S. Wagner: An Allem ist Hutchen schuld

[mikehopf]

Tonight on Deutschland Radio Kultur:

Oper (Starts at 1805/1:05PM): Auditorium Maximum Bochum
Aufzeichnung vom 18.10.2015

Siegfried Wagner "An allem ist Hütchen schuld"
Märchenspiel in drei Aufzügen op. 11
Libretto: Siegfried Wagner

Hütchen, ein Kobold - Laura Lietzmann
Der Frieder - Hans-Georg Priese, Tenor
Das Katherlieschen - Rebecca Broberg, Sopran
Frieders Mutter - Julia Ostertag, Mezzosopran
Trude - Maarja Purga, Alt
Ein Hexenweibchen - Annamaria Kaszoni, Sopran
Der Dorfrichter - Lucas Vanzelli, Tenor
Der Tod - Ralf Sauerbrey, Bariton
Der Teufel - Axel Wolloscheck, Bass
Des Teufels Ellermutter - Julia Ostertag, Mezzosopran
Der Königsohn - Martin Schmidt, Bariton
Ein Wirt - Axel Wolloscheck, Bariton
Sein Eheweib - Maarja Purga, Alt
Der Müller - Martin Schmidt, Bass
Die Müllerin - Annamaria Kaszoni, Sopran
Der Sakristan - Kieran Carrel, Tenor
Die Märchenfrau - Maarja Purga, Sopran
Der Menschenfresser - Ralf Sauerbrey, Bass
Bochumer Symphoniker
Sonderchor der Ruhr-Universität Bochum
Leitung: Lionel Friend (3 hrs., 25 min.)

Luckily for those of you without timers, you can always rely on the kindness of strangers or indeed BerlinExpat.

[Alan Howe]

The next opera which the Siegfried Wagner Society plan to present is the highly dramatic Schwarzschwanenreich which I vividly remember from Rudolstadt in 1993. Set during the Thirty Years War the plot deals with a mother killing her illegitimate child.

(see download board)

I want to be believe it will be 'highly dramatic', but experience of Siegfried's music leads me to think me otherwise...

[Alan Howe]

BerlinExpat replies:

I meant theatrically, Alan. In some operas, like Schwarzschwanenreich, a great deal more happens on stage than in his father's music dramas and I found Schwarzschwanenreich particularly arresting and a couple of the scenes have remained vivid in my mind since the Rudolstadt performances in 1993.

With the aid of the libretto I have now cue points for the scenes. There are 9 in acts 1 & 2 and 6 in act three. If anyone is interested I can post the timings for each act.

[Alan Howe]

I find Siegfried's music second-rate at best, though - like watered-down Humperdinck. Am I wrong?

[eschiss1]

Hrm. I think I've heard his symphony and other late works (e.g. concertos) and am fairly sure that (1) I'd describe them among his best works (within my limited knowledge...) and (2) they didn't strike me as you describe, anyway (though they didn't make me an instant fan either- still, I'll try to get a relisten. So yes, with regard to the specific question of whether his music at best is like watered-down Humperdinck, I gather the answer is probably "no"...
(As to "second-rate", the meaning of that has always seemed a bit odd to me, since the category of "first-rate" is or should be very, very limited to be meaningful, making second-rate no insult... so that, at best, the best of the composers we discuss here, and for that matter of most known composers (with as noted only a literal (double? probably not) handful of exceptions upward to first), are second-rate, and many are third- but as often- wth do I know?)

[Alan Howe]

I'll give him another go...

[Revilod]

I'm a big fan of Siegfried's gloriously lyrical Violin Concerto (which uses material from "An Allem ist Hutchen schuld").....one of those works (like the Delius concertos) which seems rhapsodic and unstructured at first but is, in fact, highly organised. Of the operas, "Sonnenflammen" is full of wonderful music.

[adriano]

In my personal opinion, Siegfried Wagner's orchestral output (including his opera's overtures) is quite valuable; I just can't stand some of his opera's silly titles :-) - and perhaps some of the operas too... Schwarzschwanenreich: may this be his best one?

[BerlinExpat]

I find Siegfried's music second-rate at best, though - like watered-down Humperdinck. Am I wrong?

Siegfried Wagner
After listening to the recent broadcast of An allem ist Hütchen schuld I have re-listened to Herzog Wildfang, Banadietrich and Der Heidenkönig as it has been a long time since I have listened to a complete SW opera. Now I have to stick my neck a long way out and say that SW's music by no means is watered down Humperdinck!
The style of both composers is immediately recognisable and both distinctly different. If anything SW is more advanced than Humperdinck and there are moments in his music where he even approaches atonality. SW as conductor and producer was fully aware of the divergences in compositional style during the first three decades of the twentieth century. Peter P Pachl in his biography Siegfried Wagner - Genie im Schatten suggests that SW's music has a certain affinity to Schönberg, in particular to Von heute auf morgen and that his operas with their false dramatic structure of unnecessary effects are completely justified to be understood as Anti-Operas in the sense of Schönberg.
If you compare Humperdinck's Die Heirat wider Willen (1905) and Siegfried Wagner's Bruder Lustig (1905) I feel IMHO that there's no doubt that SW is the more advanced composer and the latter opera is not a watered down version of anything that Humperdinck wrote.
I have seen three of Humperdinck's operas and five of SW's and I loved them all. A musicologist can better form an intrinsic judgement than I as to whether SW is a better composer than the music world is prepared to admit because it continually judges him in comparison to his father rather than on his own abilities.
One may accuse SW for never developing stylistically and clothing a number of his operas perhaps unnecessarily in fairytale disguise, but nevertheless his operas contain a wealth of enjoyable music that I find never ceases to please. Listen with an open mind and ignore the fact that he is Richard's son!
As indication as to the one time popularity of SW's operas, it is interesting to note that in 1928 four of his operas were in the repertoire that season in the Rostock Theatre!

Hadrianus' comment about the partly silly titles of SW's operas is probably valid, but the titles and well as the names of many of his characters should maybe taken with a pinch of salt. SW was fond of jokes and making jibes at people within his own constellation of family, friends and acquaintances. For instance, Herzog Wildfang is a parody on Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, so not even his father was sacred.

I rest my case!

[Alan Howe]

So which one of his operas is the best place to start?

[Revilod]

I started with "Sonnenflammen" because the CPO recording has received so many enthusiastic reviews. I wasn't disappointed. Here's my review:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Siegfried-Wagner-Sonnenflammen-Ulricke-Schneider-x/dp/B000CETZ96/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1455470032&sr=8-1&keywords=sonnenflammen+wagner

[Alan Howe]

It's on order. It'd better be good 

[Revilod]

A threat!! But you don't know where I live, Alan!

[Alan Howe]

Ve haff vays of finding ziss out....

Seriously, thanks for the recommendation. I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

[Alan Howe]

...well I am enjoying it, without being totally convinced. What I often find with SW's operas is that something amazingly attractive in the orchestra is followed by long stretches of uninspired vocal writing - which is not to say that there aren't vocal highlights, but one does have to sit through a lot to get there. I wonder whether SW was really a born opera composer or whether his orchestral works are a better showcase for his somewhat slim compositional abilities.

Another problem, frankly, is the quality of the recorded performances of SW's operas. Sonnenflammen, at least, seems to be well sung and played, but reviews of other operas of his suggest that this is rarely the case. Can any contributor direct me to others of his operas that are well sung and played?