"Mack the Knife ""Die Moritat von Mackie Messer"" (later known as ""Mack the Knife"" or ""The Ballad of Mack the Knife"") is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their music drama , or, as it is known in English, ""The Threepenny Opera"". It premiered in Berlin in 1928 at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. The song has become a popular standard recorded by many artists, including a US and UK number one hit for Bobby Darin in 1959. A ""Moritat"" is a medieval version of the murder ballad performed by strolling minstrels. In ""The Threepenny"
"1930s Norway. Throughout her compositional career, Hall would find it challenging to introduce new stylistic impulses on the Norwegian music scene. In addition to her orchestral output, Hall also composed a number of choral works and music for stage productions. Theatre remained close to her heart, and Hall translated a number of major works into Norwegian including Igor Stravinsky’s ""Soldier’s Tale"" and Arthur Honegger’s ""Le Roi David"". In 1930, she translated, staged and directed ""The Threepenny Opera"" (""Die Dreigroschenoper"") by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill. Hall also served as instructor and conductor for its Oslo premiere. She wrote music for"
"also criticised by others: by Schoenberg, who later revised his opinion, and by Anton Webern. His best-known work is ""The Threepenny Opera"" (1928), a reworking of John Gay's ""The Beggar's Opera"" written in collaboration with Bertolt Brecht. Engel directed the original production of ""The Threepenny Opera"" in 1928. It contains Weill's most famous song, ""Mack the Knife"" (""""). The stage success was filmed by G. W. Pabst in two language versions: ""Die 3-Groschen-Oper"" and ""L'opéra de quat' sous"". Weill and Brecht tried to stop the film adaptation through a well publicised lawsuit—which Weill won and Brecht lost. Weill's working association"
"parts, though modern performances typically use a few more players). ""The Threepenny Opera"" was first performed at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm in 1928 on a set designed by Caspar Neher. Despite an initially poor reception, it became a great success, playing 400 times in the next two years. The performance was a springboard for one of the best known interpreters of Brecht and Weill's work, Lotte Lenya, who was married to Weill. Ironically the production became a great favourite of Berlin's ""smart set"" – Count Harry Kessler recorded in his diary meeting at the performance an ambassador and a director"
"the form declined in popularity towards the end of the 18th century its influence can be seen in light operas like that of Gilbert and Sullivan's early works like ""The Sorcerer"" as well as in the modern musical. In the 20th century, one of the most influential plays, Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht's (1928) ""The Threepenny Opera"" was a reworking of ""The Beggar's Opera"", setting a similar story with the same characters, and containing much of the same satirical bite, but only using one tune from the original. The term ballad opera has also been used to describe musicals using"
"Elisabeth Hauptmann Elisabeth Hauptmann (20 June 1897, Peckelsheim, Westphalia, German Empire – 20 April 1973, East Berlin) was a German writer who worked with fellow German playwright and director Bertolt Brecht. She got to know Brecht in 1922, the same year she came to Berlin. She worked as a secretary for the German-American poet and writer, Herman George Scheffauer. She began collaborating with Brecht in 1924, and is listed as co-author of ""The Threepenny Opera"" (1928). She purportedly wrote the majority of the text as well as providing a German translation of John Gay's ""The Beggar's Opera"", on which the"
"failed, and the pit orchestra (a jazz band) had to quickly provide the accompaniment for the street singer. The tenor Ian Bostridge wrote in his 2014 book, ""Schubert's Winter Journey: Anatomy of an Obsession"", that this song might be a terrifying little cousin of Schubert's ""Der Leiermann"" (The Hurdy-Gurdy Man) from ""Winterreise"". The song was translated into French as """" by André Mauprey and Ninon Steinhoff and popularized by Catherine Sauvage. The song was first introduced to American audiences in 1933 in the first English-language production of ""The Threepenny Opera"". The English lyrics were by Gifford Cochran and Jerrold Krimsky."
