ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien / Wunderlin / Metzmacher

Performers:

ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra
Alina Wunderlin, soprano
Maighréad McCrann, violin
Ingo Metzmacher, conductor

A masterpiece of modernism
In 1905, a performance of Wedekind's »Pandora's Box« initiated by Karl Kraus left such a lasting impression on Alban Berg that the material would not let him go. In 1927, he decided to compose an opera of the same name. After completing the score, but before finalising the orchestration, he put together a suite at the suggestion of Otto Klemperer. Berg also included a colouratura soprano in these symphonic pieces, who performs the infamous Song of Lulu. In the performance by the Vienna RSO under the direction of Ingo Metzmacher, the magnificent colouratura soprano Alina Wunderlin takes on this part.

Femmes fatales
Alban Berg was unable to complete the opera due to his sudden death. However, the suite provides important clues for its orchestration. Friedrich Cerha, whose 100th birthday we celebrate in 2026, reconstructed Act 3 on this basis in 1979. The first half of the concert features Cerha's »Monumentum for Karl Prantl«, the important Austrian sculptor who was a friend of his. The programme also includes Kurt Weill's cantata »Der neue Orpheus«, which, like Berg's »Lulu«, was composed in 1927. Eurydice is a prostitute here and, like Lulu, embodies a femme fatale, a seductive woman who brings misfortune.

programme

Friedrich Cerha
Monumentum für Karl Prantl (1988–1989)
Kurt Weill
Der neue Orpheus. Kantate für Sopran, Violine und Orchester op. 15 (1925)

Pause

Alban Berg
Lulu-Suite. Symphonische Stücke aus der Oper »Lulu« für Koloratursopran und Orchester (1934)