Opera
1992-1998
Wednesday is the day of cooperation between Luzifer, Eva and Michael
The four scenes, the greeting and the farewell have now been finished and premiered, but the complete opera awaits its first performance, which was planned for Bonn Opera in 2000 then announced for 2003 in Bern (Switzerland). Sadly, both of these productions were cancelled.
All of the Opera has been released on various CDs of The Stockhausen Complete Edition, except for scene 4: Michaelion.
MITTWOCHs Gruss (1997) for electronic music
1. Welt-Parlament (1995) for choir a Capella
The World-Parliament of the title is set in a harmonious future when earthly delegates assemble to discuss the meaning of love. The choir members sing in rhythmic complexity with growing luminosity and clarity. A humorous interruption occurs with the "tannoy" announcement giving the registration number of a car that will be towed away. The conductor jumps down from the rostrum and hurriedly leaves, leaving the coloratura soprano to take up the baton until the end.
2. Orchester-Finalisten (1995/96) for orchestral soloists and electronic music
A remarkable electronic composition based upon recorded "samples of natural sounds" is heard throughout. The sounds used are linked by the theme of "air" for example bees, steam trains, air conditioners and seagulls, All sounds have been subtly pitch-shifted to follow the 3 melodies of Licht, and the music surrounds the audience from the six directions of the four walls, ceiling and floor. Stockhausen uses an octophonic sound system with speakers in each corner of a cube around the public. By chanelling sounds to four loudspeakers at a time Stockhausen creates separate walls of sound. Twelve instrumental soloists sit behind music stands on stage. They are the "Orchestra-Finalists" and play in turn virtuosic soli based on very severely limited pitch material. All the time a French-horn player appears around the auditorium, until a mysterious mummified figure arrives to strike a gong. Lastly the twelve instrumentalists play all their12 soli simultaneously and leave the stage.
3. Helikopter-Streichquartett (1993) for string quartet and four helicopters.
4. Michaelion (1997) for mixed choir, flute, basset-horn, trumpet, trombone, synthesizer player and bass singer with short-wave receiver
During the final scene of Mittwoch aus LICHT the action takes place in a galactic meeting place; called The Michaelion. The choir members are delegates who arrive from various stars to elect an "Operator" who shall be able to decode messages from around the cosmos.
The candidate Luzikamel arrives, (with bass singer and assistant wearing a large camel costume) and accompanied by a trombone player. Luzikamel defecates seven planetary spheres, coloured green, red, yellow, blue, orange, black and gold. Next there is a Shoe-Shine Serenade, in which tenors polish the camel's hooves in a rhythmic manner. Then Luzikamel is tempted by an enormous bottle of champagne. Luzikamel derides those who mock him and sings the names of stars, during a drunken dance with the trombonist while the delegates (choir) show their amusement. There follows a "bullfight" in which Luzikamel vanquishes the trombonist "matador". The Luzikamel costume is unzipped and the bass singer "Luka" is sat upon a podium stage centre, dressed in yellow until, with a gesture, he silences all around him .The trombonist now plays a short signal which combines one section of the Eva, Michael and Luzifer melodies, to the acclaim of all on stage.
In the second half of Michaelion Luka uses a short-wave radio to search for signals from outer-space which he copies and transforms vocally. Grouped around him are nine alto singers with a bassett-horn player, nine tenors with a trumpeter and eight bass singers. While Luka (The Operator) sings to the shortwave radio, the choir delegates try to speak to him, but he is concentrating on the radio shortwave sounds. The trombonist plays an encouraging and teasing role, playing from positions all over the stage and the auditorium, sometimes on the ground and sometimes airborne. Delegates queue and each uses a distinct alien voice to request something of Luka. The scene ends after a Bassetsu-Trio for bassett-horn, trumpet and trombone, while singers are sent out "into the world" holding globes. This final sextet is sung surrounding the audience until the singers exit through the doors of the auditorium, leaving Luka - The Operator, alone still transforming the shortwave sounds as the lights dim.
MITTWOCHs Abschied (1995/96) electronic music
This is the electronic music heard as part of Orchester-Finalisten.