OPERN AUF BAYRISCH Collection Germany 2013-2025

Information on the Performance

• Work Title: Opern auf Bayrisch  
• Composer: various  
• Libretto: various  
• Venue & Opera Company: Germany  
• Recorded: 2013- 2025
• Type: Concert Live
• Singers: various
• Conductor:   
• Orchestra:
• Stage Director:   
• Costume Designer:   

Information about the Recording

• Published by: Servus TV  
• Date Published: 2013  
• Format: DVD
• Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
• Subtitles: yessubs, desubs, gensubs  

• ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE

  In his  Bavarian-language operas,  Munich writer Paul Schallweg has transformed the plots of world-famous and beloved operas into original dialect verses, mostly relocating the operas’ settings to Bavaria. Thus, “The Flying Dutchman” experiences his adventures not, as in Richard Wagner’s original, off the rugged coast of Norway, but in familiar surroundings – on Lake Starnberg. This resulted in a multitude of Bavarian opera parodies, including “Carmen – or: How Love Turned Sepp into a Murderer,” “The Magic Flute – or: The Miracle of Königssee,” “The Lohengrin of Wolfratshausen,” and “The Ring in One Go” – freely adapted from Richard Wagner’s famous Ring of the Nibelung.

  The Bavarian acting stars  Gerd Anthoff ,  Dieter Fischer ,  Conny Glogger ,  Monika Gruber ,  Michael Lerchenberg  , and  Helmut Schleich present these humorous, cheeky, and charming reinterpretations of world-famous operas to the audience. Together with percussionist Philipp Jungk and the music ensemble “Opern auf Bayrisch” (members of major Munich orchestras), conducted by Andreas Kowalewitz, they bring these works to life with great wit and passion. Opera with a twist: these opera parodies are not sung, but spoken in authentic Bavarian dialect, playfully poking fun at well-known and beloved operas.

  The music for the  Bavarian-language operas  is the work of Friedrich Meyer, Rolf Wilhelm, and Andreas Kowalewitz, who never lose sight of the original operatic works, yet charmingly incorporate a wonderful potpourri of Alpine and Bavarian sounds, as well as well-known pop songs and New Orleans jazz melodies, into their compositions. Thus, it’s not uncommon for an Upper Bavarian Zwiefacher (a traditional Bavarian folk dance) to blend with famous opera arias, or for Verdi’s triumphal march from Aida to suddenly morph into the popular tune “Ja, mir san mit’m Radl da” (Yes, we’re here by bike)…

  The ensemble was founded in 1985 and originally assembled for a single carnival performance at the Munich Volkstheater. Bavarian Radio recorded and broadcast this performance, and it was such a resounding success that nearly 500 performances have taken place to date. Over the past 40 years, the actors who have performed have included well-known Bavarian folk actors such as Gustl Bayrhammer, Karl Obermayr, Jörg Hube, Alexander Duda, Udo Wachtveitl, Christian Springer, Michael A. Grimm, and Ruth Kappelsberger.

  For many years, the ensemble has been a regular guest at Munich’s Gärtnerplatztheater and Prinzregententheater, performing several times each season. Furthermore, their  operas in Bavarian dialect are  a staple of the programs at numerous festivals, opera houses, concert halls, and theaters throughout Bavaria and far beyond. The performances enjoy a true cult status – and are almost always sold out! Selected operas in Bavarian dialect have also been released on DVD.

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