Written 1907 Composer Alexander von Zemlinsky Language German | First performance 11 October 1980 Librettist Leo Feld | |
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Similar Der König Kandaules, Eine florentinische Tragödie, Der Zwerg, Die großmütige Tomyris, Der geliebte Adonis | ||
Patricia racette in zemlinsky s der traumg rge conducted by james conlon
Der Traumgörge (Görge the Dreamer) is an opera in two acts and an epilogue by Austrian composer Alexander Zemlinsky. The libretto was written by Leo Feld.
Contents
Composition history
Zemlinsky began composition of the opera in 1904 and completed it in 1906.
Performance history
Der Traumgörge was intended for performance at the Vienna State Opera (then known as the Vienna Court Opera), where Gustav Mahler, a mentor of Zemlinsky's, was Musical Director. Mahler had encouraged his younger colleague to compose the opera following the success of Es war einmal which Mahler had premiered in 1900. In 1907, the same year Der Traumgörge was scheduled for performance, Mahler hired Zemlinsky to be an assistant conductor. Shortly thereafter, however, Mahler abruptly resigned and his successor, Felix Weingartner, dropped Der Traumgörge from the schedule, even though the work had already gone into rehearsal. Zemlinsky himself then resigned in protest.
Zemlinsky moved on to other compositional projects and, deciding that Der Traumgörge needed revision, made little effort to further promote it. The original performance materials were discovered in the archives of the Vienna State Opera in the 1970s, a period of renewed interest in Zemlinsky's music. This led to the opera's belated premiere in Nuremberg, Germany on October 11, 1980.
A new production was staged at the Staatsoper Hannover in April 2016.