Joseph Haydn’s oratorio „The Creation“
The 6th Klaipėda Festival opens with a solemn first event – Joseph Haydn’s oratorio The Creation.
Haydn’s oratorio was chosen for the festival’s opening with purpose. In highlighting the era of Queen Louise, we sought works that would reflect the spirit of her time, bear historical ties to the queen herself, and offer today’s audience the opportunity to hear the very music she once listened to. The Creation is one of those works. It is said that when Queen Louise attended a performance of the oratorio in Berlin in 1802, she was deeply moved by its music. Radiant with light and optimism, the oratorio is one of the most fitting pieces to honor Queen Louise – the “Queen of Hearts” – not only for the hopeful sound that echoes her life motto, but also for its historical connections.
Haydn’s The Creation is also among the earliest oratorio works performed in Lithuania’s musical history. Composed in 1798, the oratorio is based on the biblical story of creation and inspired by John Milton’s Paradise Lost. Musicologists often describe this work as “tone painting,” as listeners can hear roaring lions, the song of the nightingale, and even feel the powerful “illumination” when God proclaims, “Let there be light,” a moment vividly expressed by the full orchestra and choir. It is believed that Haydn conceived the idea of composing the oratorio after hearing Handel’s oratorios during his visit to England. Yet unlike the baroque masters, Haydn did not shy away from gentle humor. The Creation is as bright and gracefully “Haydnesque” as many of his other works.
In Lithuania, The Creation is usually performed in concert halls or presented as one-off open-air projects. The KVMT production will invite listeners into the “Jūra” Hall, where a theatrical interpretation of the oratorio will be presented, enriched with visual and lighting design. The oratorio will be performed in its original German language, with Lithuanian and English translations provided in surtitles.
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