :

Celesta The celesta () or celeste (), also called a bell-piano, is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. It looks similar to an upright piano (four- or five-octave), albeit with smaller keys and a much smaller cabinet, or a large wooden music ...

; Strings :4

Harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orchestras or ...

s : :Viola (16) :

Violoncello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C ...

(16) :Double bass (12)

Recordings

(1932), with soloists Paul Althouse (Waldemar), Jeanette Vreeland (Tove), Rose Bampton (Wood Dove), Robert Betts (Klaus the Jester), Abrasha Robofsky(Peasant), Benjamin de Loache (Narrator) and choirs Princeton Glee Club, Fortnightly Club, Mendelssohn Club, Philadelphia Orchestra Chorus. Recorded live by RCA Victor at the Metropolitan Opera House in Philadelphia, in two distinct versions with the same personnel, on 9 and 11 April 1932. :Stokowski (1949) recorded the ''Song of the Wood-Dove'' in Erwin Stein's edition in 1949, with Martha Lipton, mezzo-soprano, and the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

(Columbia Records; reissued on Cala Records). :Stokowski (1961) returned to ''Gurre-Lieder'' in 1961 for performances in Philadelphia and again in Scotland, where he and the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

opened that year's Edinburgh International Festival with the work. Recordings of the Philadelphia and Edinburgh radio broadcasts have survived, with the 1961 Edinburgh Festival performance having been issued in 2012 on the Guild Historical label. The soloists in that performance were James McCracken (Waldemar), Gré Brouwenstijn (Tove), Nell Rankin (Wood Dove), Forbes Robinson (Peasant), John Lanigan (Klaus the Jester) and Alvar Lidell (Narrator) and chorus was Edinburg Royal Choral Union. (GHCD 2388/89). *

René Leibowitz René Leibowitz (; ; 17 February 1913 – 29 August 1972) was a Polish and French composer, conductor, music theorist and teacher. He was historically significant in promoting the music of the Second Viennese School in Paris after the Second Wo ...

, Chorus and Orchestra of the New Symphony Society, Paris, Richard Lewis (Waldemar), Ethel Semser (Tove), Nell Tangeman (Wood Dove), John Riley (Peasant), Ferry Gruber (Klaus the Jester), Morris Gesell (Narrator). Vox Records 222943-311 (rec. 1953, CD issue 2005, mp3 issue August 2011). *

Rafael Kubelík Rafael Jeroným Kubelík, KBE (29 June 1914 – 11 August 1996) was a Czech conductor and composer. The son of a distinguished violinist, Jan Kubelík, he was trained in Prague and made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the a ...

, Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Herbert Schachtschneider (Waldemar), Inge Borkh (Tove), Hertha Töpper (Wood Dove), Kieth Engen (Peasant), Lorenz Fehenberger (Klaus the Jester), Hans Herbert Fiedler (narrator), Bavarian Radio Chorus. DGG 431 744-2 (1965). *

János Ferencsik János Ferencsik (18 January 190712 June 1984) was a Hungarian conductor. Ferencsik was born in Budapest; he actively played music even as a very young boy. He took violin lessons and taught himself to play the organ. He studied at the Natio ...

, Danish State Radio Symphony and Concert Orchestra, with Alexander Young (Waldemar), Martina Arroyo (Tove),

Janet Baker Dame Janet Abbott Baker (born 21 August 1933) is an English mezzo-soprano best known as an opera, concert, and lieder singer.Blyth, Alan, "Baker, Dame Janet (Abbott)" in Sadie, Stanley, ed.; John Tyrell; exec. ed. (2001). ''New Grove Dictionar ...

(Wood Dove), Odd Wolstad (Peasant), Niels Møller (Klaus the Jester), Julius Patzak (Narrator), Chorus of Danish Radio. EMI 7243 5 74194 2 (1968; CD issue 2000). *

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 19255 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war contemporary classical music. Born in Montb ...

