Jonny spielt auf
| Operas by Ernst Krenek |
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Jonny spielt auf (Jonny Plays) is a German-language opera with words and music by Austrian composer Ernst Krenek about a jazz violinist. The work typified the cultural freedom of the 'golden era' of the Weimar Republic.
Performance history
It was premiered at the Stadttheater, Leipzig on 10 February 1927. A tremendous success in Germany where it was performed 421 times on various stages during its first season alone, it provided Krenek with the financial security to be able to devote all his time to composing. It was staged in 42 different opera houses, including eventually New York City on 19 January 1929 where it was given under Arthur Bodansky with Florence Easton, Fleischer, Kirchoff, Michael Bohnen and Friedrich Schorr. The libretto was translated into 14 languages. It was the first opera performed by Swiss tenor Hugues Cuenod.
Nevertheless, with the rise of the Nazi movement, the opera encountered hostility in Vienna in 1927-1928 from Nazi sympathisers, and the same protests occurred several years later in Munich. After the National Socialists attained power in Germany, they banned the opera.[1] Indeed, at the 1938 Entartete Musik exhibition in Düsseldorf, organiser Hans Severus Ziegler condemned the opera as the very archetype of Weimar decadence.[2]
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 10 February 1927 (Conductor: Gustav Brecher) |
|---|---|---|
| Anita, an opera singer | soprano | Fanny Cleve |
| Max, a composer | tenor | Paul Beinert |
| Daniello, a virtuoso violinist | baritone | Theodor Horand |
| Jonny, a black jazz band fiddler | baritone | Max Spilcker |
| Yvonne, a hotel chambermaid | soprano | Claire Schulthess |
| Hotel director | tenor | |
| Railway employee | tenor | |
| Artists' manager | tenor | |
| First policeman | tenor | |
| Second policeman | baritone | |
| Third policeman | bass | |
Recordings
- Decca 436 631-2: Alessandra Marc, Krister St. Hill, Michael Kraus, Maria Posselt, Andreas Korn, Gunar Kaltofen, Roald Reinecke, Dieter Scholz; Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra; Lothar Zagrosek, conductor[1]
- Vanguard Classics: Lucia Popp, Gerd Feldhoff, Thomas Stewart, Leo Heppe, Evelyn Lear; Vienna State Opera Orchestra; Heinrich Hollreiser, conductor
References
Notes
Sources
- Amadeus Almanac, accessed 27 August 2008
- Alexiadis, Minus I., (2000), Jonny spielt auf, (Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation, Athens University, Department of Music Studies, (in Greek language)
- Holden, Amanda, Viking Opera Guide, Viking, 1993
- Purkis, Charlotte (1992), 'Jonny spielt auf' in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7
- Taylor-Jay, Claire, The Artist-Operas of Pfitzner, Krenek, and Hindemith: Politics and the Ideology of the Artist, Aldershot: Ashgate, 2004.
- Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), The Oxford Dictionary of Opera, 782 pages, ISBN 0-19-869164-5
- Wood, Ean (2000), The Josephine Baker Story, (p. 142) MPG Books, ISBN 1-86074-286-6
Other sources
- Stewart, John L., Ernst Krenek: The Man and His Music. University of California Press, 1991 ISBN 0-520-07014-3 ISBN 0-520-07014-3