Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules

Editorial Reviews
Album Description
Alexander Zemlinsky's final and partly finished opera Der König Kandaules, based on Andre Gide's play, was composed in 1935-36 and completed by Anthony Beaumont in 1989. The work, involving voyeurism, betrayal, misuse of power and female vengeance, portrays the mighty but doomed King Kandaules, who loses both his wealth and his wife to Gyges, an uncouth but honest fisherman who exploits the powers of a magic ring. The opera is brought vividly to life in the critically acclaimed 2002 Salzburg Festival performance conducted by Kent Nagano with the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin. Memorable performances come from Robert Brubaker (King Kandaules), Wolfgang Schöne (Gyges) and Nina Stemme (Nyssia), who has recently received outstanding reviews in the international opera press. The 24 bit remastering recreates the atmosphere in the Kleines Festspielhaus and is complemented by a 164 page book complete with essays on the work and stage photographs of the performance! which took place on that historic Sunday evening of 28 July 2002."That the remarkable intensity of the score found such moving utterance was owing to a tremendous performance by the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester of Berlin under Kent Nagano, who here showed himself to be an exemplary Zemlinsky conductor." (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)"...well cast and brilliantly welded into a coherent ensemble" (Süddeutsche Zeitung)

Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules, Music, Alexander von Zemlinsky, Kent Nagano, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester, Mozarteum-Orchester Salzburg, Almas Svilpa, Georg Zeppenfeld, Jochen Schmeckenbecher, John Dickie, John Nuzzo, Jurgen Sacher, Mel Ulrich, Nina Stemme, Peter Loehle, Randall Jakobsch, Robert Brubaker, Wolfgang Schone, Classical, Classical Composers, German/Austrian 20th/21st Century Opera, Opera, Opera / Operetta / Oratorio
Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules
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    		Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules

    Manufacturer: Andante
    ProductGroup: Music
    Binding: Audio CD

    All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
    GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
    Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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    ASIN: B0002OVQCA
    Release Date: 2004-11-16

    Album Description

    Alexander Zemlinsky's final and partly finished opera Der König Kandaules, based on Andre Gide's play, was composed in 1935-36 and completed by Anthony Beaumont in 1989. The work, involving voyeurism, betrayal, misuse of power and female vengeance, portrays the mighty but doomed King Kandaules, who loses both his wealth and his wife to Gyges, an uncouth but honest fisherman who exploits the powers of a magic ring. The opera is brought vividly to life in the critically acclaimed 2002 Salzburg Festival performance conducted by Kent Nagano with the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin. Memorable performances come from Robert Brubaker (King Kandaules), Wolfgang Schöne (Gyges) and Nina Stemme (Nyssia), who has recently received outstanding reviews in the international opera press. The 24 bit remastering recreates the atmosphere in the Kleines Festspielhaus and is complemented by a 164 page book complete with essays on the work and stage photographs of the performance! which took place on that historic Sunday evening of 28 July 2002."That the remarkable intensity of the score found such moving utterance was owing to a tremendous performance by the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester of Berlin under Kent Nagano, who here showed himself to be an exemplary Zemlinsky conductor." (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)"...well cast and brilliantly welded into a coherent ensemble" (Süddeutsche Zeitung)
    Zemlinsky: Symphony in B flat (1897), Prelude to 'Es war einmal', Sinfonietta op 23, Prelude to Act III of 'Der Konig Kandaules
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      		Zemlinsky: Symphony in B flat (1897), Prelude to 'Es war einmal', Sinfonietta op 23, Prelude to Act III of 'Der Konig Kandaules

      Manufacturer: Chandos
      ProductGroup: Music
      Binding: Audio CD

      All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
      RomanticRomantic | Symphonies | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      SinfoniaSinfonia | Symphonies | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
      GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
      Similar Items:
      1. Zemlinsky: Symphony in D major; Die Seejungfrau
      2. Zemlinsky: Lyric Symphony; Complete Incidental Music to Shakespeare's 'Cymbeline'

