Down in the Valley
Music by Kurt Weill · libretto by Arnold Sundgaard · premiered 1948 · at Indiana University Bloomington
Down in the Valley is a folk-opera in one act by composer Kurt Weill and librettist Arnold Sundgaard, initially composed and conceived for the radio in 1945 then rewritten and produced in 1948. It uses famous American tunes to carry the story (including "Down in the Valley", "The Lonesome Dove", and "Hop Up, My Ladies") and connected by original choral music.
Text from the Wikipedia article "Down in the Valley (opera)", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
About the Composer
Kurt Julian Weill (; German: [vaɪl]; March 2, 1900 – April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht. With Brecht, he wrote his best-known work, The Threepenny Opera, which includes the ballad "Mack the Knife". Weill held the ideal of writing music that served a socially useful purpose, Gebrauchsmusik. He also wrote several works for the concert hall and a number of works on Jewish themes. He fled Nazi Germany in 1933, arriving in the United States two years later. Settling in New York, he…
Text from the Wikipedia article "Kurt Weill", licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Other Operas by Kurt Weill
- Der Jasager
- Der Kuhhandel
- Der Silbersee (1844)
- Der Protagonist (1920)
- Der Zar lässt sich photographieren (1927)
- Mahagonny-Songspiel (1927)
- Die Bürgschaft (1931)