Paradise

About

How does one return to paradise? This question tortures the Peri, an angelic creature to whom Eden’s gates remain closed. She is told that the pearly gates only open to those who »bring heaven’s dearest gift«. The Peri travels the world, searching, until the tear of a repentant sinner finally opens the gates. Robert Schumann was introduced to the story of the fallen angel through the Irish poet Thomas Moore, who wrote this »oriental romance« in verse. It inspired him to create a »new genre for the concert hall, an oratorio not intended for a prayer meeting – but for cheerful people«. After completing a cycle of Robert Schumann’s symphonies, François-Xavier Roth now dedicates himself for the first time to one of Schumann’s major vocal and symphonic works. Together with renowned vocal soloists and the voices of Chorwerk Ruhr, he plumbs the depths of this fascinating work, which draws upon romantic song just as much as contrapuntal choruses. How would we imagine a »new genre for the concert hall« today?