      ASIN: B00022M482
      Release Date: 2004-06-29

      Tracks:

      1. I. Sostenuto - Allegro (Schnell, Mit Feuer Und Kraft)
      2. II. Nicht Zu Schnell (Schezando)
      3. III. Adagio
      4. IV. Moderato
      5. Prelude To 'Es War Einmal...'
      6. I. Sehr Leghaft (Presto Die Viertel), Ganze Takte
      7. II. Ballade. Sehr Gemessen (Poco Adagio), Doch Nicht Schleppend
      8. III. Rondo. Sehr Lebhaft
      9. Prelude To Act III Of 'Der Konig Kandaules'
      Zemlinsky: Symphonische Gesänge; Drei Ballettstücke; Der König Kandaules
      Average customer rating: Not rated
        		Zemlinsky: Symphonische Gesänge; Drei Ballettstücke; Der König Kandaules

        Manufacturer: Capriccio
        ProductGroup: Music
        Binding: Audio CD

        BalletsBallets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music
        All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
        General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
        Ballets & DancesBallets & Dances | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
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        Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
        GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
        ASIN: B000001WQ0
        Release Date: 1993-10-13

        Tracks:

        1. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 1. Lied Aus Dixieland
        2. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 2. Lied Der Baumwollpacker
        3. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 3. Totes Braunes Madel
        4. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 4. Ubler Bursche
        5. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 5. Erkenntnis
        6. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 6. Afrikanischer Tanz
        7. Sym Gesange, Op.20: 7. Arabeske
        8. Drei Ballettstucke 'Triumph Der Zeit': 1. Reigen. Massig Bewegt (Feierlich)
        9. Drei Ballettstucke 'Triumph Der Zeit': 2. Fauntanz. Langsam-Sehr Schnell
        10. Drei Ballettstucke 'Triumph Der Zeit': 3. Presto
        11. Der Konig Kandaules: Vorspiel, 3. Akt
        12. Der Konig Kandaules: Monolog Des Gyges, 3. Akt
        Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules
        Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
        • Zemlinsky's disturbing, haunting swansong...
        		 Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules

        Manufacturer: Capriccio
        ProductGroup: Music
        Binding: Audio CD

        All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
        General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
        GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
        Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
        GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
        Similar Items:
        1. Zemlinsky: Es War Einmal
        2. Alexander Zemlinsky: Der Traumgörge
        3. Zemlinsky: Der Zwerg

        ASIN: B000001WW7
        Release Date: 1997-10-07

        Tracks:

        1. King Candaules: Prologue 'Der sein Gluck halt, soll sich gut versteckel!'
        2. King Candaules: Scene 1 'He, Gyges, du gehst? Bleib doch bei uns'
        3. King Candaules: Scene 2 'Ja, Kandaules sagt es. Die Konnigin Nyssia wird diesen Abend das Fest Schmucken'
        4. King Candaules: Scene 3 'Schlage den Schleier zuruck. Alle sind meine Freude'
        5. King Candaules: Scene 4 'Also du bist Gyges?'

        Tracks:

        1. King Candaules: Prelude Orchester
        2. King Candaules: Scene 1 'Nun qualt mich die Musik. Hort auf!'
        3. King Candaules: Scene 2 'Ich war schon lang bei Euch, doch glaubt ich Euch nicht allein'
        4. King Candaules: Prelude Orchester
        5. King Candaules: Scene 1 'Hast du Kandaules geseh'n, Philebos?'
        6. King Candaules: Scene 2 'Mein Ring! Mein Ring!'
        7. King Candaules: Scene 3 'Wie, mein Gebieter, das ist Eure Sorge?'
        8. King Candaules: Scene 4 'Die schonste aller Nachte...Genug!'