BBC Symphony Orchestra The BBC Symphony Orchestra (BBC SO) is a British orchestra based in London. Founded in 1930, it was the first permanent salaried orchestra in London, and is the only one of the city's five major symphony orchestras not to be self-governing. The ...

, Jess Thomas (Waldemar), Marieta Napier (Tove), Yvonne Minton (Wood Dove), Siegmund Nimsgern (Peasant), Kenneth Bowen (Klaus the Jester), Günter Reich (Narrator), BBC Symphony Chorus. Columbia M2 33303 (1975). *

Gunther Schuller Gunther Alexander Schuller (November 22, 1925June 21, 2015) was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, and jazz musician. Biography and works Early years Schuller was born in Queens, New York City ...

New England Conservatory The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

Orchestra, Henry Grossman (Waldemar), Phyllis Bryn-Julson (Tove),

D'Anna Fortunato D'Anna Fortunato (born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on February 21, 1945) is an American mezzo-soprano. She has long been an admired favorite on the American orchestral-concert scene, while establishing herself as a respected operatic artist as we ...

(Wood Dove), Keith Kibler (Peasant), Kim Scown (Klaus the Jester), Michael Steinberg (Narrator), New England Conservatory Chorus. GM Recordings GM2078 (rec. 1977). *

Seiji Ozawa was a Japanese conductor known internationally for his work as music director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony, and especially the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), where he served from 1973 for 29 years. After cond ...

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five (orchestras), Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in ...

, James McCracken (Waldemar),

Jessye Norman Jessye Mae Norman (September 15, 1945 – September 30, 2019) was an American opera singer and recitalist. She was able to perform dramatic soprano roles, but did not limit herself to that voice type. A commanding presence on operatic, concert ...

(Tove),

Tatiana Troyanos Tatiana Troyanos (September 12, 1938 – August 21, 1993) was an American mezzo-soprano remembered as "one of the defining singers of her generation". Her voice, "a paradoxical voice — larger than life yet intensely human, brilliant yet wa ...

(Wood Dove), David Arnold (Peasant), Kim Scown (Klaus the Jester),

Werner Klemperer Werner Klemperer (March 22, 1920 – December 6, 2000) was an American actor. He was best known for playing List of Hogan's Heroes characters#Colonel Klink, Colonel Wilhelm Klink on the CBS television sitcom ''Hogan's Heroes'', for which he twic ...

(Narrator), Tanglewood Festival Chorus. Philips 412 511-2 (1979). * Herbert Kegel, Dresden Philharmonic augmented by members of the Leipzig Radio Symphony, Manfred Jung (Waldemar), Eva-Maria Bundschuh (Tove), Rosemarie Lang (Wood Dove), Ulrik Cold (Peasant), Wolf Appel (Klaus the Jester), Gert Westphal (Narrator), Berlin Radio Chorus, Leipzig Radio Chorus and Prague Male Chorus (rec. Berlin 1986: Berlin Classics 0090172BC, 1986; CD issue 1997). *

Eliahu Inbal Eliahu Inbal (; born 16 February 1936, Jerusalem) is an Israeli conductor. Inbal has enjoyed a career of international renown, conducting leading orchestras around the worlHe has conducted a wide variety of works. He is best known for his interpr ...

, Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt am Main, Paul Frey (Waldemar), Elizabeth Connell (Tove), Jard van Nes (Wood Dove), Walton Grönroos (Peasant), Volker Vogel (Klaus the Jester), Hans Franzen (Narrator), NDR Chor, Bavarian Radio Chorus, Frankfurt Opera Chorus. Denon CO 77066-67 (1990). * Riccardo Chailly, Radio Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Siegfried Jerusalem (Waldemar), Susan Dunn (Tove),

Brigitte Fassbaender Brigitte Fassbaender (; born 3 July 1939), is a German mezzo-soprano opera singer and a stage director. From 1999 to 2012 she was Theater manager, intendant (managing director) of the Tyrolean State Theatre in Innsbruck, Austria. She holds the ti ...

