The operetta that Korngold wrote for Broadway
UncategorizedMannes School of Music is planning a US premiere of Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s The Silent Serenade.
Written in the late 1940s when Korngold was at the peak of his Hollywood success, it failed to make the cut on the Great White Way.
Premieres at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater on March 13, 2026.
A recording of Silent Serenade was released on the CPO label in 2011. Does anyone know if it’s any good?
It is professionally performed but does not recreate the distinctive Viennese atmosphere invested in the work. Hear the performance conducted by EWK on YouTube.
I am not sure where youre getting your info but good topic I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more Thanks for magnificent info I was looking for this information for my mission
There should always be room for Korngold.
I like a bowl of Korngold with milk for breakfast. But I’m sure this is as good as anything by Romberg.
I cannot recommend his Sinfonietta to friends often enough. He was so talented!
Hurrah!!!!
Nice
North American premiere (and probable world premiere in English) happened at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto on Nov. 15, 2013. German title: Die stumme Serenade.
https://basiaconfuoco.com/2022/03/15/korngolds-the-silent-serenade-at-last/
This work is a gem. It features an endless torrent of memorable tunes that are wrought in that natural way that makes one think they were not composed but have simply always existed. The music is imaginatively scored (as you’d expect from EWK) for a small pit orchestra and is a delight from beginning to end.
There is an air check on YouTube of a performance conducted by the composer in the 1950s. The performance style presented there may be unmatchable by today’s executants; it has a flavor that comes from a culture and world long gone.
“Wenn’s in Paris mitternach, zu tollem Leben die Stadt er wacht,
Lichter, sie schimmern und flimmern von lausenden der Kerzen…”
Korngold’s creativity never fails to impress, from his Hollywood film music to his numerous symphonic works. His Violin Concerto in D Major remains–to me at least–one of the most definitive Twentieth Century string works ever composed. Packed with emotion, passion, and energy, it seems to embody all the possibilities of the unfolding post war world.
Now to discover that he tried his hand at a Broadway musical! I suspect a challenging search to find any recorded samples of this work on YouTube or anywhere else. Even though I admire almost all of Korngold’s output, I admit reluctance to spring for the compact disc (mentioned in another comment) without hearing at least a sampling of its contents. Then again, his voice composition work for Die Tote Stadt was both memorable and moving. If anyone can shed any light, I’m all ears…
Well said.
The opening of the slow movement of the Korngold violin concerto is one of the most beautiful episodes in all of music.
I love it too.
“I suspect a challenging search to find any recorded samples of this work on YouTube or anywhere else. ”
You probably have not even tried !
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lMxdmYDECdCcwgpRPMsUUnt6B3DEwvoHs
Thanks Eric. I did check after I posted and found myself to be quite wrong. Imagine! Thanks again for the excellent link.