“Irrelohe”<\/span><\/a> is the sixth opera of 20th-century Austrian composer Franz Schreker, begun in 1919 and premiered shortly after in 1924 at the<\/span> Stadttheater K\u00f6ln<\/span><\/a>. Coming right after Schreker\u2019s then latest opera, <\/span>Der Schatzgr\u00e4ber<\/span><\/a>. The opera is a three-act opera about the tribulations of love and sacrifice. This was a poignant theme for him, as during Hitler\u2019s fascist rule he was censored and his music banned from performance under the title of \u201cEntarte Musik\u201d (<\/span>Degenerate Art)<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Schreker, much like other interim composers between Romanticism and Impressionism\/Neo-classicism, involved both experimental and traditional elements in their musical works. For Schreker, he was influenced by Schoenberg\u2019s serialist techniques but also Wagner\u2019s thick and dramatic textures, as well as composers like Paul Hindemith, member of the movement called <\/span>\u201cNew Objectivity<\/span><\/a>.\u201d Thus, his music incorporated emotions and emotional longing into an expressionist and wholly intellectual worldview.<\/span><\/p>\n The opera was performed at the famous <\/span>Bielefeld Opera<\/span><\/a> during its life from 1980 to 1998, and has been brought into the present thanks to the work of <\/span>Op\u00e9ra de Lyon<\/span><\/a>, including it in their 2021\/2022 season. While not universally known, nor the most well-known by Schreker, that title being given to his opera, “<\/span>Der ferne Klang<\/span><\/a>“ and his last opera, “<\/span>Der Schmied von Gent<\/span><\/a>,” the opera has proven to be an interesting shake up for opera houses around the globe.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThe Story<\/span><\/h2>\n