Moses und Aron

Moses und Aron has its roots in Schoenberg's earlier agitprop play, Der biblische Weg (The Biblical Way, 1926–27), a response in dramatic form to the growing anti-Jewish movements in the German-speaking world after 1848 and a deeply personal expression of his own "Jewish identity" crisis. The latter began with a face-to-face encounter with anti-Semitic agitation at Mattsee, near Salzburg, during the summer of 1921, when he was forced to leave the resort because he was a Jew, although he had converted to Protestantism in 1898. It was a traumatic experience to which Schoenberg would frequently refer, and of which a first mention appears in a letter addressed to Wassily Kandinsky (April 1923): "I have at last learnt the lesson that has been forced upon me this year, and I shall never forget it. It is that I am not a German, not a European, indeed perhaps scarcely even a human being (at least, the Europeans prefer the worst of their race to me), but that I am a Jew."[2]

Schoenberg's statement echoed that of Gustav Mahler, a convert to Catholicism, some years earlier: "I am thrice homeless: as a Bohemian among Austrians, as an Austrian among the Germans, and as a Jew throughout the entire world. I am an intruder everywhere, welcome nowhere."[3] The Mattsee experience was destined to change the course of Schoenberg's life and to influence his musical creativity, leading him first to write Der Biblische Weg, in which the central protagonist Max Aruns (Moses-Aaron) is partially modelled on Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern political Zionism; then to proclaim in Moses und Aron his uncompromising monotheistic creed; and finally, upon his official return to Judaism in 1933, to embark for more than a decade on a relentless mission to save European Jewry from impending doom. Der Biblische Weg should be considered as both a personal and political play. Moses, at the center of the biblical Exodus story, had become from the time of Heinrich Heine to that of Herzl and Schoenberg, the ideal incarnation of a national and spiritual redeemer.[2]

From the sketchy outline of the play (1926) to its final version (1927) and to the inception of Moses und Aron as an oratorio (1928), it then became an opera, and the first two acts were composed between 1930 and 1932. Schoenberg often stated his intention to complete the work but composed only a few sketches for Act 3. Despite its unfinished status, it is widely regarded as Schoenberg's masterpiece.

Schoenberg's title may have omitted an "A" in Aaron's name because the composer was severely superstitious about the number 13;[4] "Moses und Aaron" has 13 letters.

Zoltán Kocsis (Hungarian conductor, composer and pianist) had received permission from Schoenberg's heirs in 2009 to complete the last act. His version was premiered in concert at Budapest on 16 January 2010.[5]

As Schoenberg always intended to finish the work, the opera was not performed during his lifetime. However, the first public performance of music from the opera was of Der Tanz um das goldene Kalb in concert at Darmstadt on 2 July 1951, just 11 days before the composer's death.[6][7] There was a concert performance of the two acts in Hamburg on 12 March 1954 with Hans Herbert Fiedler as Moses and Helmut Krebs as Aron, conducted by Hans Rosbaud. The first staging was in Zurich at the Stadttheater on 6 June 1957, again with Hans Herbert Fiedler as Moses and conducted by Hans Rosbaud, but with Helmut Melchert as Aron.

Georg Solti conducted the first performance at the Royal Opera House, London on 28 June 1965. The singers were Forbes Robinson (Moses) and Richard Lewis (Aron). The American premiere was produced by Sarah Caldwell's Opera Company of Boston on 30 November 1966 with Donald Gramm as Moses, Richard Lewis as Aron, Harry Theyard as the young man, Maxine Makas as the young girl, Eunice Alberts as the invalid woman, and Osbourne McConathy conducting.[8] The New York premiere was presented by the New York City Opera conducted by Christopher Keene, with Richard Cross in the role of Moses and Thomas Young as Aaron, directed by Hans Neugebauer.[9] The Metropolitan Opera did not stage the work until 20 February 1999, under the baton of James Levine with John Tomlinson in his debut role as Moses and Philip Langridge as Aron. The first performance in a communist country was in 1988 at Staatsoper Berlin as staged by Ruth Berghaus and conducted by Friedrich Goldmann.

In 1973, the work was also made into a film by Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet. A 2006 production by the Vienna State Opera has been published as a DVD.

Moses and Aron is based entirely on a single tone row, itself constructed from cells:

Tone row from Moses und Aron[10] consisting of four trichords, three note cells, followed by the first and last cells

This row is then combined with versions of itself so that the first half of each still provide six different pitches:

Combinatorial row forms from Moses und Aron pairing complementary hexachords from P-0/I-3[11]

Michelangelo's Moses

Time: Thirteenth century B.C.
Place: Egypt and the desert.

The work is scored for the following orchestra:

• woodwind: 3 flutes (2nd and 3rd doubling on piccolo), 3 oboes, English horn, 3 clarinets (3rd doubling on sopranino clarinet), bass clarinet, 3 bassoons (3rd doubling on contrabassoon);
• brass: 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, bass tuba;
• percussion: timpani, glockenspiel, xylophone, flexatone, bells in A, B flat, f and c', bass drum, cymbals, tam-tam, gong, big tenor drum, small drum, tambourine, ratchet, bells of undefined pitch;
• Other: 2 mandolins, celesta, piano, harp, strings;
• On-stage: English horn, horn, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones, 2 mandolins, 2 guitars (T. 929-957), bass drum – more thuds, cymbals, sleigh bells, gongs in various pitches (T. 1084-1098 and T. 1102-1127), 3 clarinets, 3 horns or 3 bassoons (T. 1082-1128);
• Behind the stage: piccolo, flute, clarinet, trombone, timpani, xylophone, 2-4 mandolins, piano (T. 1084-1098 and T. 1102-1109)

• 1954: Hans Herbert Fiedler, Helmut Krebs, NWDR Chor, Sinfonieorchester des Nordwestdeutschen Rundfunks (Hamburg) conducted by Hans Rosbaud
• 1966: Josef Greindl, Helmut Melchert, Städtische Oper Berlin conducted by Hermann Scherchen
• 1973: Günter Reich, Louis Devos, Chor und Sinfonieorchester des Österreichischen Rundfunks conducted by Michael Gielen (DVD)
• 1975: Günter Reich, Richard Cassilly, BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Pierre Boulez
• 1976: Werner Haseleu, Reiner Goldberg, Rundfunk-Sinfonie-Orchester Leipzig conducted by Herbert Kegel
• 1984: Franz Mazura, Philip Langridge, Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Georg Solti; Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording in 1986.
• 1996: David Pittman-Jennings, Chris Merritt, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Pierre Boulez
• 1999: John Tomlinson, Philip Langridge, Metropolitan Opera conducted by James Levine
• 2006: Wolfgang Schöne, Chris Merritt, Stuttgart State Orchestra conducted by Roland Kluttig
• 2006: Franz Grundheber, Thomas Moser, Vienna State Opera conducted by Daniele Gatti (DVD)
• 2010: Dale Duesing, Andreas Conrad, Ruhr Triennale conducted by Michael Boder (DVD)
• 2014: Franz Grundheber, Andreas Conrad, EuropaChorAkademie, SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden und Freiburg conducted by Sylvain Cambreling
• 2015: Thomas Johannes Mayer, John Graham-Hall, Opéra national de Paris conducted by Philippe Jordan (Blu-ray & DVD)
• 2015: Robert Hayward, John Daszak, Komische Oper Berlin conducted by Vladamir Jurowski, director Barrie Kosky (streamed 11-9-2020 to 12-6-2020)

Notes

• Casaglia, Gherardo (2005)."Moses und Aron, 12 March 1954". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).