“12 Months - 12 Pictures - 12 Songs”: Visitors to the world premiere of Andrea Wehrmann and Cornelia Meier's project in Schliersee experienced a whole annual cycle of music and painting, inspired by poetry.
Schliersee
- When Andrea Wehrmann, cantor of the evangelical parish of Miesbach, was very impressed by an exhibition by a Lithuanian painter combined with music five years ago in the Baltic States, she was immediately inspired. “Then I wanted to add the level of poetry. It's like an opera in miniature, ”she explains. As a result, she created a total work of art from three genres with the title "12 months - 12 pictures - 12 songs". On Tuesday evening, a good 60 guests - no more was possible because of Corona - the world premiere of the project in the Schlierseer Christ Church as part of the event series "Music by candlelight", which Wehrmann also founded.
In her introduction, Wehrmann explained the concept: For the project she chose the closed form of the annual cycle, selected twelve suitable poems for the months from January to December and set them to music as a vocal duet with piano accompaniment. The painter friend Cornelia Meier from Ratzeburg was inspired by word and sound and painted twelve thematically matching pictures, medium-sized in oil on canvas.
The approximately one-hour performance began with the January song based on the poem by Andreas Gryphius "The Contemplation of Time".
It quickly became clear that the duets, performed in perfect harmony by Barbara Pischetsrieder (soprano) and Ursula Bommer (alto), are the finest music and the finest singing, with Wehrmann's congenial accompaniment on the piano.
The brilliant acoustics of the church contributed to this special sound and listening experience.
Finally, the corresponding picture of the month for each song was presented on an easel and effectively illuminated.
Word, sound and image addressed three senses equally and allowed them to merge into a harmonious whole - coherent and atmospheric, and not just because of the obligatory candles.
Hölderlin, Mörike or Uhland in image and sound
Other texts came from Friedrich Hölderlin with “Winter”, Rainer Maria Rilke with “Vorfrühling”, Theodor Storm with “July” or Eduard Mörike with “Septembermorgen”. Half of the art songs are stylistic copies, such as the October song based on the poem “Beauty” by Martin Opitz, which the composer set to music in the Baroque style. May after Ludwig Uhland's “Spring Faith” sounded impressionistic and is reminiscent of Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy. Wehrmann set the other half to music in a moderately modern way, varied melodically and rhythmically and sometimes interspersed a 5/8 in alternation with an 8/8 time.
The painter has also made use of various stylistic devices and created works in the style of classical landscape painting as well as pictures in the manner of the Pre-Raphaelites or by Emil Nolde.
The December picture impresses with an expressive light-dark contrast and suggests the Christmas reference in the form of a comet.
"Open yourself, heaven" is the name of the poem by Anton Rotzetter on which the last song of the year is based - with a musical quote from "Silent Night" from Wehrmann's pen.
Since the applause would not have fit between the songs, the final applause was all the more violent and longer.
Well-deserved recognition for an impressive total work of art.
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Reinhold Schmid