(Wood Dove), Hermann Becht (Peasant), Peter Haage (Klaus the Jester), Hans Hotter (Narrator), Chor der St. Hedwigs-Kathedrale Berlin, Städtischer Musikverein, Düsseldorf. Decca 473 728-2 (1985). *

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor :wikt:emeritus, emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father ...

, Gary Lakes (Waldemar), Éva Marton (Tove), Florence Quivar (Wood Dove), John Cheek (Peasant), Jon Garrison (Klaus the Jester), Hans Hotter (Narrator), New York Choral Artists. Sony Classical 48077 (1992). *

Claudio Abbado Claudio Abbado (; 26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014) was an Italian conductor who was one of the leading conductors of his generation. He served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharm ...

, Vienne Philharmonic, Siegfried Jerusalem (Waldemar), Sharon Sweet (Tove), Marjana Lipovšek (Wood Dove),

Hartmut Welker Hartmut Welker (born 27 October 1941) is a German operatic bass-baritone. Career Welker was born in Velbert. Before he decided to study singing, he had learned and practiced the profession as a toolmaker. At the age of 28, he began studying sing ...

(Peasant),

Philip Langridge Philip Gordon Langridge (16 December 1939 – 5 March 2010)Millington (7 March 2010) was an English tenor, considered to be among the foremost exponents of English opera and oratorio. Early life Langridge was born in Hawkhurst, Kent, educ ...

(Klaus the Jester), Barbara Sukowa (Narrator), Vienna State Opera Chorus, Arnold Schoenberg Chorus, Slovak Philharmonic Choir Bratislava. DG 439 9442 (1995) * Giuseppe Sinopoli, Staatskapelle Dresden,

Thomas Moser Thomas Moser (born 27 May 1945) is an American-Austrian operatic tenor. Life Born in Richmond (Virginia), Richmond, Virginia, Moser first studied singing at Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and with Martial Singher at the Music Academy ...

(Waldemar), Deborah Voigt (Tove), Jennifer Larmore (Wood Dove), Bernd Weikl (Peasant), Kenneth Riegel (Klaus the Jester), Klaus Maria Brandauer (Narrator), Dresden State Opera Chorus, MDR Radio Chorus of Leipzig, Prague Men's Chorus. Teldec 4509-98424-2 (1995). *

Robert Craft Robert Lawson Craft (October 20, 1923 – November 10, 2015) was an American conductor and writer. He is best known for his intimate professional relationship with Igor Stravinsky, on which Craft drew in producing numerous recordings and books. ...

Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI Classics, EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Rich ...

, Stephen O'Mara (Waldemar),

Melanie Diener Melanie Diener (born in 1967) is a German operatic and concert soprano who appeared at major European opera houses and festivals. She appeared as Elsa in Wagner's '' Lohengrin'' at the Bayreuth Festival, among others. Career Diener was born in ...

(Tove), Jennifer Lane (Wood Dove), David Wilson-Johnson (Peasant), Martyn Hill (Klaus the Jester), Ernst Haefliger (Narrator), Simon Joly Chorale. Naxos 8.557518-19 (2001). *

Simon Rattle Sir Simon Denis Rattle (born 19 January 1955) is a British conductor with German citizenship. He rose to international prominence during the 1980s and 1990s, while music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1980–1998). Rat ...

Berliner Philharmoniker The Berlin Philharmonic () is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. Throughout the 20th century, the orchestra was led by conductors Wilhelm Furtwängler (1922� ...

