Prom 37 (15.08.20) Strauss: Salome

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

The crushing, five-note dissonance at the grizzly climax of Richard Strauss’s operatic masterpiece – when Salome kisses the severed head of John the Baptist – is one of the most influential moments in 20th-century music. Overnight Strauss redefined the scope of opera, paving the way for modernists such as Arnold Schoenberg and Alban Berg, both of whom were present at the 1906 Austrian premiere.

In this concert performance from the 2014 Proms, Scottish conductor Donald Runnicles leads the Deutsche Oper Berlin orchestra and a cast that includes Nina Stemme in the title role. Fresh from acclaimed productions in Stockholm and Zurich, the Swedish soprano gives a thrilling account of this blood-curdling tale.

Richard Strauss: Salome

Nina Stemme (Salome)
Samuel Youn (Jokanaan)
Burkhard Ulrich (Herod)
Doris Soffel (Herodias)
Thomas Blondelle (Narraboth)
Ronnita Miller (Herodias's Page)
Paul Kaufmann (1st Jew)
Gideon Poppe (2nd Jew)
Jörg Schörner (3rd Jew)
Clemens Bieber (4th Jew)
Andrew Harris (5th Jew)
Noel Bouley (1st Narazene)
Carlton Ford (2nd Nazarene)
Marko Mimica (1st Soldier)
Tobias Kehrer (2nd Soldier)
Seth Carico (Cappadocian)
Orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
Donald Runnicles (conductor)

(From the BBC Proms 2014, 30 August)

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

What a fine opera this is. Strauss at his very best. Concise, dramatic, emotional, structurally superb.

[gradus]

What a fine opera this is. Strauss at his very best. Concise, dramatic, emotional, structurally superb.

Yes, yes and yes again.