›Longing for Isfahan‹
6th Community Opera
Story and libretto by Adnan G. Köse, music by Georg Friedrich Händel, Mohammed Reza Mortazavi and Rabih Lahoud
The Community Opera is an unprecedented experiment that is unmatched anywhere else the world – every year, hundreds of participants from Osterholz-Tenever join The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen on and off the stage. Pupils and teachers from Bremen-Ost comprehensive school come together with a wide variety of actors from their neighbourhood community and excel themselves. The themes explored in the Community Opera are taken straight from the lives of its main protagonists: they are diverse, they are colourful and they set an example for tolerance. Each year, this complete work of art focuses on a different country. The countries showcased on Bremen’s Green Hill since 2009 were Germany, Ghana, Poland, Russia and Vietnam.
Sehnsucht nach Isfahan‹ (›Longing for Isfahan‹) tells the adventurous story of the philosopher Ibn Sina (Avicenna), who lived in Ancient Persia almost 1,000 years ago: as a young man, he set off in search of a place where he could research and study in peace. On his wanderings, he survived sandstorms, ambushes and imprisonment, by the light of the moon wrote numerous works on medicine and astronomy, religion and philosophy and dedicated the most beautiful songs under the sun to the love of his life. Ibn Sina was one of the first scholars to consider the effect of music on the human body and he was convinced of the importance of happiness as a gateway to health. So what could be more logical than to put this story to music and for a multifaceted orchestra to revive the beat of the Ancient Persian drums in a new lease on life? Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of Ancient Persia!
›The Community Opera‹ blog: www.stadtteiloper-bremen.de
A project group from the Gesamtschule Bremen-Ost reports on the ›Community Opera‹ 2015
Conductor Christoffer Nobin
Director Alexander Radulescu
Stage Design Carsten Mohr
Costume Design Christin Bokelmann
Light Design Jörg Hartenstein
The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen
Tombak and Daf Mohammed Reza Mortazavi
Vocals and Arrangements Rabih Lahoud
Tenor Benedikt Kristjánsson
Baritone Mohsen Rashidkhan
Soprano Linda Joan Berg
Narrator Adnan G. Köse & Ali Murtaza
Guests, pupils and teachers of the Gesamtschule Bremen-Ost and residents of the district of Osterholz-Tenever
