Rachel Harnisch & Jan Philip Schulze

With scandalous innovation of one-act operas such as 'Mörder, Hoffnung der Frauen' and 'Sancta Susanna', in the early twenties Paul Hindemith emerged as a musical enfant terrible. But by the end of the decade he had changed course again. A typical example of this volte-face is 'Das Marienleben', a musical biography about the Holy Virgin based on poems by Rilke. Admittedly, this cycle does have its expressive moments, but in contrast Hindemith establishes a backdrop of contemplation and pure, neo-baroque linearity. Despite the fact that the composition is now regarded as one of the vocal masterpieces of the twentieth century, it is very rarely performed. The Swiss soprano Rachel Harnisch and pianist Jan Philip Schulze believed that it was high time to remedy this, and gave a highly-praised performance of the work at the 2012 Lucerne Festival. To enable you to experience this recital even more intensively, there will first be a series of talks that offer a deeper insight into Hindemith and Rilke. Pianist Jan Philip Schulze will be exploring the relationship between the text and the music.