Franz Lehár (1870-1948)

***Unfortunately, the opening of the concert is missing.***

THIS VIDEO HAS NOW BECOME UNAVAILABLE*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehn-Ubc839Q

https://www.staatsoper-berlin.de/de/veranstaltungen/konzert-zum-jahreswechsel.15785/

*PLEASE SEE COMMENTS FOR A WORKING LINK

Vida Miknevičiūtė, Sopran

Thomas Blondelle, Tenor

Christian Thielemann, Leitung

Staatskapelle Berlin

Die Staatsoper Unter den Linden verabschiedet beim Konzert zum Jahreswechsel traditionell das alte und begrüßt das neue Jahr. Diesmal steht dieser Abend ganz im Zeichen der Musik von Franz Lehár, der die so genannte „Silberne Zeit“ der Operette mitgeprägt hat. Neben der populären Operette „Die lustige Witwe“ werden auch Werke aus den 20er und frühen 30er Jahren zu hören sein, in denen sich Lehár der Oper annähert. „Giuditta“ bezeichnet der Komponist als „Musikalische Komödie“. Und in „Friederike“ und „Paganini“ sind dann prominente Personen der Kulturgeschichte zu erleben, wie der Teufelsgeiger“ Niccolò Paganini oder der „Dichterfürst“ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Franz Lehár Ouvertüre zu Die lustige Witwe

Musik aus den Operetten Friederike, Paganini und Giuditta

“The concert will be streamed live on New Year’s Eve from 5:00 pm on staatsoper-berlin.de, the rbb radio3 website, and the ARD-Classic YouTube channel. The concert will then be broadcast on rbb television on January 4th at 10:00 pm.”

With Franz Lehár, Viennese operetta experienced a noticeable revival in the first decades of the 20th century. This new flowering of the genre, known as the “Silver Age,” owes not only to the particularly popular *Merry Widow* , but also to Lehár’s later operettas from the 1920s and early 1930s, with which he consciously approached grand opera. These works are ambitious and sophisticated, often featuring prominent figures from cultural history, such as the “Devil’s Violinist” Niccolò Paganini or the “Prince of Poets” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (in the operetta *Friederike *). And with *Giuditta* , described as a “musical comedy,” he even celebrated a premiere at the Vienna State Opera. Melodic bliss and melancholy are fascinatingly intertwined in Lehár’s music.

FOR INFORMATION…

program

Music by

Franz Lehár (1870-1948)

Overture to  The Merry Widow

from the musical comedy  Giuditta

Friends, life is worth living
(Song by Octavio)

Where will it take me?
Song of Giuditta

Two who love each other forget the world.
Duet by Anita and Pierrino

Intermezzo for Orchestra

My lips, they kiss so hotly,
Song of Giuditta

Most Beautiful of Women,
Song of Octavio

Beautiful as a blue summer night
, duet by Giuditta and Octavio

pause

from the musical  Friederike

Prelude for Orchestra

Little flowers, little leaves
: Friederike’s Song

O my maiden, my maiden,
Goethe’s song

Interlude for Orchestra

Why did you kiss me awake?
Friederike’s Song

from the operetta  Paganini

Prelude for orchestra with violin solo

Beautiful Italy,
Paganini’s Song

Such a man is worth a sin.
Song of Anna Elisa

I gladly kissed the women.
Song of Paganini

Love, you heaven on earth,
song of Anna Elisa

Nobody loves you like I do
(Duet Anna Elisa and Paganini)

Your sweet rose mouth
duet Anna Elisa and Paganini