"the lyrics. American political parodists the Capitol Steps used the tune for their song ""Pack the Knife"" on their 2002 album ""When Bush Comes to Shove"". Mack the Knife ""Die Moritat von Mackie Messer"" (later known as ""Mack the Knife"" or ""The Ballad of Mack the Knife"") is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their music drama , or, as it is known in English, ""The Threepenny Opera"". It premiered in Berlin in 1928 at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. The song has become a popular standard recorded by many artists, including a US and"
"massive worker arts organisation that existed in Germany and Austria in the 1920s. So did Brecht's first great play, ""Saint Joan of the Stockyards"", which attempts to portray the drama in financial transactions. This collective adapted John Gay's ""The Beggar's Opera"", with Brecht's lyrics set to music by Kurt Weill. Retitled ""The Threepenny Opera"" (""Die Dreigroschenoper"") it was the biggest hit in Berlin of the 1920s and a renewing influence on the musical worldwide. One of its most famous lines underscored the hypocrisy of conventional morality imposed by the Church, working in conjunction with the established order, in the face"
"Threepenny Novel ThreePenny Novel is a 1934 novel by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht, first published in Amsterdam by in 1934 as """". It is similar in structure to his more famous ""The Threepenny Opera"" and features several of the same characters such as Macheath, together with a general anti-capitalist focus and a didactic technique that is often associated with the dramatist. It is a novel that has been the focus of much critical attention and that is often described as both a continuation and a variation of the themes and motifs of Brecht's other work that focuses"
"The Beggar's Opera The Beggar's Opera is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satirical ballad opera to remain popular today. Ballad operas were satiric musical plays that used some of the conventions of opera, but without recitative. The lyrics of the airs in the piece are set to popular broadsheet ballads, opera arias, church hymns and folk tunes of the time. ""The Beggar's Opera"" premiered at"
"composer, and actor to many films in the 1920s and 30s. André Mauprey André Mauprey (19 August 1881 – 3 February 1939) was a French writer, composer, librettist, and actor. He helped to popularize ""The Three Penny Opera,"" and was the first to translate many of its songs into French. Working with Robert de Mackiels and Serge Veber, he wrote the lyrics for the operetta ""Tip-Toes"" based on the melodies of George Gershwin. His music and lyrics were sung by Édith Piaf, Juliette Gréco, Marianne Oswald, Marlene Dietrich, and Mathé Altéry. Most widely held works with lyrics by Andre Mauprey"
"Captain Macheath Captain Macheath is a fictional character who appears both in John Gay's ""The Beggar's Opera"" (1728), its sequel ""Polly"" (1777), and roughly 200 years later in Bertolt Brecht's ""The Threepenny Opera"". Macheath made his first appearance in John Gay's ""The Beggar's Opera"" as a chivalrous highwayman. He then appeared as a pirate in Gay's sequel. He was probably inspired in part by Jack Sheppard who, like Macheath, escaped from prison and enjoyed the affections of a prostitute, and despised violence. His nemesis is Peachum who, in John Gay's original work, keeps an account book of unproductive thieves (something"
"typhus on 26 June 1942, aged 41. Neher (prisoner number 59783) died there on 26 June 1942. Her body was buried in an unmarked mass grave. Her son, Georg, became a music teacher and only found out about his parents' identity in 1975. The Threepenny Opera (German: Die 3 Groschen-Oper) is a 1931 German musical film directed by G. W. Pabst. It was produced by Seymour Nebenzal's Nero-Film for Tonbild-Syndikat AG (Tobis), Berlin and Warner Bros. Pictures GmbH, Berlin. The film is loosely based on the 1928 musical theatre success ""The Threepenny Opera"" by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill. As"
"and of a Marxist understanding of aesthetics. Threepenny Novel ThreePenny Novel is a 1934 novel by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht, first published in Amsterdam by in 1934 as """". It is similar in structure to his more famous ""The Threepenny Opera"" and features several of the same characters such as Macheath, together with a general anti-capitalist focus and a didactic technique that is often associated with the dramatist. It is a novel that has been the focus of much critical attention and that is often described as both a continuation and a variation of the themes and"
"characterisation. Following is a list of some of the most highly regarded 20th-century arrangements and settings of the opera. The Beggar's Opera The Beggar's Opera is a ballad opera in three acts written in 1728 by John Gay with music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch. It is one of the watershed plays in Augustan drama and is the only example of the once thriving genre of satirical ballad opera to remain popular today. Ballad operas were satiric musical plays that used some of the conventions of opera, but without recitative. The lyrics of the airs in the piece are set"
"im Erziehungshaus"", Directed by Georg Asagaroff sound films: 1930 ""The Last Company"", Directed by Curtis Bernhardt (as Kurt Bernhardt) 1931 ""The Threepenny Opera"", Directed by Georg Wilhelm Pabst; Treatment by Bertolt Brecht based upon the musical by Bertolt Brecht with the music by Kurt Weill. Screenplay by Leo Lania, Ladislaus Vajda and Béla Balázs 1931 ""The Theft of the Mona Lisa"", in collaboration with Robert A. Dietrich; Directed by Geza von Bolvary 1931 ""His Highness Love"", in collaboration with Erich Kettelhut; Directed by Robert Péguy and Erich Schmidt 1931 """", in collaboration with Robert A. Dietrich; directed by Geza von"
"extensive renovations were completed. Peymann's efforts have stabilized the theatre's operations. He assumed his role with a commitment - like Brecht's - to producing political theatre for the public, but more broadly interpreted. Berliner Ensemble The Berliner Ensemble () is a German theatre company established by playwright Bertolt Brecht and his wife, Helene Weigel in January 1949 in East Berlin. In the time after Brecht's exile, the company first worked at Wolfgang Langhoff's Deutsches Theater and in 1954 moved to the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm, built in 1892, that was open for the 1928 premiere of ""The Threepenny Opera"" (""Die Dreigroschenoper"")."
