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Alban Berg's Wozzeck

This March, the BSO will present Wozzeck, but this performance will not be the first time Berg's opera has graced the stages of this orchestra. The first performance occurred at Tanglewood in August 1969, with BSO Music Director Erich Leinsdorf conducting the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra (TMCO) and Vocal Fellows. Seiji Ozawa conducted the BSO in a production in April 1987 at Symphony Hall, with Benjamin Luxon and Hildegard Behrens in the leading roles. Take a walk down memory lane with these artifacts from the BSO Archives!

Austrian composer Alban Berg (1885-1935)

Pamphlet published by Berg’s performance rights agent, Broadcast Music, Inc.

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Tanglewood in 1969: Erich Leinsdorf and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra

Program book front cover with calaphon and program page for performance of Berg's Wozzeck — Program book for the TMCO’s performance of Wozzeck on August 11 and 17, 1969. Berg’s opera was presented as part of the Tanglewood Music Center’s (TMC) Festival of Contemporary Music. Leinsdorf conducted, with TMC vocal students Richard Taylor and Alexandra Hunt in the leading roles.

Scan of list of performer names for 1969 production of Wozzeck — Cast and orchestra personnel for the 1969 TMC production of Berg's Wozzeck.

Two singers perform on stage with a view of musicians in orchestra pit — TMC vocal student Joaquin Romaguera (Andres) kneels on stage during the August 1969 performance of Berg’s Wozzeck. Michael Tilson Thomas provides cues from his seat by the trumpets. (Whitestone Photo/Heinz Wiessenstein)

A male conductor gives a cue to the seated musicians while three singers stand on a platform behind — Leinsdorf conducts the TMCO and vocal students in the TMC’s production of Berg's Wozzeck in August 1969.

Smiling cast members and conductor (one woman and five men) hold hands backstage — After a performance of the August 1969 production of Wozzeck by the TMC, with Leinsdorf conducting.

Newspaper clipping pasted to a paper describes a concert — Concert review of the TMC’s production of Wozzeck in August 1969. (New York Times, August 12, 1969)

Symphony Hall in 1987: Seiji Ozawa and the BSO

Program book with front cover depicting the stage at Symphony Hall, and the program page for Wozzeck — Program book for the BSO performance of Wozzeck in Symphony Hall on April 17, 18, and 21, 1987. Ozawa conducted the orchestra, with Benjamin Luxon (Wozzeck), Hildegard Behrens (Marie), the Tanglewood Festival Chorus (TFC), and Youth pro Musica.

A man and woman stand on stage during a performance — Luxon and Behrens during a performance of Berg’s Wozzeck with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in April 1987. (Lincoln Russell)

Two male singers sit on the stage with the chorus in background and orchestra musicians on the sides — James Maddalena and Brian Matthews carouse during a performance of Wozzeck in April 1987, with Ozawa conducting the BSO and TFC. (Lincoln Russell)

Spotlight illuminates cast members who stand on stage holding hands — Curtain call after a Boston Symphony Orchestra production of Berg’s Wozzeck in April 1987. (Lincoln Russell)

Newspaper clipping describing a performance of Wozzeck in 1987 — Concert review of the BSO’s performance of Wozzeck, conducted by Ozawa on April 17, 1987, in Symphony Hall. (Boston Herald, April 18, 1987)

Newspaper clipping describing a concert — Concert review of the BSO’s performance of Wozzeck, conducted by Ozawa on April 17, 1987, in Symphony Hall. (Boston Globe, April 18, 1987)