Hans Werner Henze – Voices

at Festival KlangART Vision

In 1998, on the occasion of the new production of Henze’s *König Hirsch* at the Komische Oper Berlin, we threw ourselves into working on his *Voices* almost without a second thought. Looking back, the sheer scale of the organisational and instrumental challenges involved in staging this work can still make one’s head spin … but naivety and a certain lack of experience can sometimes be a blessing: the master himself was pleased!

With this work, Henze created a new form of lieder recital. It is still – or rather, once again – very up to date, particularly due to his choice of texts! Originating from Henze’s biography of his early years, which he spent in a fascist-influenced home, the work is above all rooted in his political and social commitment and the associated attitude that determined his life to the end. He achieved his goal of “writing political songs with means that go beyond what Eisler, Weill and Dessau had achieved”!

Alice Lackner, mezzo-soprano
Paul Curievici, tenor
ensemble unitedberlin
Christoph Breidler, conductor