Theatre of the World

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Louis Andriessen's Theatre of the World was recorded live during the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s 2016 world premiere performances with conductor Reinbert de Leeuw and director Pierre Audi. The nine-scene multimedia work, which features a libretto by Helmut Krausser, is a far-ranging exploration of 17th-century German Jesuit scholar Athanasius Kircher. The Los Angeles Times says: "Brilliant and deep, Andriessen's music compels from start to finish."

Description

Nonesuch releases Louis Andriessen's stagework Theatre of the World—recorded live during the Los Angeles Philharmonic's 2016 world premiere performances with conductor Reinbert de Leeuw and director Pierre Audi—on September 29, 2017. The nine-scene multi-media work, which was commissioned by the Philharmonic with generous support from the Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg Fund, features a libretto by Helmut Krausser. Theatre of the World is a far-ranging exploration of the German Jesuit scholar Athanasius Kircher (1601–1680). Kircher, the author of thirty books, "made a determined effort to summarize all of contemporary knowledge, and link it to Christian theology," according to John Henken's program note. The Los Angeles Times says: "Brilliant and deep, Andriessen's music compels from start to finish." Theatre of the World, Andriessen's eighth Nonesuch recording, is available to pre-order now.

Leigh Melrose performs the role of Kircher; Lindsay Kesselman is a boy who leads Kircher and his patron, Pope Innocenzo XI (sung by Marcel Beekman), on a journey. Steven van Watermeulen is Janssonius, Kircher's Amsterdam publisher; Mattijs van de Woerd is Carnifex, the hangman; and Cristina Zavalloni is Sor Juana. The Los Angeles Times calls her "ravenously ecstatic … the real vocal soul of the opera."

Louis Andriessen, according to London's Guardian, is "not only the leading Dutch composer of our time, but one of the most important figures in European music in the last half century, whose influence has spread far beyond that of his own works." His music has explored politics, time, velocity, matter, and mortality in five works for large ensemble: De Staat (Nonesuch, 1991), De Tijd (Nonesuch, 1993), De Snelheid, De Materie (Nonesuch, 1996), and Trilogy of the Last Day. In addition to Theatre of the World, his stage works include the La Commedia (Nonesuch, 2014), Writing to Vermeer (Nonesuch, 2006), and Rosa: The Death of a Composer (Nonesuch, 2000), as well as the monodrama Anaïs Nin. Nonesuch also released an album with his De Stijl and M is for Man, Music, Mozart in 1994. Andriessen's recent awards include the Marie-Josée Kravis Prize for New Music, the Caecilia Prize, and the Grawemeyer Award.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under the vibrant leadership of Music & Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel, presents an inspiring array of music from all genres—orchestral, chamber, and Baroque music, organ and celebrity recitals, new music, jazz, world music and pop—at two of L.A.'s iconic venues, Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. The LA Phil's season at Walt Disney Concert Hall extends from September through May, and throughout the summer at the Hollywood Bowl. With the preeminent Los Angeles Philharmonic at the foundation of its offerings, the LA Phil aims to enrich and transform lives through music, with a robust mix of artistic, education, and community programs.

ProductionCredits

PRODUCTION CREDITS
Music by Louis Andriessen

Recorded May 6 & 8, 2016, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CA
Produced by Jesse Lewis
Engineered by Sergey Parfenov & Fred Vogler
Editing and Mixing by Jesse Lewis
Mastering by Kyle Pyke & Jesse Lewis

Design by Barbara deWilde Design
Cover Artwork by the Quay Brothers

Executive Producer: Robert Hurwitz

World premiere: May 6, 2016, at Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CA
A co-production of Los Angeles Philharmonic and De Nederlandse Opera (Dutch National Opera)
Stage Director: Pierre Audi
Décor & Video: Quay Brothers

Florence von Gerkan, costume design
Wijnand van der Horst, light design
Scott Zielinski, light design
Dramaturgy: Klaus Bertisch
Associate Director: Frans Willem de Haas

Commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic with generous support from the Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg Fundt
Published by Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd.

Nonesuch Selection Number

561784

ns_album_releasedate
Album Status
Artist Name
Louis Andriessen
Los Angeles Philharmonic
MusicianDetails

MUSICIANS
Los Angeles Philharmonic

Reinbert de Leeuw, conductor
Leigh Melrose, baritone
Lindsay Kesselman, soprano
Marcel Beekman, tenor
Cristina Zavalloni, mezzo-soprano

Leigh Melrose, Athanasius Kircher aka Padre Atanasio, 76 years old
Lindsay Kesselman, a boy of about twelve years
Marcel Beekman, Pope Innocenzo XI
Cristina Zavalloni, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
Steven Van Watermeulen, Janssonius, Kircher’s publisher in Amsterdam (and the skeptic and critic Raffaele Fabretti)
Mattijs van de Woerd, The Carnifex, the hangman of Rome
Timur, Posterity in the person of Voltaire
Tim Gonzales, Posterity in the person of Descartes
David Castillo, Posterity in the person of Goethe
Scott Graff, Posterity in the person of Leibnitz
Charlotte Houberg, Sophie Fetokaki, Ingeborg Bröchler, witches
Martijn Cornet, Nora Fischer, He and She (a couple of secret lovers)

Cover Art
UPC/Price
Label
CD+MP3
UPC
075597936117
Label
MP3
Price
16.00
UPC
075597936179
Label
FLAC
Price
17.00
UPC
075597936131
Label
96/24 HD FLAC
Price
21.00
UPC
075597936162
  • 561784

News & Reviews

  • Girls of the Golden West, John Adams’ eighth music theater work to be released by Nonesuch, is due April 26. The composer leads the LA Phil in this recording made in Disney Hall, with the Los Angeles Master Chorale led by Grant Gershon. You can hear the aria "Wagon Ride," featuring Davóne Tines and Julia Bullock, now. For the opera, which tells the story of the California Gold Rush, longtime Adams collaborator Peter Sellars drew from original sources from the era—letters, journals, newspaper articles, and familiar song lyrics—to create the libretto. The cast also includes Paul Appleby, Hye Jung Lee, Elliot Madore, Daniela Mack, and Ryan McKinny.

