 (Sunday from Light) is an opera by Karlheinz Stockhausen in five scenes and a farewell, to a libretto written and compiled by the composer. It is the last-composed of seven operas that comprise the cycle "Licht" (Light). Its stage premiere in 2011 was posthumous, more than three years after the composer's death.
Within the "Licht" cycle, Sunday is the day of the mystical union of Eve and Michael, from which the new life of Monday proceeds. "In this way there is neither end nor beginning to the week. It is an eternal spiral".
History.
The various scenes of the opera were commissioned by different organizations and were premiered separately in concert form. "Lichter—Wasser" (Lights—Waters) was composed in 1998–99 on commission of the Südwestrundfunk for the Donaueschinger Musiktage, and was premiered on 16 October 1999 in the Baar Gymnasium in Donaueschingen. The second scene, "Engel-Prozessionen" (Angel Processions), was commissioned by the Groot Omroepkoor (Netherlands Radio Choir) of Hilversum, the Netherlands, and its artistic director Jan Zekveld. It was composed in 2000, and premiered on 9 November 2002 at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, with James Wood and David Lawrence conducting and with choreographer Machteld van Bronkhorst.
The music of "Licht-Bilder" was commissioned by the Centre de Création Musicale Iannis Xenakis (CCMIX), Paris, and a visual realisation was commissioned by the Zentrum für Kunst und Mediatechnologie (ZKM), Karlsruhe, with the support of the Kunststiftung NRW (Art Foundation of North Rhine Westphalia). It was premiered at the Donaueschinger Musiktage, in the Donauhalle B, on 16 October 2004. The performers were Suzanne Stephens (bassett horn), Kathinka Pasveer (flute and alto flute), Hubert Mayer (tenor), Marco Blaauw (trumpet), and Antonio Pérez Abellán (synthesizer), with Karlheinz Stockhausen (sound projection). Image composition, stage design, and costumes were by Johannes Conen, with video collaboration from Yvonne Mohr.
"Düfte-Zeichen" was commissioned by Peter Ruzicka for the 2003 Salzburg Festival, and was composed between January and March 2002. It received its first performance on 29 August 2003 at the Perner Insel in Hallein (near Salzburg). The performers were Isolde Siebert (high soprano), Ksenja Lukič (soprano), Susanne Otto (alto), Hubert Mayer (tenor), Bernhard Gärtner (tenor), Jonathan de la Paz Zaens (baritone), Nicholas Isherwood (bass), Sebastian Kunz (boy soprano), and Antonio Pérez Abellán (synthesizer), with sound projection by the composer.
The final pair of scenes, "Hoch-Zeiten für Chor" and "Hoch-Zeiten für Orchester" (High Times, or Marriages for choir and for orchestra), are performed simultaneously in two different halls. It was commissioned by Rafael Nebot for the Festival de Música de Canarias. It was premiered by the choir and symphony orchestra of the West German Radio Cologne, in the Sala Sinfónica and the Sala de Cámera of the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on 1 February 2003. Rupert Huber conducted the choir, Zsolt Nagy conducted the orchestra, and the synthesizer players were Antonio Pérez Abellán and Benjamin Kobler. The German premiere with the same forces took place in Cologne on 14 February 2003 at the Philharmonie and the Große Sendesaal of the WDR.
The last element to be completed was the "Sonntags-Abschied" (Sunday Farewell), which was adapted for five synthesizers in 2003 from "Hoch-Zeiten für Chor". It was premiered on 1 August 2004 in the Sülztalhalle in Kürten as the second concert of the 2004 Stockhausen Courses. The performers were Frank Gutschmidt, Benjamin Kobler, Marc Maes, Antonio Pérez Abellán, and Fabrizio Rosso. In concert performances such as the premiere it may be performed live, but in the context of the opera it is intended to be heard in the foyer and/or outside the hall in five-channel playback, possibly with visual projections. There are also two further versions of this "Abschied", one for solo percussionist and ten-channel tape titled "Strahlen" (Rays), the other as "Klavierstück XIX", for synthesizer and five-channel tape. Work on the ten-channel electronic music for "Strahlen" was begun in 2003 by the ZKM, Karlsruhe, but was interrupted in 2004 in favour of producing the visual elements for "Licht-Bilder". The tape part was not finished until 2010, though a preliminary version was used for the world premiere on 4 December 2009 in Karlsruhe, with László Hudacsek, vibraphone.
A further component scene, to be performed simultaneously with the rest of the opera but in a separate location, was planned but never composed. This was to have been called "Luciferium", in which Lucifer is banished from the opera, and instead "is in the jail (Luciferium). But he listens".
The staged premiere of "Sonntag" was given by the Cologne Opera in two parts, on Saturday and Sunday, 9 and 10 April 2011, in the Staatenhaus (States' House) of the Kölner Messe. Subsequent performances were given on 20/21, 26/27, and 28/29 April, with the entire opera given in a single day on 24 April and 1 May 2011. The musical direction was by Kathinka Pasveer and Peter Rundel, and the artistic concept by Franc Aleu (from Urano), and by Roland Olbeter and Carlus Padrissa (from La Fura dels Baus). The staging was by Carlus Padrissa, with dramaturgy by Thomas Ulrich. Stage design was by Roland Olbeter, costumes by Chu Uroz, and lighting by Andreas Grüter. Video production was by Franc Aleu and choreography by Athol Farmer and Carlos Paz.
The production left a budget deficit for the Cologne Opera that, when combined with a decrease in municipal funding, led to director Uwe Erik Laufenberg's resignation.
