''Judith'' is an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

in two

acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...

Siegfried Matthus Siegfried Matthus (13 April 1934 – 27 August 2021) was a German composer, conductor, and festival founder and manager. Some of his operas, such as '' Judith'', were premiered at the Komische Oper Berlin in East Berlin. In 1991, he founded th ...

with a libretto by the

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

based on Friedrich Hebbel's '' Judith'' and texts from the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

. The premiere was on 28 September 1985 at the

Komische Oper Berlin The Komische Oper Berlin is a German opera company based in Berlin. The company produces opera, operetta and musicals. The opera house is located on Behrenstraße, just a few steps from Unter den Linden. Since 2004, the Komische Oper Berlin, a ...

, directed by

Harry Kupfer Harry Alfred Robert Kupfer (12 August 1935 – 30 December 2019) was a German opera director and academic. A long-time director at the Komische Oper Berlin, he worked at major opera houses and at festivals internationally. Trained by Walter Felse ...

. It was recorded in a studio production.

History

The composer

was pointed to Friedrich Hebbel's '' Judith'', a tragedy written in 1840, by stage director

. Matthus wrote the

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 ...

, also using some texts from the

, such as Psalm 115,

Psalm 135 Psalm 135 of the biblical Book of Psalms begins and ends "Praise ye the LORD" ( he, הַלְלוּ יָהּ, ''hallelujah''). The New King James Version entitles it "Praise to God in Creation and Redemption". In the numbering system used in th ...

Psalm 72 Psalm 72 is the 72nd psalm from the Book of Psalms. Traditionally seen as being written by King Solomon, its heading may be translated 'to or for Solomon'. In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septuagint and Latin Vulgate ...

Psalm 104 Psalm 104 is the 104th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great". In Latin, it is known as "Benedic anima mea Domino". In the slightly different ...

and verses from the Song of Songs. Hebbel's tragedy is based on the

Book of Judith The Book of Judith is a deuterocanonical book, included in the Septuagint and the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christian Old Testament of the Bible, but excluded from the Hebrew canon and assigned by Protestants to the apocrypha. It tells ...

. At the same time Matthus composed ''Holofernes-Porträt'' for

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

and orchestra, which was premiered in 1981 during the opening week of the new

Gewandhaus Gewandhaus is a concert hall in Leipzig, the home of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. Today's hall is the third to bear this name; like the second, it is noted for its fine acoustics. History The first Gewandhaus (''Altes Gewandhaus'') The f ...

, with

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012) was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous Lieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's Lieder, ...

and conductor

Kurt Masur Kurt Masur (18 July 1927 – 19 December 2015) was a German conductor. Called "one of the last old-style maestros", he directed many of the principal orchestras of his era. He had a long career as the Kapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Or ...

. Matthus transferred parts of the composition to his opera, which he composed from 1980 to 1984. ''Judith'' was planned for the opening of the restored

Semperoper The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the ...

in Dresden. As Kupfer worked in Berlin from 1981, the opera was premiered at the

on 28 September 1985, staged by Kupfer and conducted by

Rolf Reuter Rolf Reuter (7 October 1926 – 10 September 2007) was a German conductor. Life Reuter was born as son of the composer Fritz Reuter in Leipzig. After studying music at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Dresden he began his care ...

, with Eva-Maria Bundschuh in the title role and

Werner Haseleu Werner Haseleu (2 May 1935 – 29 June 2012) was a German operatic bass-baritone and academic voice teacher. He was a long-term member of the Staatsoper Dresden and the Komische Oper Berlin, often with director Harry Kupfer at both houses. He w ...

as Holofernes. The production was a success and was recorded for the television of the German Democratic Republic and for records. ''Judith'' was published by

Breitkopf & Härtel Breitkopf & Härtel is the world's oldest music publishing house. The firm was founded in 1719 in Leipzig by Bernhard Christoph Breitkopf. The catalogue currently contains over 1,000 composers, 8,000 works and 15,000 music editions or books on ...

, with a translation to English by B. Jacobson.

Recording

The first performance was recorded in 1986, conducted by

and staged by Kupfer, with the chorus and orchestra of the

, as a studio production in collaboration with the

Rundfunk der DDR Rundfunk der DDR (, 'GDR Broadcasting'; from about 1948 to 1972 Deutscher Demokratischer Rundfunk, 'German Democratic Broadcasting') was the collective designation for radio broadcasting organized by the State Broadcasting Committee in the Germa ...

References

External links

* {{authority control German-language operas 1985 operas Operas based on the Bible Cultural depictions of Judith Operas Operas based on plays