"of the melodies which Johann Pepusch wrote for the original "" Beggar's Opera"". The title ""Die Dreigroschenoper"" was determined only a week before the opening; it had been previously announced as simply ""The Beggar's Opera"" (in English), with the subtitle ""Die Luden-Oper"" (""The Pimp's Opera""). Writing in 1929, Weill made the political and artistic intents of the work clear:With the ""Dreigroschenoper"" we reach a public which either did not know us at all or thought us incapable of captivating listeners [...] Opera was founded as an aristocratic form of art [...] If the framework of opera is unable to withstand"
"première of ""The Threepenny Opera"" in Berlin in 1928; the musical theatre work by Kurt Weill and Berthold Brecht inspired Blatas for the next 70 years. His canon of work depicting scenes and characters from ""The Threepenny Opera"" includes 18 portraits, 10 sculptures, several large canvases and sets of color and black-and-white lithographs. The preface by Lotte Lenya, Weill's widow, (published in 'The Art of an Opera' (NYC) June 1962) to the first edition of Threepenny lithographs, pays tribute to Blatas' understanding of the work: In 1984, ""The Threepenny Opera"" exhibition was displayed at Venice's Teatro Goldoni. This collection then"
"Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German Jewish composer, active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht. With Brecht, he developed productions such as his best-known work ""The Threepenny Opera"", which included the ballad ""Mack the Knife"". Weill held the ideal of writing music that served a socially useful purpose. He also wrote several works for the concert hall. He became a United States citizen on"
"Opera"" of 1728. It had a libretto by John Gay and music arranged by Johann Christoph Pepusch, both of whom probably experienced vaudeville theatre in Paris, and may have been motivated to reproduce it in an English form. They were also probably influenced by the burlesques and musical plays of Thomas D'Urfey (1653–1723) who had a reputation for fitting new words to existing songs; a popular anthology of these settings was published in 1700 and frequently re-issued. A number of the tunes from this anthology were recycled in ""The Beggar's Opera"". After the success of ""The Beggar's Opera"", many similar"
"What Keeps Mankind Alive? ""What Keeps Mankind Alive?"" is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their music drama ""The Threepenny Opera"" ("""") which premiered in Berlin in 1928 at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. The title refers to the central line from the finale of act 2, """". In the opera, the two stanzas of the strophic piece are sung by Macheath and Mrs Peachum and the final line is sung in fortissimo by the chorus. It is an agitprop socialist anthem expressing that the comfortable lifestyle enjoyed by the rich is paid for by"
"André Mauprey André Mauprey (19 August 1881 – 3 February 1939) was a French writer, composer, librettist, and actor. He helped to popularize ""The Three Penny Opera,"" and was the first to translate many of its songs into French. Working with Robert de Mackiels and Serge Veber, he wrote the lyrics for the operetta ""Tip-Toes"" based on the melodies of George Gershwin. His music and lyrics were sung by Édith Piaf, Juliette Gréco, Marianne Oswald, Marlene Dietrich, and Mathé Altéry. Most widely held works with lyrics by Andre Mauprey André Mauprey was a versatile artist, contributing as a writer, lyricist,"
"mother's Hochstetter family to lead distinguished careers in the fields of music and literature. Her second cousin (also a Hochstetter descendant) was Kurt Weill (born 2 Mar 1900 in Dessau and died 3 April 1950 in Haverstraw, New York), the famous music composer of ""The Threepenny Opera"" and ""Mack the Knife"" who married Lotte Lenya (born 18 October 1898 in Vienna and died 27 November 1981 in Haverstraw, New York), the famous Austrian singer. Professor (born 12 May 1873 in Mannheim and died in 1942 in Theresienstadt concentration camp), Professor of Literature at the University of Brussels, writer and poet"
"composer Kurt Weill, during an audition for his first stage score ""Zaubernacht"" but because of his position behind the piano, she did not see him. She was cast but owing to her loyalty to her voice coach she declined the role. She accepted the part of Jenny in the first performance of ""The Threepenny Opera"" (""Die Dreigroschenoper"") in 1928, and the part became her breakthrough role. During the last years of the Weimar Republic, she was busy in film and theatre, and especially in Brecht-Weill plays. She made several recordings of Weill's songs. With the rise of National Socialism in"
