''Émigré'' is an

oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...

composed by

Aaron Zigman Aaron Zigman (born January 6, 1963) is a classically trained American composer, producer, arranger, songwriter, and musician who has scored music for films including '' The Notebook'', '' The Company Men'', '' Bridge to Terabithia'', '' John Q. ...

with lyrics by Mark Campbell and Brock Walsh. Set in 1930s Shanghai, it relates the story of a Jewish refugee who falls in love with a Chinese woman. It premiered on 17 November 2023 to mixed reviews.

Background

In 2019, Chinese conductor Yu Long, director of the

Shanghai Symphony Orchestra The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra () is a symphony orchestra in Shanghai, China. Its music director is Long Yu. Founded in 1879, the SSO is the oldest List of symphony orchestras#China, Chinese symphony orchestra. Originally, it was known as the ...

, reached out to Jewish-American composer

to collaborate on a piece about Jewish refugees in Shanghai. Yu's grandfather,

Ding Shande Ding Shande (; November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1995) was a Chinese composer, pianist, and music teacher. Biography Ding was born in Kunshan, Jiangsu. He studied music with teachers including Huang Tzu at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. D ...

, had worked with and taught many Jewish musicians during the 1930s and 1940s; Yu desired to honor his grandfather with a production about it. Mark Campbell and Brock Walsh joined the project as lyricists. The oratorio was commissioned by both the

and the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

. Zigman described the story as "a multicultural love story at the end of the day, and then a story of humanity, love, hope and acceptance through the tragedy of loss as well."

Premise

In 1938, just days after

Kristallnacht ( ) or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom(s) (, ), was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's (SA) and (SS) paramilitary forces along with some participation from the Hitler Youth and German civilia ...

, two German Jewish brothers emigrate to

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

to escape mounting

antisemitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

in Germany. One of the brothers, Otto, is a rabbinical student who desires to keep his Jewish traditions. The other, Josef, a doctor, visits a Chinese herbal medicine shop, where he meets and falls in love with Lina, a woman whose mother was murdered during the Rape of Nanjing. The two marry in spite of their families' opposition to their union, but face many hardships.

Cast

Performances

''Émigré'' had its world premier in Shanghai on 17 November 2023. It received its US premiere on 29 February 2024, and is set to premiere in

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

in October 2024,

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in November 2024,

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

in April 2025, and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in June 2025.

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

recorded the oratorio and released the recording on 2 February 2024.

Reception

''Émigré'' was hailed as "a sign of the power of cultural exchange between China and the United States", according to the ''New York Times''. A reviewer from the

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

praised the libretto, score, Yu's conducting and the singing of the actors; the reviewer criticized what he perceived as the oratorio's lack of definition.

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

in a negative review called ''Émigré'' "pure schlock".

Zachary Woolfe Zachary Woolfe is an American music critic who specializes in classical music. Since 2022 he has been chief classical music critic for ''The New York Times''. Education and career As a teenager in the 1990s, Woolfe discovered the online oper ...

in a review for

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

called it "bland..."Émigré" is oratorio at its worst" and criticized the music, lyrics, pacing, and characterization.

References

{{reflist Oratorios