''Zeisls Hiob'' ( English: ''Zeisl's

Job Work, labor (labour in Commonwealth English), occupation or job is the intentional activity people perform to support the needs and desires of themselves, other people, or organizations. In the context of economics, work can be seen as the huma ...

'') is a completion by Jan Duszyński and

Miron Hakenbeck Miron or Mirón may refer to: * Miron (name) * Miron (surname) * El Mirón, a municipality in Ávila, Castile and León, Spain * El Mirón Cave, in the upper Asón River valley, Cantabria, Spain * 17049 Miron, 1 minor planet See also * Miron Cos ...

of the unfinished opera ''Hiob'' commenced by

Erich Zeisl Erich Zeisl, sometimes given as Eric Zeisel, (May 18, 1905 – February 18, 1959) was an Austrian-born American composer. Life and music Born to a middle class Jewish family in Vienna, then capital of the Austro-Hungarian empire, Zeisl was the so ...

in 1939. It was premiered by the

Bavarian State Opera The Bavarian State Opera () is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bavarian State Orchestra. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under El ...

in 2014.

Background

The opera is based on

Joseph Roth Moses Joseph Roth (2 September 1894 – 27 May 1939) was an Austrian-Jewish journalist and novelist, best known for his family saga '' Radetzky March'' (1932), about the decline and fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, his novel of Jewish life ...

's novel, '' Job – The Story of a Simple Man'', itself inspired by the biblical

book of Job The Book of Job (), or simply Job, is a book found in the Ketuvim ("Writings") section of the Hebrew Bible and the first of the Poetic Books in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The language of the Book of Job, combining post-Babylonia ...

. In July 1939, a dramatization of the novel was arranged in Paris in honour of Roth (who had died in May 1939) and Zeisl, who had recently arrived in Paris in flight from

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

, wrote some incidental music for this production. This inspired him to create a complete opera based on Roth's work, for which he persuaded his friend Hans Kafka (1902—1974) to write a

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

. Zeisl composed the first act by 1940, by which time he was now living in New York. Kafka was not able to produce the libretto for Act II until 1957. Zeisl completed the composition of this, but died in 1959.Cole (2014). Interest in the composer following the 50th anniversary of his death led to 2009 and 2010 student performances of excerpts from the opera in

Rostock Rostock (; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Roztoc''), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (), is the largest city in the German States of Germany, state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the sta ...

and Vienna. In 2013 the Bavarian State Opera decided to commission a completion of the opera by the Polish composer Jan Duszyński and the librettist Miron Hakenbeck. This version was premièred in Munich under the title ''Zeisls Hiob'' on 19 July 2014.

Roles

The information in this section is taken from the Bavarian State Opera castlist.

Synopsis

Act I takes place in Russia before

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Mendel Singer teaches Jewish children in a

shtetl or ( ; , ; Grammatical number#Overview, pl. ''shtetelekh'') is a Yiddish term for small towns with predominantly Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi Jewish populations which Eastern European Jewry, existed in Eastern Europe before the Holocaust. The t ...

. His four children bring him problems; the youngest, Menuchim, is disabled. His daughter Mirjam has affairs with

cossack The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borders of Ukraine and Rus ...

soldiers, and his other two sons are liable for

conscription Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...

into the Russian Army. His son Schemaria escapes conscription by fleeing to the United States, and Mendel decides to follow him with his own family; but he is forced to leave Menuchim behind. Act II takes place in America. The war has broken out and Mendel has lost touch with Menuchim and with his other son, Jonas, who has joined the Russian army. Mirjam has a nervous breakdown, Mendel is oppressed by guilt about Menuchim, and Mendel's wife Deborah reproaches him for their sad condition. However, during the

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday and one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Biblical Egypt, Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God in ...

seder The Passover Seder is a ritual feast at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted throughout the world on the eve of the 15th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar (i.e., at the start of the 15th; a Hebrew day begins at su ...

'' meal, at the point where traditionally the prophet

Elijah Elijah ( ) or Elias was a prophet and miracle worker who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab (9th century BC), according to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah defended the worsh ...

is anticipated, Menuchim enters. He has discovered music, and this has cured him – he is now a composer.Bayerische Staatsoper (2014a)

Sources

;Notes {{reflist ;Sources * Bayerische Staatsoper (2014a)
"Zeisls Hiob: Synopsis"
on Bayerische Staatsoper (Bavarian State Opera) website, accessed 1 February 2015. (In German). * Bayerische Staatsoper (2014b)
"Cast list: Zeisls Hiob"
on Bayerische Staatsoper (Bavarian State Opera) website, accessed 1 February 2015. (In German). * Cole, Malcolm S. (2014).
A Miracle in Munich: The Bavarian State Opera Premieres Zeisls Hiob
'. Orel Foundation website, accessed 1 February 2015. Operas 2014 operas German-language operas Operas set in Russia Operas set in the United States Unfinished operas Operas completed by others