  • Congratulations to Julia Bullock, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, the Los Angeles Philharmonic & Gustavo Dudamel, and Thomas Adès all of whom won GRAMMY Awards at the Premiere Ceremony today: Bullock for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album for Walking in the Dark; Tuttle & Golden Highway for Best Bluegrass Album for City of Gold; and the LA Phil and Dudamel for Best Orchestral Performance for Thomas Adès' Dante. And congratulations to Laurie Anderson, who was a recipient of the Recording Academy’s 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award in a ceremony on Saturday night.

  • About This Album

    Nonesuch releases Louis Andriessen's stagework Theatre of the World—recorded live during the Los Angeles Philharmonic's 2016 world premiere performances with conductor Reinbert de Leeuw and director Pierre Audi—on September 29, 2017. The nine-scene multi-media work, which was commissioned by the Philharmonic with generous support from the Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg Fund, features a libretto by Helmut Krausser. Theatre of the World is a far-ranging exploration of the German Jesuit scholar Athanasius Kircher (1601–1680). Kircher, the author of thirty books, "made a determined effort to summarize all of contemporary knowledge, and link it to Christian theology," according to John Henken's program note. The Los Angeles Times says: "Brilliant and deep, Andriessen's music compels from start to finish." Theatre of the World, Andriessen's eighth Nonesuch recording, is available to pre-order now.

    Leigh Melrose performs the role of Kircher; Lindsay Kesselman is a boy who leads Kircher and his patron, Pope Innocenzo XI (sung by Marcel Beekman), on a journey. Steven van Watermeulen is Janssonius, Kircher's Amsterdam publisher; Mattijs van de Woerd is Carnifex, the hangman; and Cristina Zavalloni is Sor Juana. The Los Angeles Times calls her "ravenously ecstatic … the real vocal soul of the opera."

    Louis Andriessen, according to London's Guardian, is "not only the leading Dutch composer of our time, but one of the most important figures in European music in the last half century, whose influence has spread far beyond that of his own works." His music has explored politics, time, velocity, matter, and mortality in five works for large ensemble: De Staat (Nonesuch, 1991), De Tijd (Nonesuch, 1993), De Snelheid, De Materie (Nonesuch, 1996), and Trilogy of the Last Day. In addition to Theatre of the World, his stage works include the La Commedia (Nonesuch, 2014), Writing to Vermeer (Nonesuch, 2006), and Rosa: The Death of a Composer (Nonesuch, 2000), as well as the monodrama Anaïs Nin. Nonesuch also released an album with his De Stijl and M is for Man, Music, Mozart in 1994. Andriessen's recent awards include the Marie-Josée Kravis Prize for New Music, the Caecilia Prize, and the Grawemeyer Award.

    The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under the vibrant leadership of Music & Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel, presents an inspiring array of music from all genres—orchestral, chamber, and Baroque music, organ and celebrity recitals, new music, jazz, world music and pop—at two of L.A.'s iconic venues, Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. The LA Phil's season at Walt Disney Concert Hall extends from September through May, and throughout the summer at the Hollywood Bowl. With the preeminent Los Angeles Philharmonic at the foundation of its offerings, the LA Phil aims to enrich and transform lives through music, with a robust mix of artistic, education, and community programs.

    Credits

    MUSICIANS
    Los Angeles Philharmonic

    Reinbert de Leeuw, conductor
    Leigh Melrose, baritone
    Lindsay Kesselman, soprano
    Marcel Beekman, tenor
    Cristina Zavalloni, mezzo-soprano

    Leigh Melrose, Athanasius Kircher aka Padre Atanasio, 76 years old
    Lindsay Kesselman, a boy of about twelve years
    Marcel Beekman, Pope Innocenzo XI
    Cristina Zavalloni, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
    Steven Van Watermeulen, Janssonius, Kircher’s publisher in Amsterdam (and the skeptic and critic Raffaele Fabretti)
    Mattijs van de Woerd, The Carnifex, the hangman of Rome
    Timur, Posterity in the person of Voltaire
    Tim Gonzales, Posterity in the person of Descartes
    David Castillo, Posterity in the person of Goethe
    Scott Graff, Posterity in the person of Leibnitz
    Charlotte Houberg, Sophie Fetokaki, Ingeborg Bröchler, witches
    Martijn Cornet, Nora Fischer, He and She (a couple of secret lovers)

    PRODUCTION CREDITS
    Music by Louis Andriessen

    Recorded May 6 & 8, 2016, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CA
    Produced by Jesse Lewis
    Engineered by Sergey Parfenov & Fred Vogler
    Editing and Mixing by Jesse Lewis
    Mastering by Kyle Pyke & Jesse Lewis

    Design by Barbara deWilde Design
    Cover Artwork by the Quay Brothers

    Executive Producer: Robert Hurwitz

    World premiere: May 6, 2016, at Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CA
    A co-production of Los Angeles Philharmonic and De Nederlandse Opera (Dutch National Opera)
    Stage Director: Pierre Audi
    Décor & Video: Quay Brothers

    Florence von Gerkan, costume design
    Wijnand van der Horst, light design
    Scott Zielinski, light design
    Dramaturgy: Klaus Bertisch
    Associate Director: Frans Willem de Haas

    Commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic with generous support from the Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg Fundt
    Published by Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd.