''Der lustige Krieg'' (''The Merry War'') is a three-act

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

composed by

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ov ...

. The work was first performed on 25 November 1881 at the

Theater an der Wien The is a historic theatre in Vienna located on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district. Completed in 1801, the theatre has hosted the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music. Since 2006, it has served prima ...

. Its

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

was by F. Zell (

Camillo Walzel Camillo Walzel (11 February 1829 –17 March 1895) was a German librettist and theatre director, who wrote under the pseudonym F Zell. Life and work Walzel was born in Magdeburg. In his early years, he worked in his father's lithographic factory, ...

) and

Richard Genée Franz Friedrich Richard Genée (7 February 1823 – 15 June 1895) was a Prussian born Austrian libretto, librettist, playwright, and composer. Life Genée was born in Gdańsk, Danzig. He died at Baden bei Wien. Works He is most famous for the ...

. The operetta was well received at its premiere, and was performed 69 times during its first run.

Roles

Synopsis

:Place: The garrisoned

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

city of

Massa Massa may refer to: Places *Massa, Tuscany, the administrative seat of the Italian province of Massa-Carrara. *Massa (river), river in Switzerland * Massa (Tanzanian ward), administrative ward in the Mpwapwa district of the Dodoma Region of Ta ...

. :Time: First part of the 18th century It concerns a dispute between two states. The 'war' between them is played out as a game of love between Colonel Umberto Spinola, the commander-in-chief of the Genoese army, and the widowed Countess Violetta. Despite the name of the operetta, there is no fighting or bloodshed in the 'war'.

Recordings

''Johann Strauss: Der lustige Krieg'',

Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra The Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra (German: ''ORF Radio-Symphonieorchester Wien'', or RSO Wien) is the orchestra of the Austrian national broadcaster Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF). Unlike most other Austrian orchestras, the RSO Wien has a sub ...

, Wiener Jeunesse-Chor, Wiener Motettenchor *Conductor:

Ulf Schirmer Ulf Schirmer (born 1959) is a German conductor and opera house administrator. Born in Eschenhausen, Lower Saxony, Schirmer studied at the Bremen Conservatory, and also at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg, with György Ligeti, Christ ...

*Principal singers:

Eva Mei Eva Mei (born 1967) is an Italian coloratura soprano. Mei was born in Fabriano. She graduated from the Conservatorio Luigi Cherubini in Florence. In 1990, at the Mozart Competition in Vienna, she won the Catarina Cavalieri Prize for her interp ...

, Jorma Silvasti, , Jörg Schneider, Paul Armin Edelmann, Birgid Steinberger *Recording date: *Label: ORF CD240

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lustige Krieg, Der Operas by Johann Strauss II 1881 operas German-language operettas Operas Italy in fiction