Aribert Reimann - Ein Traumspiel; Denn Bleiben ist nirgends (Walter E. Gugerbauer)

Information

Composer: Aribert Reimann

• Ein Traumspiel
• Denn Bleiben ist nirgends

Franziska Rabl; Daniel Milos; Karsten Jesgarz; Laura Louisa Lietzmann

Rainer Mesecke; Stefanie Rhaue; Christiane Seidel; Yvonne Prentki

James Tolksdorf; Minseok Kim; Wladimir Polatynski; Thilo Andersson

Joscha Blatzheim; Bärbel Kubicek; Peter Potzelt; Marek Reichert

Opernchor des Theaters Hof

Hofer Symphoniker

Walter E. Gugerbauer, conductor

Date: 2026

Label: Wergo

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Aribert Reimann’s first opera, Ein Traumspiel, is now available in a critically acclaimed Hof Theater production. Reflecting the central importance of literature in Reimann’s oeuvre, the opera exemplifies his lifelong engagement with vocal composition as a transformative setting of literary texts. Based on August Strindberg’s play, the work powerfully conveys its theme of compassion through striking melodic intensity, culminating in a musically vivid portrayal of Indra’s daughter bearing human suffering back to the divine realm. The album also features Denn Bleiben ist nirgends, inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke’s First Duino Elegy, conceived as a melodrama for speaker and orchestra. Performers include Franziska Rabl, Karsten Jesgarz, James Tolksdorf, Marek Reichert, the Hof ensembles, and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin under Walter E. Gugerbauer and Manuel Nawri, with Martin Engler as narrator.

Aribert Reimann (1936–2024) was a leading German composer, pianist, and accompanist, internationally renowned for his literary operas. Born in Berlin into a musical family, he studied composition with Boris Blacher and Ernst Pepping and piano with Otto Rausch. Early success came with his ballet Stoffreste (1959), and he later gained widespread acclaim for operas including Ein Traumspiel, Melusine, Lear, Die Gespenstersonate, Troades, Das Schloß, Bernarda Albas Haus, Medea, and L’Invisible. His works are distinguished by their intense vocal writing and engagement with major literary sources. Reimann also composed extensively for orchestra and chamber ensembles and taught in Hamburg and Berlin. He received numerous prestigious international awards for his lifetime achievements.