        Customer Reviews:

        5 out of 5 stars Zemlinsky's disturbing, haunting swansong..........2003-01-20

        As great as this opera is, the story of how it finally came to the stage is nearly as fascintating. Fleeing Nazi persection, which had already driven him from Berlin, Zemlinsky left Vienna for America, with the short score and partial orchestration of "Kandaules" in tow. He hoped to finish it in America, and get it produced at the Metropolitan Opera, where one of his former students, Artur Bodansky, was a conductor. But when he showed him the score, Bodansky thought a nude scene in the second act too racy for the Met, and advised Zemlinsky to try something else. Zemlinsky started from scratch, with a new opera on the subject of Circe. But his health was failing, and he died before finishing it. The handwritten pages of "Konig Kandaules" sat untouched for half a century, when it was reassembled by Zemlinsky biographer and musicologist Antony Beaumont. With the blessing of Zemlinsky's widow, Beaumont finished the orchestration of the score, and it was produced for the first time in 1996, and since then has had quite a successful career, with several well received productions.

        The opera is both theatrically powerful, and really disturbing--far more so that all of Schreker's harlots and rapists. The reason is because we can see ourselves, and our own excesses in Kandaules's characters. The themes could hardly be more applicable to our own time and society. King Kandaules is genuinely well meaning in his generosity, but he has no moral center, and doesn't know the meaning of limits. Gyges, who is really the protagonist, is uncultured and maybe a little inflexible, but he has a conscience, something Kandaules admires all the more because he has none himself. In the end, Gyges kills Kandaules, not because he wants Kandaules's things, he does it only because he must to avoid his own death, and he feel terrible about it, because he still regards Kandaules as his friend and benefactor. Yet, because of his friend's murder, Gyges becomes the King of Lydia. The music moves back in a more romantic direction, after the more spare style of "Der Kreidekreis", yet it still maintains an unsettled harmonic vocabulary that is most apt to the subject matter, and while I personally prefer the lusher approach of his middle career, I still find "Der Konig Kandaules" spellbinding.
        Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules
        Average customer rating: Not rated
          		Zemlinsky: Der König Kandaules

          Manufacturer: Capriccio
          ProductGroup: Music
          Binding: Audio CD

          All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
          General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
          GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
          Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
          GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
          OperettasOperettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
          ASIN: B0000DEL8L
          Release Date: 2002-11-25
          Die deutsche Oper des 20. Jahrhunderts (German Opera of the 20th Century)
          Average customer rating: Not rated
            		Die deutsche Oper des 20. Jahrhunderts (German Opera of the 20th Century)

            Manufacturer: Capriccio
            ProductGroup: Music
            Binding: Audio CD

            All Works by SchmidtAll Works by Schmidt | Schmidt, Franz | ( S ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
            All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
            General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
            Vocal & SongVocal & Song | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
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            GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
            GeneralGeneral | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music
            ASIN: B000006N2P
            Release Date: 1998-04-28
            Zemlinsky: Symphonische Gesänge; Drei Ballettstücke; Der König Kandaules
            Average customer rating: Not rated
              		Zemlinsky: Symphonische Gesänge; Drei Ballettstücke; Der König Kandaules

              Manufacturer: Capriccio
              ProductGroup: Music
              Binding: Audio CD

              BalletsBallets | Ballets & Dances | Classical | Styles | Music
              All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
              General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
              Ballets & DancesBallets & Dances | Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              ASIN: B00005YQDF
              Release Date: 1995-10-17
              Zemlinsky: Lyrische Symphonie
              Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
              • Emotional Atom Bomb
              		 Zemlinsky: Lyrische Symphonie

              Manufacturer: EMI Records [All429]
              ProductGroup: Music
              Binding: Audio CD