, Thomas Moser (Waldemar), Karita Mattila (Tove), Anne Sofie von Otter (Wood Dove), Thomas Quasthoff (Peasant & Narrator),

(Klaus the Jester), Berlin Radio Chorus, MDR Radio Chorus of Leipzig, Ernst Senff Choir. EMI 5 5730302 (2002) * Michael Gielen, SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden und Freiburg, Robert Dean Smith (Waldemar), Melanie Diener (Tove), Yvonne Naef (Wood Dove) Ralf Lukas (Peasant), Gerhard Siegel (Klaus the Jester), Andreas Schmidt (Narrator), Bavarian Radio Chorus, MDR Radio Chorus of Leipzig. Hänssler, Art.-Nr.: 093.198.000, 2 SACDs (rec. 2006, released 2007.). *

Esa-Pekka Salonen Esa-Pekka Salonen (; born 30 June 1958) is a Finnish conducting, conductor and composer. He is the music director of the San Francisco Symphony and conductor laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra in London and the Sw ...

, Stig Andersen (Waldemar), Soile Isokoski (Tove),

Monica Groop Gerd Monica Groop née Riska (born 14 April 1958 in Helsinki) is a Finnish operatic mezzo-soprano. After graduating from the Sibelius Academy, she joined the Finnish National Opera in 1986 where she remains a member. She has sung leading roles as ...

(Wood Dove), Ralf Lukas (Peasant), Andreas Conrad (Klaus the Jester), Barbara Sukowa (Narrator), Philharmonia Voices- City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus. Sigmund Records SIGCD173, 2 SACDs (Live recording 2009) * Josep Pons, and Spanish National Youth Orchestra, Nikolai Schukoff (Waldemar),

(Tove), Charlotte Hellekant (Wood Dove), José Antonio López (Peasant), (Klaus the Jester), Barbara Sukowa (Narrator), Cor Lieder Càmera, Cor Madrigal de Barcelona, Orfeó Català, Polifònica de Puig-Reig. Deutsche Grammophon 0044007627891, 2 DVDs (rec. 2008, released 2011) *

Mariss Jansons Mariss Ivars Georgs Jansons (14 January 1943 – 1 December 2019) was a Latvian Conducting, conductor, best known for his interpretations of Gustav Mahler, Mahler, Richard Strauss, Strauss, and Russian composers such as Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, ...

, Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Stig Andersen (Waldemar), Deborah Voigt (Tove), Mihoko Fujimura (Wood Dove), Michael Volle (Peasant), Herwig Pecoraro (Klaus the Jester), Bavarian Radio Chorus, NDR Chorus, MDR Radio Chorus of Leipzig, BR-KLASSIK DVD 900110 DVD (rec. 2009, released 2010) * Markus Stenz, Gürzenich-Orchester Köln, Brandon Jovanovich (Waldemar), Barbara Haveman (Tove), Claudia Mahnke (Wood Dove), Thomas Bauer (Peasant), Gerhard Siegel (Klaus the Jester), Johannes Martin Kränzle (Narrator), Domkantorei Köln, Männerstimmen des Kölner Domchores, Vokalensemble Kölner Dom, Chor des Bach-Vereins Köln, Kartäuserkantorei Köln. Hyperion Records CDA68081/2 (2015). *

Marc Albrecht Marc Albrecht (born 1964) is a German conductor resident in The Netherlands. He was chief conductor of the Dutch National Opera, the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, and the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra from 2009 to 2020. Biography Born in ...

, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Burkhard Fritz (Waldemar), Emily Magee (Tove), Anna Larsson (Wood Dove), Markus Marquardt (Peasant), Wolfgang Ablinger-Sperrhacke (Klaus the Jester), Sunnyi Melles (Narrator), Chorus of the Dutch National Opera, Pierre Audi (Director). Opus Arte OA1227D DVD & Blu-ray (2016). *

Edward Gardner Edward Gardner may refer to: * Edward W. Gardner (1867–1932), American balkline and straight rail billiards champion * Edward Joseph Gardner (1898–1950), U.S. Representative from Ohio * Ed Gardner (1901–1963), American actor, director and wr ...

Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra ( Norwegian: Bergen filharmoniske orkester) is a Norwegian orchestra based in Bergen. Its principal concert venue is the Grieg Hall. History Established in 1765 under the name ''Det Musicalske Selskab'' (The M ...

and members of the

Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra (GSO; ) is a Swedish symphony orchestra based in Gothenburg. The GSO is resident at the Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen. The orchestra received the title of the National Orchestra of Sweden () in 1997. Ba ...

Stuart Skelton Stuart Skelton (born 1968 in Sydney) is an Australian operatic heldentenor. In 2016 he opened the Metropolitan Opera season with Nina Stemme in Wagner's ''Tristan und Isolde''. Discography Studio concert recordings *2008: Mahler – '' Das Li ...

(Waldemar), Alwyn Mellor (Tove), Anna Larsson (Wood Dove), James Creswell (Peasant), Wolfgang Ablinger-Sperrhacke (Klaus the Jester), Sir

Thomas Allen Thomas Allen may refer to: Clergy *Thomas Allen (nonconformist) (1608–1673), Anglican/nonconformist priest in England and New England *Thomas Allen (dean of Chester) (died 1732) *Thomas Allen (scholar) (1681–1755), Anglican priest in England * ...

(Narrator), Bergen Philharmonic Choir, Choir of Collegiûm Mûsicûm Bergen, Edvard Grieg Kor, Orphei Drängar, and Students from the Royal Northern College of Music, Håkon Matti Skrede (Director). Chandos 5172(2) Hybrid SA-CD (2016) *

Simon O'Neill Simon O'Neill (born 1971) is a New Zealand operatic tenor internationally recognised for his performances of the major Heldentenor roles in the operas of Richard Wagner. Biography Simon O'Neill has performed with many of the world’s leading ...

(Waldemar), Eva-Maria Westbroek (Tove), Karen Cargill (Wood Dove), Christopher Purves (Peasant), Peter Hoare (Klaus the Jester), Thomas Quasthoff (Speaker), London Symphony Chorus, CBSO Chorus,

Orfeó Català The Orfeó Català is a choral society based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, which was founded in 1891 by Lluís Millet and Amadeu Vives.William H. Robinson, Jordi Falgàs, Carmen Belen Lord Barcelona and Modernity: Picasso, Gaudí, Miró, Dalí ...

. Recorded live, August 2017,

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

BBC Proms The BBC Proms is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in central London. Robert Newman founded The Proms in 1895. Since 1927, the ...

; a Unitel/

co-production. Carnegie Hall+ streaming HD video (2017)Flora Hall
"Review: Schoenberg's Gurrelieder review – size does matter in this magnum opus"
''The Guardian'', 20 August 2017. *

Christian Thielemann Christian Thielemann (born 1 April 1959) is a German conductor. He is Generalmusikdirektor of the Berlin State Opera (''Staatsoper Unter den Linden'') and chief conductor of the Staatskapelle Berlin. Biography and career Born in West Berlin, ...

, Staatskapelle Dresden and members of the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra, Stephen Gould (Waldemar), Camilla Nylund (Tove), Christa Mayer (Wood Dove), Markus Marquardt (Peasant), Wolfgang Ablinger-Sperrhacke (Klaus the Jester), Franz Grundheber (Narrator), MDR Radio Chorus of Leipzig, Dresden State Opera Chorus. Profil PH20052 (2020)

References

External links

*
German text and translations
* , Dresden Philharmonic, Herbert Kegel
Arnold Schönberg: ''Gurrelieder''

Universal Edition Universal Edition (UE) is an Austrian classical music publishing firm. Founded in 1901 in Vienna, it originally intended to provide the core classical works and educational works to the Austrian market. The firm soon expanded to become one of t ...

Nr. 5275, Vienna (1913), guide by

Alban Berg Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( ; ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sma ...

{{Italic title 1913 oratorios Oratorios Classical song cycles in German Choral compositions by Arnold Schoenberg Compositions that use extended techniques Compositions with a narrator Song cycles by Arnold Schoenberg