Weill: Symphony No.2, Seven Deadly Sins etc.
Various Artists
Kurt Weill made his name in 1920s Germany with the satirical theatre shows he composed with the playwright Bertolt Brecht, most famously The Threepenny Opera. In 1933, Weill, who was Jewish, left Nazi Germany for Paris. There he composed Die sieben Todsünden (The Seven Deadly Sins)—a ballet that’s both sung and danced—before moving to America and successfully reinventing himself as a composer of Broadway shows. Weill’s unique musical style combines mastery of classical technique with a brilliant flair for popular song-writing. Both aspects reach a pinnacle in The Seven Deadly Sins, where Simon Rattle’s conducting unerringly conveys the feeling of tragedy that lies just below the music’s surface irony. Weill’s Second Symphony, composed in the same year, is masterfully performed by the Berlin Philharmonic and conductor Mariss Jansons. And there’s also a selection of songs from The Threepenny Opera and other shows, with Robyn Archer an incisive vocalist.
Second movement: - NOTTURNO Allegro un poco tenuto
Third movement: Allegro molto, un poco agitato
Introduction: Meine Schwester und ich stammen aus Louisiana
Ian Caley, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Elise Ross, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Sir Simon Rattle, Michael Rippon, Sir John Tomlinson
Faulheit (Sloth): Müssiggang ist aller Laster Anfang
Sir Simon Rattle, Michael Rippon, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Ian Caley, Elise Ross, Sir John Tomlinson
Stolz (Pride): Als wir aber ausgestattet waren
Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Elise Ross, Sir John Tomlinson, Ian Caley, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Michael Rippon, Sir Simon Rattle
Zorn (Anger): Das geht nicht vorwärts
Elise Ross, Sir Simon Rattle, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Sir John Tomlinson, Ian Caley, Michael Rippon, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Völlerei (Gluttony): Das ist ein Brief aus Philadelphia
Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Sir Simon Rattle, Ian Caley, Elise Ross, Michael Rippon, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Sir John Tomlinson
Unzucht (Lechery): Und wir fanden einen Mann
Michael Rippon, Ian Caley, Sir John Tomlinson, Elise Ross, Sir Simon Rattle, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Anthony Rolfe Johnson
Habsucht (Avarice): Wie hier in der Zeitung steht
Ian Caley, Elise Ross, Sir Simon Rattle, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Michael Rippon, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Sir John Tomlinson
Neid (Envy): Und die letzte Stadt
Elise Ross, Michael Rippon, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Ian Caley, Sir Simon Rattle, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Sir John Tomlinson
Finaletto: Darauf kehrten wir zurück nach Louisiana
Ian Caley, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Elise Ross, Sir Simon Rattle, Michael Rippon, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Sir John Tomlinson
The Ballad of Sexual Obsession (with orchestra)
John Constable, London Sinfonietta, Dominic Muldowney, Robyn Archer
Bertolt Brecht: The Threepenny Opera (in English)
Alabama Song (from Mahagonny) (1986 Digital Remaster)
London Sinfonietta, Dominic Muldowney, Robyn Archer