Goldschmidt: Der Gewaltige Hahnrei / Mediterranean Songs

Goldschmidt was yet another talented young Jewish composer whose career was cut short by the rise of the Nazi regime in Germany. Although he was able to emigrate to England, his music was almost totally ignored until about 10 years ago when performances of his music, this opera foremost among them, created a huge international furor. His musical style, resolutely tonal but wiry and brilliantly scored, hasn't dated a bit as this opera and the lovely songs clearly show. The plot is typically pathological. A man catches his wife cheating and "punishes her" by forcing the repentant woman to repeat her sin over and over. The performance, like most in this series dedicated to music banned by the Nazis, is excellent. --David Hurwitz