Johann Joseph Abert: Ekkehard
Alfred Reiter, Mihoko Fujimura, Christian Gerhaher, Susanne Kelling, Nyla van Ingen, Jonas Kaufmann, Jörg Hempel, Henryk Böhm, SWR Rundfunkorchester Kaiserslautern, Stuttgarter Choristen, Peter Falk
All of the singers are pleasant to listen to, but only the 29-year-old Kaufmann makes you sit up and take notice. In his big act III aria, which is composed at a level not far below Max’s aria...
Johann Joseph Abert: Ekkehard
Alfred Reiter, Mihoko Fujimura, Christian Gerhaher, Susanne Kelling, Nyla van Ingen, Jonas Kaufmann, Jörg Hempel, Henryk Böhm, SWR Rundfunkorchester Kaiserslautern, Stuttgarter Choristen, Peter Falk
Purchase product
All of the singers are pleasant to listen to, but only the 29-year-old Kaufmann makes you sit up and take notice. In his big act III aria, which is composed at a level not far below Max’s aria...
About
The fate of the lovesick monk Ekkehard unfolds against the historical background of the battle against heathenism and the Hunnish invasion - things which the broad and lavish grand-opera framework not only justifies but virtually demands. Abert set this very motley text to music in such a way that each of the various worlds and situations is given its appropriate expression, emulating 'just about all the styles represented in opera today'. However, his approach is not one of simple eclecticism; the entire work is set in the fully individual tonal language he had developed in his previous operas.The young tenor Jonas Kaufmann with his brilliant tembre had the best requirements to present the main-role in this nearly unknown opera. This production was one of the first recordings in general for him, now re-mastered and new released again.
Contents and tracklist
- Alfred Reiter, Mihoko Fujimura, Christian Gerhaher, Susanne Kelling, Nyla van Ingen, Jonas Kaufmann, Jörg Hempel, Henryk Böhm
- SWR Rundfunkorchester Kaiserslautern, Stuttgarter Choristen
- Peter Falk
Awards and reviews
Jul/Aug 2020
All of the singers are pleasant to listen to, but only the 29-year-old Kaufmann makes you sit up and take notice. In his big act III aria, which is composed at a level not far below Max’s aria in Der Freischütz, Kaufmann is every inch the romantic hero, sounding ardent and bright, as close as he ever did to Fritz Wunderlich before his voice acquired its baritonal coloration.
September 2020
Ekkehard makes for an appealing listen, but this disc is mainly worth hearing for Kaufmann’s youthful contribution...there’s a wonderful lyrical quality allied with fresh, youthful sweetness and focus early on, not to mention a striking smoothness in the phrases; and his tenor takes on a ringing heroic character as the action unfolds, pointing to the heavier roles that have become his domain.
Opera Now March 2020
a strange but rather fabulous opera … there is a lot to like