Synopsis.
"Sonntag" takes as its subject the Solar System and the relationships of all the planets that orbit the Sun. In this opera, the Earth and life on it is represented as the result of the union of light and water. These two elements are presented in the first scene, and the rest of the opera celebrates the evolution of life, of plants, animals, humans, and above all this the planets, moons, and heavenly constellations. The opera has a pronounced ritualistic and meditative character, with very little that can be described as dramatic action. There are five scenes (or six, counting the two versions of "Hoch-Zeiten" separately), and a concluding "farewell". Most of the scenes include elaborate spatial movement, each with "a distinctive spatial imprint".
Scene 1: Lichter—Wasser (Sunday Greeting).
"Lichter—Wasser" (Lights—Waters) is both the first scene and the "Gruss" (greeting) of the opera. An initial duet by the soprano (Eve) and tenor (Michael) is followed by the entrance of the orchestra, who take their places throughout the audience, which is arranged in triangular segments facing the centre. Each musician is provided with a rack with a lamp and a glass of water. Seventeen high-register instruments are identified by seventeen blue lamps, corresponding to the Michael formula, and twelve lower-register instruments are lit by green lamps, corresponding to the Eve formula. The music rotates through the space in two simultaneous layers and in 12 successive waves. These rotations are related to the planets and moons of the Solar System, whose names, astronomical characteristics, and symbolisms form a part of the sung texts, which were written by the composer. At the end, the musicians make their exit and the soprano and tenor sing a closing duet.
Scene 2: Engel-Prozessionen.
In the second scene, "Engel-Prozessionen" (Angel Processions), seven groups of angels move through the space singing God's praises in seven languages (Ulrich 2011, 3). The seventh group consists of four soloists, and are the Angels of Joy (Sunday Angels). They sing in German. The soprano and tenor soloists should either be the same as in scene 1, or strongly resemble them. The other six choirs are Angels of Water (Monday Angels), Angels of Earth (Tuesday Angels), Angels of Life (Wednesday Angels), Angels of Music (Thursday Angels), Angels of Light (Friday Angels), and Angels of Heaven (Saturday Angels), and sing in Hindi, Chinese, Spanish, English, Arabic, and Swahili, respectively. The texts were all written by the composer in German, and translated into the respective languages. In "Lichter—Wasser" the composed movement of sounds in the hall is only apparent, with musicians remaining at stationary positions, but in "Engel-Prozessionen" spatial movement is real, with the singers physically moving through the performance area.
Scene 3: Licht-Bilder.
The scene "Licht-Bilder" is performed by two pairs of musicians, a flute and basset horn on the one hand, and a tenor and trumpet on the other. The tenor (Michael) sings the praises of God in the form of His creations, manifested from stones to spirits. The music is accompanied by corresponding light images, hence the title of the scene. The flute and basset horn represent Eve, while the tenor and trumpet represent Michael, and each pair always sound together. Although the musical material is all drawn from the Michael and Eve layers of the "Licht" superformula, the assignment of these melodies to the pairs changes from section to section. The musical figures given to the basset horn and flute on the one hand, and to the tenor and trumpet on the other, are gradually displaced and then brought together again seven times, forming large phases corresponding to the days of the week. At the same time, movements of the performers on the stage corresponding to the musical figures are composed, and the waves are mirrored by a double ring modulation, creating new harmonies and timbres.
Scene 4: Düfte-Zeichen.
The fourth scene recapitulates the seven days of the entire "Licht" cycle. The protagonists explain each day in terms of their characteristic signs and scents. Afterward, Eve appears as Earth Mother (sung by an alto), and Michael appears in the form of a boy soprano. The seven fragrances chosen for the days of the week, their associated geographical areas, and the seven voices and voice combinations are:
An alto voice from outside the hall, identifying herself as Eve, causes the soloists to run out, in turbulence. They return in procession, escorting the alto to the front while singing an "overtone chant." The alto Eve calls the boy Michael to her out of the audience, they sing a mystical duet, and she takes him with her into another world.
Scene 5: Hoch-Zeiten for Choir and for Orchestra.
"Hoch-Zeiten" (High Times, or Marriages) is performed simultaneously in two different halls by five choral groups and five orchestral sections, respectively. The five divisions in each hall perform at independent speeds, producing "a tour de force of multiple superimposed tempi". The performance is then repeated, with the audiences changing halls. As such, these two versions are sometimes regarded as both the fifth and sixth scenes of "Sonntag". The basic structure of the orchestral version is identical to that of "Hoch-Zeiten for Choir", but has added to it five duos and two trios performed by the first-desk players of the orchestra. These ensembles are recollections of characteristic moments from each of the seven operas in the "Licht" cycle, presented not in weekday order but in the order they were composed:
Sonntags-Abschied.
The Sunday Farewell is essentially "Hoch-Zeiten" for choir played by five synthesizers, including the phonetic notation of the original vocal texts. It is not so much an arrangement as an adaptation, and is intended for five-channel playback in recorded form in the foyer and outdoors as the audience exits the theatre.
Discography.
Like all of the other complete recordings of the "Licht" operas in the Stockhausen Complete Edition, the one of "Sonntag aus Licht" is a composite one, though (unlike five others) it has not been released as a boxed set, but rather on six separate CDs. This was broadcast by SWR in September 2007. The recordings actually date from 1999, 2002, 2003, and 2004, and were made in various venues, as detailed below.
References.
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Further reading.
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