Hindemith, part I
Elbert, Lonquich

Anna-Lena Elbert, soprano

Alexander Lonquich, piano

P. Hindemith (1895-1963)

Das Marienleben, Part I

Concert with surtitles in the original language and in Italian

40’ | Ticket €12

Among the historic vaults of the Teatro Bibiena, one of the most enchanting spaces in Mantua, the first part of one of the most visionary vocal cycles of the twentieth century comes to life: Paul Hindemith’s Das Marienleben, set to texts by Rainer Maria Rilke.

Composed in 1922–23, this cycle of fifteen songs for voice and piano narrates the life of the Virgin Mary with an extremely modern sensibility, moving away from purely devotional imagery and toward the inner world of a woman, a mother.

Giving voice to the mother of Christ is Anna-Lena Elbert, an eclectic soprano and one of the most highly regarded artists on the international scene; accompanying her is Trame Sonore’s artist-in-residence, pianist Alexander Lonquich.

Hindemith shapes Rilke’s verses into a bold musical language, built on dense counterpoint, sharp dissonances, and a rich yet unsettled lyricism. In this first part of the Lieder, each musical tableau reveals a fragment of humanity: the joy of the Annunciation, the silent wonder of birth, the tenderness of everyday life.

Moments of light that already carry within them the weight of a predetermined fate—the first foreshadowing of a larger story, which will reach its fulfillment in the evening concert.

Rilke’s texts will be projected on screen also in Italian translation.

Text by Giada De Sio