Engelbert Humperdinck - Das Mirakel (Steffen Tast)

Information

Composer: Engelbert Humperdinck

• Das Mirakel, EHWV 151

Sophie Klussmann, soprano

Josette Micheler, mezzo-soprano

Rundfunkchor Berlin

Kinderchor des Georg-Friedrich-Händel-Gymnasiums Berlin

Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin

Steffen Tast, conductor

Date: 2025

Label: CapriccioNR

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Karl Gustav Vollmoeller’s pantomime Das Mirakel stands as his most significant stage work, supported by Engelbert Humperdinck’s lavish, romantic score featuring expansive choral writing. Despite its dramatic power, the piece has long remained overlooked within Humperdinck’s oeuvre. After its 1911 London premiere, Max Reinhardt adapted the work for film in 1912 and mounted large-scale productions involving hundreds of performers, culminating in a Salzburg Festival presentation in 1925. This richly Romantic creation, once a major theatrical event, is now available in its first complete recording, offering a rare chance to appreciate the work in full.

Steffen Tast, born in Berlin in 1965, studied violin before joining the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, where his interest in contemporary music led to early conducting work with KNM Berlin. After private studies with Christian Kluttig, he received invitations to conduct ensembles such as Oriol, Ensemble Modern, and ascolta. His community opera initiative Dorf macht Oper became a model of collaborative music education. Since 2005 he has led RSB chamber concerts, and since 2014 their family and school programs, including award-winning inclusive formats. His projects include new versions of Grieg’s Peer Gynt and Humperdinck’s Das Mirakel. He also works with major German and European orchestras and directs the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Symphony Orchestra.