ADVENT CALENDAR – DAY 24

The opera “Hansel and Gretel” was given its first performance on this date in 1893, with Richard Strauss conducting at the Hoftheater in Weimar. Engelbert Humperdinck’s magnum opus – which features a sandman, a dew fairy, a witch, and the imminent threat of cannibalism – has been associated with the Christmas season ever since.

The Brothers Grimm inspiration is the best known of a wave of Märchenopern (fairy tale operas) that swept Germany in the 19th century. Less fortunate was Hans Pfitzner’s “Das Christ-Elflein” (“The Christmas Elf”), with its charming mix of Christian and pagan symbols, including the title character, an old tree spirit, Saint Nicholas’ sidekick, Knecht Ruprecht, and even the Christ Child!

Here’s Hans Pfitzner conducting a recording of the overture, in 1927:

And Elisabeth Schwarzkopf with Irmgard Seefried in an excerpt from “Hansel and Gretel,” with Josef Krips conducting, in 1947:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQah7onXhc4

PHOTO: You know what they say, if you can’t stand the heat…