Die Brautwahl

Die Brautwahl
Opera by Ferruccio Busoni

The composer in 1906
Librettist Ferruccio Busoni
Language German
Based on Short story by E. T. A. Hoffmann
Premiere 12 April 1912 (1912-04-12)
Stadttheater, Hamburg

Die Brautwahl (The Bridal Choice) is a "comic-fantastic" opera in three acts and an epilogue by Ferruccio Busoni. The German libretto, by Busoni himself, is based on a short story by E. T. A. Hoffmann. Busoni began work on this, his first completed opera, in 1905.

Die Brautwahl was first performed at the Stadttheater in Hamburg on 12 April 1912. It was not a success with audiences but its failure did not discourage the composer's ambition to write for the operatic stage.

Roles

Role Voice type Premiere Cast, 12 April 1912
Conductor: Gustav Brecher
Albertine soprano Elisabeth Schumann
Edmund Lehsen tenor Otto Marak
Dionysius Thusman tenor Willi Birrenkoven
Bensch tenor Eduard Lichtenstein
Voswindel baritone Hermann Wiedemann
Leonhard baritone Robert von Scheldt
Manasse bass Max Lohfing
Servant tenor Fritz Windgassen

Synopsis

The artist Edmund is in love with Albertine but he has many rivals for her hand. These include the "revenant" Manasse, his son Baron Bensch and the bureaucrat Thusman. The "bridal choice" of the title is finally decided by a trial involving three caskets which Edmund wins.

Recordings

References

Sources
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