Michael H. Hardern
Operetta Research Center
11 March, 2016
Emmerich Kalman started his career as a serious“ composer of grand tone poems in the Richard Strauss, or more likely Franz Liszt tradition. One of these early works, Endre és Johanna, will be given a North American premiere tonight.
Emmerich Kalman as a young man in 1909, the year of his “Herbstmanöver” success.
At 8 pm (US Pacific Time) the University of British Columbia Symphony Orchestra will perform a concert, the first half of which is all Kálmán. The program includes the overture to Ein Herbstmanöver, which was Kalman’s first Broadway hit under the snappy title The Gay Hussars. Sadly, Ohio Light Opera changed this suggestive title when it revived the show recently and issued a modern English language recording. The other interesting Kalman work on offer tonight is the aforementioned Endre és Johanna, as well as Charles Kalman’s waltz La Parisienne. Also, there will the songs from Gräfin Mariza and Die Csárdásfürstin.
The concert will be live-video-streamed on the CBC network. Click here for the link.
The orchestra already performed Emmerich Kalman’s other famous tone poem, Saturnalia, in October 2014. There are plans by the Operetta Foundation in Los Angeles to release both tone poems on CD. And, talking of releases: the Operetta Foundation will also release Kalman’s The Little King (Der kleine König) on DVD, based on the Ohio Light Opera production 2014. The DVD will be out next month.
Thank you for telling your readers about the upcoming Emmerich Kalman concert performed by the University of British Columbia Symphony Orchestra. I would like to point out that Jonathan Girard, resident conductor for this orchestra, is the creative force behind the concert. Jonathan has done much to champion the music of this over-looked composer including working from the original score of Endre és Johanna to engrave the manuscript which was used for tonight’s performance.