John Adams - The Death of Klinghoffer
In 1991 The Death of Klinghoffer by John Adams premiered at La Monnaie. The Dutch premiere with Edo de Waart in the Matinee followed ten years later. The composer is overjoyed that his controversial opera will once again be performed in the Royal Concertgebouw, because it is still topical.
John Adams - The Death of Klinghoffer
Humanism and controversy
The Death of Klinghoffer is based on the true story of the PLO hijacking of the passenger liner Achille Lauro in 1985, in which disabled Jewish-American passenger Leon Klinghoffer was shot dead and thrown into the sea, wheelchair and all. Since the opera highlights both the Israeli and the Palestinian point of view in a humanistic way, considerable controversy immediately arose when it was performed in the United States. That is also the reason why the piece is rarely performed. It was John Adams' deep wish that this particular work should now be played again.
John Adams' lyricism
John Adams, a regular guest at the Matinee for decades, is now well over 75. Together with Philip Glass and Steve Reich, he belongs to the top of the 'American school', but he does allow himself great musical liberties. The combination of pure minimalism and compelling lyricism gives his music its own intimate color. In Klinghoffer, this individuality is expressed in the reflective monologues of the soloists, in regular alternation with large choral parts. Because of this variety, the work approaches Bach's passions, in which the same humanistic breath hovers.