ABSTRACT
This research report examines the opera Der Silbersee: Ein Wintermärchen (The
Silver Lake: a Winter’s Tale), 1932, by Kurt Weill and Georg Kaiser, as an example
of what Weill defined as ‘new opera’, in his essay ‘Der Neue Oper’.1 It will discuss
reasons for the work’s rarity in its relative neglect as well as its significance as an
example of what Kim Kowalke has called a synthesis of Weill’s ‘mature style’. Thus
it will also be demonstrated that the work, even though rarely performed and often
overlooked, is an important bridge between the works of Weill’s ‘German period’ and
his later works in the United States. It will be established that the work is of
musicological significance as well as of interest and relevance to present-day
theatregoers. The research argues that the work, though written in Germany during the
1930s as a form of operatic protest, is worthy of being seen as a timeless and
universal piece, deserving of more attention. This investigation will be accomplished
through an analysis of Weill’s own writings found in his many essays, translated and
collected by Kim Kowalke in his book Kurt Weill in Europe, through an examination
of the historical and socio-political perspective of the work, as well as in a musical
analysis.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/4844 |
| Date | 19 May 2008 |
| Creators | Fowles, Catherine Elizabeth |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 19761220 bytes, 17474 bytes, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf |
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