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AGATA ZUBEL’s ORESTEIA with a libretto by MAJA KLECZEWSKA after Aeschylus’ classical tragedy is now available FROM ANAKLASIS also on a vinyl record
2023-11-20
The timeless heritage of ancient authors never ceases to inspire the imagination of contemporary artists. Aeschylus’ "Oresteia" has thus become the basis for Agata Zubel’s dramopera to a libretto by Maja Kleczewska. The two artists have combined the classical tragic plot with modern means of expression. Available since May 2023 on a CD, the work can now also be purchased on a vinyl record.
– I am overjoyed that we can now listen to Oresteia as I imagined that work to be at the time of composition, commented the composer in an interview. The vinyl edition adds another title to the ANAKLASIS analogue record catalogue and makes it possible to enjoy this recording with an even higher sound quality.
Composed in 2011 as a commission from the Teatr Wielki – the Polish National Opera in Warsaw, it was premiered there a year later under the direction of Maja Kleczewska. In the concert performance of the spectacle, released by ANAKLASIS in May this year, the actors are replaced by just one, very well-known voice – that of Danuta Stenka, appearing in the double role of two opposed and extreme figures: the killer and the avenger, Clytemnestra and Orestes.
In this bloody tale, replete with dramatic decisions, Stenka’s musical partners are Anna Zawisza (soprano), Michał Sławecki (countertenor), Tomasz Piluchowski (tenor), The Polish Radio Choir, as well as percussionists: Krzysztof Niezgoda, Leszek Lorent, and Tamara Kurkiewicz. The performance was conducted by Szymon Wyrzykowski.
ORESTEIA tackles difficult aspects of human motivation and attempts to define the moral meaning of human acts. We have reenacted the same themes over and over for centuries and nothing has changed, which is as fascinating as it is terrifying,’ the composer comments.
The CD & LP ORESTEIA is part of the OPERA series, which presents outstanding compositions for voices and instruments, ones that go beyond the tradition-sanctified understanding of the term ‘opera’. The album is now available from the best bookstores and music shops, as well as the virtual shop of the Empik.
Produced with funding from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
Media patrons: TVP Kultura, Polish Radio Channel 2, Culture.pl
Project partner: Ruch Muzyczny
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