              All Works by ZemlinskyAll Works by Zemlinsky | Zemlinsky, Alexander von | ( Z ) | Featured Composers, A-Z | Classical | Styles | Music
              General ModernGeneral Modern | Modern, 20th, & 21st Century | Historical Periods | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Classical | Styles | Music
              GeneralGeneral | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              Modern & 20th CenturyModern & 20th Century | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              Romantic (c.1820-1910)Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              GermanGerman | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
              Similar Items:
              1. Zemlinsky - "Cymbeline" Suite · Ein Tanzpoem · Frühlingsbegräbnis / Voight · Albert · Kübler · Conlon

              ASIN: B00005Y4E9
              Release Date: 2002-09-03

              Tracks:

              1. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: I. Ich Bin Friedlos
              2. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: II. Mutter, Der Junge Prinz
              3. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: III. Du Bist Die Abendwolke
              4. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: IV. Sprich Zu Mir, Geliebter
              5. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: V. Befrei Mich Von Den Banden
              6. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: VI. Vollende Denn Das Letzte Lied
              7. Lyric Symphony In Seven Songs After Poems By Rabindranath Tagore For Orchestra, Soprano And Baritone Op.18: VII. Friede, Mein Herz
              8. Sarema (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Vorspiel
              9. Es War Einmal (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Vorspiel, 1. Akt
              10. Es War Einmal (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Zwischenspiel, 1. Akt
              11. Kleider Machen Leute (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Walzer-Intermezzo, 1. Akt
              12. Kleider Machen Leute (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Zwischenspiel, 2. Akt
              13. Der Kreidekreis (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Vorspiel Zum 3. Akt
              14. Der Konig Kandaules (Operatic Preludes And Interludes): Vorspiel Zum 3. Akt

              Customer Reviews:

              5 out of 5 stars Emotional Atom Bomb.......2002-12-21

              I had collected Zemlinsky's operas for some time before I listened to this--his most famous work. It's fame is justified. It's emotional power is astonishing! It's constructed of seven songs, alternating between baritone and soprano soloists. The texts are beautiful poems by the Indian nobel prize winner Rabindranath Tagore on the subject of yearning, love, and the loss of love. For those unused to Zemlinsky's mature style, or the so-called "post romantic" period (it's really the MOST romantic period), the music isn't as neat or complacently pretty as other classical music. It seeths and agonizes--switching back and forth between heartbreaking lyricism and more astringent passages. But for me, that just makes the lyricism more sweet. The first two songs are mostly of the more difficult hue, but the third ("You are the evening cloud"), sends chills down the spine. The fourth ("Speak to me, beloved") is unearthly in it's quiet, unsettled orchestral harmonies, and voluptuous lines for soprano and solo violin. It gives one the feeling of floating high over the earth. But it's the seventh and final song ("Peace, my heart") that makes your heart break. There's a kind of devastating emotional directness and honesty in the music that hits you like a ton of bricks. I couldn't get it out of my mind. Zemlinsky has sometimes been criticized for copying the idea of Mahler's "Das lied von der erda", but the Lyric Symphony really contains some of the composer's most original and creative music. Do we blame Mozart for writing symphonies because Haydn did it first? The performance and recording is superb, and the filler is a good introduction to some of Zemlinsky's lesser known operas. Buy this CD. In Lyric Symphony Zemlinsky does turn "love into memory, and pain into song", just as the seventh song says.

              Track Listings:

              1. Allegri: Miserere/Handel: Zadok the Priest [Import]
              2. Alone...
              3. Ancient Voices
              4. Beethoven - Leonore / Martinpelto ˇ Oelze ˇ Begley ˇ M. Best ˇ A. Miles ˇ Hawlata ˇ Shade - Gardiner
              5. Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique, Overture - Le Carnaval Romain Op.9 [Import]
              6. Beyond the Boundaries
              7. Bizet: Carmen / Maazel (1984 film) [highlights]
              8. Bizet: Symphony in C Major/Mendelssohn: A Midsummer's Night Dream Incidental Music/Smetana: The Moldau
              9. Blue and Gray: Songs of The Civil War
              10. Bohuslav Martinu: Piano Concertos Nos. 2, 3 & 4

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