Berg / Trekel / Schwanewilms / Molomot - Alban Berg: Wozzeck - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

During the last decade Einojuhani Rautavaara has become one of the internationally most popular and frequently performed Finnish composers.

Alban Berg's Wozzeck, which premiered at Lindenoper/ Berlin in 1925, is regarded as one of the key music compositions of the 20th century and an essential work in any connoisseur's collection. The opera is based on the drama Woyzeck, which was left incomplete by the German playwright Georg Büchner at his death. Berg attended the first production in Vienna of Büchner's play on May 5, 1914, and knew at once that he wanted to base an opera on it. From the fragments of unordered scenes left by Büchner, Berg selected fifteen to form a compact structure of three acts with five scenes each. He adapted the libretto himself. On this , the Frankfurt Opera, under the baton of Sebastian Weigle, delivers a razor-sharp and exciting interpretation. With Audun Iversen and Claudia Mahnke in the main roles the recording shows an ideal cast.

This 4-CD box set presents historic recordings of works by Schoenberg Berg and Webern in the era of their composition. Each recording made between 1949 and 1965 presents works composed between 1906 and 1950 illuminating interpretation of the New Viennese School as the movement was occurring and first understood. An invaluable historical resource as well as a sheer pleasure.