I can’t think of another 20th century opera which has grown so fast in popularity so long after its composition than Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk. I first saw the opera—several times —when the Met first performed it in 1994, and have also seen performances in Stockholm, Salzburg, Budapest, and Wien, the last of which I am pleased to offer as this week’s Mixcloud upload.  

In addition to the many minor parts cast to perfection, Angela Denoke, Misha Didyk, and Kurt Rydl make a formidable trio in the lead roles, but the stars here may very well be the Wiener Staatsopernorchester and Ingo Metzmacher, whose performances of works by Weill (Mahagonny) and Zimmermann (Die Soldaten) rank among the most memorable revelations for me in the last few years. In Metzmacher we truly have a master of 20th/21st century music.

Dmitri Shostakovich: Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

Wiener Staatsoper
Ingo Metzmacher, conductor
23 October 2009

Katerina Ismailova – Angela Denoke
Sergei – Misha Didyk
Boris Ismailov – Kurt Rydl
Konosvi Ismailov – Marian Talaba
Aksinya – Donna Ellen
Millhand – Johannes Gisser
Coachman – Thomas Köber
Peasant – Michael Roider
Steward – Hans Peter Kammerer
Porter – Marcus Pelz
First Foreman – Gerhard Reiterer
Second Foreman – Oleg Zalytskiv
Third Foreman – Martin Müller
Priest – Mikhail Kolelishvili
Chief of Police – Eijiro Kai
Policeman – Jens Gruber
Teacher – Wolfgang Igor Dirntl
Old Convict – Dan Paul Dumitrescu
Sonyetka – Nadia Krasteva
Convict – Sophie Marilley
Prison Officer – Hens Musger

Please excuse the digital glitch in the last four minutes of the opera.

Photo: Wiener Staatsoper/ Michael Pöhn