"robustly accompanied by music director Kevin B. Winebold."" ""The Irish Examiner"" said, ""It's just brilliant and it never stops for a minute. The music and the singing is superb and well done."" Simon Saltzman stated that Winebold musically directed ""the best ""The Threepenny Opera"" I've seen ever ... It was Bertolt Brecht's birthday. What a treat to have the score played so expertly and with such gusto by seven superb musicians. In addition, and not incidentally, it was wonderful to hear so much excellent singing without electronic enhancement."" Kevin B. Winebold Kevin B. Winebold (born June 17, 1979) is a"
"in Nordhausen, Reichenberg (Liberec), and Düsseldorf. From 1914 to 1947 he was a member of the Hoftheater Dresden ensemble (Staatstheater Dresden from 1918), in the season 1946/47 also as intendant. On stage his best known role was that of J.J. Peachum in the original production of Bertolt Brecht's ""The Threepenny Opera"" in 1928. During the Third Reich he won the title of a Staatsschauspieler in 1938, the highest title that could be awarded to a stage actor in Nazi-Germany. Ponto's film career only took off when he was already over 50 years old, but he became a well-known character actor"
"were a one-act adaptation by Gilbert Arthur à Beckett of a French operetta by Émile Jonas, called ""The Two Harlequins"", and a three-act parody of ""L'Escamoteur"" by Paulin Meunier, adapted by Alfred Thompson, called ""On the Cards"". All three of these were parodies of operas written between 1830 and 1840. Alfred Thompson also designed the sets of the triple bill. Gilbert set new lyrics to tunes by Meyerbeer, Hérold, Bellini, Hervé, Offenbach and others, arranged by Mr. Kettenus, the theatre's music director. The burlesque was Gilbert's biggest success to date, running for over 120 performances and playing continuously in the"
"Ottorino Respighi Ottorino Respighi (; 9 July 187918 April 1936) was an Italian violinist, composer and musicologist, best known for his trilogy of orchestral tone poems: ""Fountains of Rome"" (1916), ""Pines of Rome"" (1924), and ""Roman Festivals"" (1928). His musicological interest in 16th-, 17th- and 18th-century music led him to compose pieces based on the music of these periods. He also wrote several operas, the most famous being ""La fiamma"". Ottorino Respighi was born on 9 July 1879 in an apartment inside Palazzo Fantuzzi on Via Guido Reni in Bologna, Italy, into a musical family. His father, a local piano"
"Her?"" and on the 1995 compilation album ""Alternative""), William S. Burroughs (in the 1994 documentary ""September Songs – The Music of Kurt Weill""), and others. The opening chapter in """" is named ""What Keeps Mankind Alive?"". What Keeps Mankind Alive? ""What Keeps Mankind Alive?"" is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their music drama ""The Threepenny Opera"" ("""") which premiered in Berlin in 1928 at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. The title refers to the central line from the finale of act 2, """". In the opera, the two stanzas of the strophic piece are"
"City of Mahagonny"" (""Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny"", 1930), ""Die Bürgschaft"" (1932), and ""Der Silbersee"" (1933). With no option but to leave Germany, he went first to Paris, where he worked once more with Brecht (after a project with Jean Cocteau failed) on the ballet ""The Seven Deadly Sins"". On April 13, 1933 his musical ""The Threepenny Opera"" was given its premiere on Broadway, but closed after 13 performances to mixed reviews. In 1934 he completed his Symphony No. 2, his last purely orchestral work, conducted in Amsterdam and New York by Bruno Walter, and also the music for"
"several acclaimed productions of Brecht's work in Ireland and England, and had also recorded the popular record ""Bernelle on Brecht and..."", produced by Philip Chevron of ""The Radiators"" and released in limited numbers by The Midnite Music Company in 1977. The New York production also made extensive use of ballad-like songs woven into the production, as was common in many if not most of the productions of Brecht's plays in the 1920s, in particular Die Dreigroschenoper (The Threepenny Opera) which Brecht wrote with Kurt Weill during the period of the writing of ""Fatzer"", 1926-1928. The songs in ""Fatzer"" made comment"