Organization

Conductor

Adrian Kelly

Stage director

Mélanie Huber

Set designer

Lena Hiebel

Lighting designer

Hans-Rudolf Kunz

Dramaturge

Fabio Dietsche

Singer

Baritone

Yannick Debus

Lenz

Costume designer

Opernhaus Zürich

Others

Zurich Chamber Orchestra

German

Jakob Lenz

Zurich

Switzerland

ZKO-Haus

Public

Approved

“As if madness were chasing him on horses” Jakob Lenz walked through the mountains in January 1778. The driven poet finds refuge with the Alsatian pastor Oberlin. Based on his historical records, Georg Büchner described the fate of a young, highly sensitive outsider of the Sturm und Drang period in his novella Lenz. This text inspired the 25-year-old composer Wolfgang Rihm in 1978 to write an early successful work that is now one of the most-performed chamber operas of the 20th century. According to Rihm, the musical consequence of Lenz's condition is "an hour of extreme chamber music, not really a commentary, but the main character himself as a complex level of action." Above all, Rihm set the voices to music “that only Lenz hears”. With her highly expressive, sharp-edged, but also lyrically sensitive tone Rihm's music leads directly into the soul of its protagonist. The chamber opera, in which "the human often turns into the fairytale", is staged by the Swiss director Mélanie Huber as part of our program for Rihm's 70th birthday. On the theater stage she has performed with Robert Walser's Kleist, among othersThun or Melvilles Bartleby have already dealt with outsider figures on several occasions.

English

«Als jage der Wahnsinn auf Rossen hinter ihm» («As though he were chased by madness astride horses») – Jakob Lenz wanders through the mountains in January 1778. The persecuted poet finds refuge with the Alsatian priest Oberlin. Based on his historical notes, Georg Büchner described the fate of this young, highly sensitive outsider of the Sturm und Drang period in his novella Lenz. In 1978, this text inspired the then 25-year-old composer Wolfgang Rihm to write what would become not only one of his early successes, but what would become one of the most successful chamber operas of the 20th century. According to Rihm, the musical result of Lenz’s state is «an hour of extreme chamber music, not commentary, but the main character himself as a multilayered level of action.» Rihm primarily set to music the voices «that only Lenz hears». With its highly expressive, sharp-edged yet lyrically sensitive nature, Rihm’s music reveals the soul of his protagonist. This chamber opera, in which «the human often turns into the fairy-tale-like», will be staged as part of our program for Rihm’s 70th birthday by Swiss director Mélanie Huber. She is no stranger to interpreting the concept of the outsider for the theater, having previously dealt with Robert Walser’s Kleist in Thun and Melville’s Bartleby.

Deutsch

Jakob Lenz by Rihm, From (2022/2022), Directed by Mélanie Huber,, Conductor Adrian Kelly, ZKO-Haus, Zurich, Switzerland

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew

Ensemble

Co-Producer

Program, About & Synopsis

Further reading

Performance Dates & Venues

Venues