Mieczyslaw Weinberg (1919–1996) - „Congratulations!“
Opera in two acts (1975–1982)
based on the Drama
„Masel tov“ by Scholem Alejchem op. 111
Arrangement for chamber ensemble
by Henry Koch
German adaption: Ulrike Patow
World Premiere Recording
Kammerakademie Potsdam
Vladimir Stoupel, Music Director
Katia Guedes (Soprano) Madame
Anna Gütter (Soprano) Fradl
Olivia Saragosa (Mezzosoprano) Bejlja
Jeff Martin (Tenor) Reb Alter
Robert Elibay-Hartog (Baritone) Chaim
After his move to Moscow in 1943, Weinberg had to face
widespread anti-Semitism, both among the population and on
the part of politicians. This no doubt encouraged him to compose
his opera Congratulations! specifically for the entertainment
and edification of the discerning Jewish community in Moscow
in the mid-1970s. It is a work full of Jewish topoi that at the
same time plays out under the veneer of being Socialist, no
doubt to get past the Soviet censors and ensure production.
Here, the ‘rich people’ are clearly identified as the enemies and
suppressors, and they must be disempowered.
The original text for the opera, to which Weinberg himself
made only few amendments, derives from Sholem Aleichem
(1859–1916), the ‘Jewish Mark Twain’. Today, we are
familiar with Aleichem mainly from his short story Tevye the
Dairyman, which later provided the material for the musical
Fiddler on the Roof.
This recording is of a live performance at the Konzerthaus
Berlin by the Kammerakademie Potsdam under Vlademir
Stoupel, using Henry Koch’s chamber ensemble version of
the work.