Overview
Introduction
Die Harmonie der Welt (The Harmony of the World) is an opera in five acts by Paul Hindemith. The German libretto was by the composer.
The title of the opera is taken from Harmonices Mundi by the astronomer Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) who is the subject of the opera. Hindemith used the planetary system as a metaphor for his own musical arrangement of the chromatic scale.
Performance history
It was first performed on 11 August 1957, at the Prinzregententheater, Munich, conducted by the composer.
A truncated monaural recording of the opera appeared on the Stradivarius label, but a complete recording of the work had to wait until the digital era, when Marek Janowski conducted the entire opera for the Wergo label (see section Recordings). Hindemith proponent Yan Pascal Tortelier has also openly expressed an interest in conducting a recording of the opera.
Due to Kepler's association with his home town of Linz, Austria, performances of the opera have been scheduled at the Landestheater Linz beginning on April 8, 2017 and continuing for several performances into June, 2017. The Bruckner Orchestra Linz will be conducted by Gerrit Prießnitz.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 11 August 1957 (Conductor: Paul Hindemith) |
|---|---|---|
| Susanna, Kepler's wife/Venus | soprano | Liselotte Fölser |
| Young Susanna, Kepler's daughter | soprano | |
| Katharina, Kepler's mother/Moon | contralto | Hertha Töpper |
| Wallenstein, warlord/Jupiter | tenor | Richard Holm |
| Ulrich Grüßer, Kepler's pupil/Mars | tenor | K. Wehofschlitz |
| Christoph Kepler | tenor | |
| Johannes Kepler, the astronomer/Earth | baritone | Josef Metternich |
| Emperor Rudolf II/Emperor Ferdinand II/Sun | bass | Kieth Engen |
| Daniel Hizler, priest/Mercury | bass | Joseph Knapp |
| Tansur, astrologer/Saturn | bass | Marcel Cordes |
| Baron Starhemberg | baritone | |
| Richter | baritone |
Synopsis
Set in the 17th century, the opera is the story of the search for universal harmony by the astronomer Johannes Kepler.
