Last night I woke about 3am and flicked the ‘on’ switch on the radio then found I just couldn’t turn it off. I had happened on the Sydney listener-funded classical music station 2MBS FM and an opera was playing, but not one I instantly recognised. An anguished woman sang and sang and I became more and more gripped by the music. Her anguish felt very real. Finally I got out of bed to get my glasses so I could look up the program.
It was the Richard Strauss opera Salome.
My Strauss revelation came in 2017 at the Strauss festival in Leipzig. Until then I had not really enjoyed Strauss opera but the festival showed me there was so much I had not understood. Before each performance a musicologist explained the opera and suddenly Salome’s behaviour was no longer a riddle. I had seen the Met film version of Salome which portrayed her an an evil seductress but the Leipzig version of the opera showed her in the middle of a decadent society with a dissolute mother and abusive step-father. The dance which is central to the opera is no longer a dance of seduction but the story of Salome’s abuse as a child. Soprano Elisabet Strid sang and acted with such skill and the score was particularly moving, conducted by Ulf Schirmer who has a reputation as the best living Strauss conductor.
I thanked my very good luck that I had had an opportunity to hear and understand Strauss’ work. No wonder I had not been able to turn the music off in the middle of the night.
#Salome #2MBSFM #opera #Strauss