The Bell Tower

The Bell Tower is a chamber opera in one act by Ernst Krenek, his Op. 153. The English libretto by the composer was inspired by the short story by Herman Melville (collected in The Piazza Tales), the events only mysteriously hinted at in the story becoming a point of departure for the explicit dramatic action of Krenek's piece.[1] It was commissioned by the Fromm Foundation and written in 1955–56, receiving its premiere on 17 March 1957 at the University of Illinois (recorded on CRS 5).

For other uses, see Bell tower (disambiguation).
The Bell Tower
Chamber opera by Ernst Krenek
LibrettistKrenek
LanguageEnglish
Based onshort story by Herman Melville
Premiere
March 17, 1957 (1957-03-17)
University of Illinois

Roles
Role [2] Voice type Premiere Cast,
(Conductor:John Garvey)
Bannadonna, bell-caster and architect baritone Manfred Capell
Giovanni, foreman bass William Olson
Una, Bannadonna's daughter soprano Donna Sue Burton
Two Senators Baritone & Tenor Dan MacDonald, Donald Paschke
Two workers Tenor & Baritone Edward Levy, Bruce Govich
Statue John Wilson
Chorus of citizens, workers SATB

Orchestra: 1.1.1.0-0.1.1.0-perc-pft-str (offstage: 2tpt, trmb, sn-dr.)

References

Notes

  1. author's forward in Prosa Dramen Verse (1965)
  2. workpage at /datenbank.krenek.at

Sources

  • Stewart, John L., Ernst Krenek: The Man and His Music. University of California Press, 1991 ISBN 0-520-07014-3 ISBN 0-520-07014-3


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