Aribert Reimann (German:['aʁiːbɛʁt'ʁaɪman]ⓘ, 4 March 1936 – 13 March 2024) was a German composer, pianist, and accompanist, known especially for his literary operas. His version of Shakespeare's King Lear, the opera Lear, was written at the suggestion of Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, who performed the title role. His opera Medea after Grillparzer's play premiered in 2010 at the Vienna State Opera. He was a professor of contemporary Lied (art song) in Hamburg and Berlin. In 2011, he was awarded the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize for his life's work.
Working with singers such as Catherine Gayer, Brigitte Fassbaender and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau increased his sensibility for the potential of voices.[1][3] His first work for the stage was a ballet, Stoffreste, to a libretto by Günter Grass and first performed in 1959. His first opera was in 1965 Ein Traumspiel,[1] to a libretto that Carla Henius based on Strindberg's A Dream Play in the translation by Peter Weiss; it was premiered on 20 June 1965 at the Opernhaus Kiel.[1] His fourth opera, Lear based on Shakespeare's play, was inspired by Fischer-Dieskau who portrayed Lear in the first performance at the Bavarian State Opera in 1978.[1][4] The opera became a lasting success with 30 productions as of 2024.[1] His commissioned work, Cantus for Clarinet and Orchestra, dedicated to the clarinetist and composer Jörg Widmann, was premiered on 13 January 2006, in the WDR's Large Broadcasting Hall in Cologne, Germany, in the presence of the composer, who claimed the work was inspired by Claude Debussy's compositions for clarinet. His opera Medea, after Franz Grillparzer, was premiered at the Vienna State Opera in 2010, conducted by Michael Boder, with Marlis Petersen in the title role.[3][5] It was chosen as world premiere of the year by critics.[2]
In the early 1970s, Reimann became a member of the Akademie der Künste in Berlin. He was professor of contemporary Lied at the Musikhochschule Hamburg from 1974 to 1983, then at Berlin's Hochschule der Künste from 1983 to 1998.[2][3] Reimann was co-editor and pianist of the record label Orfeo's album series Edition zeitgenössisches Lied (contemporary song).[6]
Reimann's reputation as a composer rests on his literary operas, including Lear and Das Schloß, and song cycles. He also wrote chamber music, orchestral works and songs.[1][4] His works were published by Schott.[4]
Luigi Bellingardi, Alcune riflessioni sulla »Gespenstersonate« di Aribert Reimann, in: Sabine Ehrmann-Herfort/Markus Engelhardt (eds.), »Vanitatis fuga, Aeternitatis amor«. Wolfgang Witzenmann zum 65. Geburtstag, »Analecta Musicologica«, vol. 36, Laaber (Laaber) 2005, pp. 689–695.
Wolfgang Burde, Aribert Reimann, Mainz (Schott) 2005.
Albert Gier, Zurück zu Shakespeare! Claus H. Hennebergs Lear-Libretto für Aribert Reimann und seine englische Übersetzung von Desmond Clayton, in: Herbert Schneider/Rainer Schmusch (eds.), Librettoübersetzung: Interkulturalität im europäischen Musiktheater, Hildesheimn (Olms) 2009, »Musikwissenschaftliche Publikationen«, vol. 32), pp. 329–349.
Kii-Ming Lo, Unsichtbarer Herrscher über ein gehorsames Volk. Aribert Reimanns Oper »Das Schloß« nach Franz Kafka, in: Peter Csobádi, Gernot Gruber, Ulrich Müller et al. (eds.), »Weine, weine, du armes Volk!« – Das verführte und betrogene Volk auf der Bühne, »Kongreßbericht Salzburg 1994«, Anif/Salzburg (Müller-Speiser) 1995, pp. 663–674.
Jürgen Maehder, Aribert Reimanns »Nachtstück« – Studien zu musikalischer Struktur und Sprachvertonung, in: Aurora (»Jahrbuch der Eichendorff-Gesellschaft«) 36/1976, p. 107-121.
Jürgen Maehder, Aribert Reimanns »Lear« – Anmerkungen zu einigen Strukturproblemen der Literaturoper, program book for the world premiere at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, München (Bayerische Staatsoper) 1978, pp. 61–73.
Jürgen Maehder, Anmerkungen zu einigen Strukturproblemen der Literaturoper, in: Klaus Schultz (ed.), Aribert Reimanns »Lear«. Weg einer neuen Oper, München (dtv) 1984, pp. 79–89.
Jürgen Maehder, Aribert Reimann and Paul Celan: The Setting of Hermetic Poetry in the Contemporary German Lied, in: Claus Reschke/Howard Pollack (eds.), German Literature and Music. An Aesthetic Fusion: 1890–1989, »Houston German Studies«, vol. 8, München (Fink) 1992, pp. 263–292.
Jürgen Maehder, Étude sur le théâtre musical d'Aribert Reimann – de »Lear« à »La sonate des spectres«, programme de salle pour l'Opéra National du Rhin, Strasbourg (TNOR) 1998, pp. 27–45.
Jürgen Maehder, Untersuchungen zum Musiktheater Aribert Reimanns. Musikalische Dramaturgie in »Lear« und »Die Gespenstersonate«, in: Jürgen Kühnel/Ulrich Müller/Oswald Panagl (eds.), Musiktheater der Gegenwart. Text und Komposition, Rezeption und Kanonbildung, Anif/Salzburg (Müller-Speiser) 2008, p. 342–373.
Jürgen Maehder, Aribert Reimann et Paul Celan. La mise en musique de la poésie hermétique dans le lied allemand contemporain, in: Antoine Bonnet/ Frédéric Marteau (eds.), Paul Celan, la poésie, la musique. »Avec une clé changeante«, Paris (Hermann) 2015, p. 351–372.
Klaus Schultz (ed.), Aribert Reimanns »Lear«. Weg einer neuen Oper, München (dtv) 1984.
Anselm Weyer: Günter Grass und die Musik (= »Kölner Studien zur Literaturwissenschaft«, vol. 16). Peter Lang, Frankfurt am Main u. a. 2007, ISBN978-3-631-55593-4 (Zugleich: Köln, Universität, Dissertation, 2005).
Sigrid Wiesmann (ed.), Für und Wider die Literaturoper, »Thurnauer Schriften zum Musiktheater«, vol. 6, Laaber (Laaber) 1982.