Hans Werner Henze
Post-War · 1926–2012
Hans Werner Henze left his native Germany in 1953, in his late twenties, and settled in Italy for the rest of his life. He was open about the reasons: as a gay man and a committed leftist he found postwar German society suffocating, and he kept a wary distance from the strict avant-garde of his generation too, preferring music that stayed lyrical and theatrical.
He was extraordinarily productive: ten symphonies, a long shelf of operas and ballets, concertos, and vocal works, many colored by his politics. His oratorio The Raft of the Medusa, dedicated to Che Guevara, caused an uproar at its planned 1968 premiere. Through it all he remained, at heart, a composer of sensuous, singing lines.
Start with the Symphony no. 7, written in the 1980s for the Berlin Philharmonic and widely considered his finest, then the Piano Concerto no. 2.
68 works in the catalog, across 4 genres. Log what you listen to with Opus, the classical music journal for iPhone.
Chamber
- 3 Marchenbilder aus Pollicino, for chamber ensemble
- 3 Tientos, for guitar
- 5 Night Pieces, for violin and piano
- Capriccio, for cello
- Carillon, Recitatif and Masque, for chamber ensemble
- El Cimarrón, Recital for four musicans
- Fünf Nachtstücke, for violin and piano
- L'autunno, for 5 wind instruments
- New Folksongs and Herdsmen Songs, for bassoon, guitar, and string trio
- Ode an eine Aolsharfe, for chamber ensemble
- Prison Song, for percussion
- Quintet for Winds
- Royal Winter Music
- Royal Winter Music
- S. Biagio 9 agosto ore 12.07, for double bass solo
- Selbst und Zweigespräche, for viola, guitar, and keyboard
- Serenade, for cello
- Sonata, for violin solo
- Sonata per otto ottoni, for brass ensemble
- Sonatina, for trumpet
- Sonatine, for flute and piano
- Étude Philharmonique, for violin
Orchestral
- Piano Concerto no. 2
- Symphony no. 7
- Adagio, Fugue and Mänadentanz, suite
- Boulevard Solitude: Intermezzi
- Compases para Preguntas Ensimisades, for viola and 22 players)
- Concerto for Double Bass
- Double Concerto, for oboe, harp and strings
- Erlkönig, fantasy
- Fantasia, for strings or string sextet
- Mänadenjagd, for orchestra
- Ode on den Westwind, for cello and orchestra
- Ragtimes and Habaneras
- Sebastian im Traum
- Sonata for Strings
- Symphony no. 1
- Symphony no. 2, for large orchestra
- Symphony no. 3
- Symphony no. 4, for large orchestra
- Symphony no. 5, for large orchestra
- Symphony no. 6, for 2 chamber orchestras
- Symphony no. 8
- Telemanniana, for orchestra
- Tristan, preludes for piano, orchestra and tape
- Violin Concerto no. 1
- Violin Concerto no. 2, for solo violin, tape, voices and 33 instrumentalists
- Violin Concerto no. 3
Stage
- Ballet-Variationen Ballet
- Das Wundertheatre
- Der junge Lord
- Elegy for Young Lovers Opera
- Moralities
- The Tedious Way to Natasha Ungeheur's Apartment Musical
- Undine Ballet
Vocal
- 5 Neapolitan Lieder, for baritone and chamber orchestra
- Apollo Et Hyazinthus, for voice, chorus and orchestra
- Ariosi, for soprano, violin and orchestra
- Being Beauteous, for coloratura soprano, harp and 4 cellos
- Cantata della fiaba estrema, for soprano, chamber chorus and 13 instruments
- El Cimarrón, for baritone, flutes, guitar and percussion
- Muses of Sicily, for chorus, 2 pianos, winds and timpani
- Nachstücke und Arien, for soprano and orchestra
- Orpheus Behind the Wire, for chorus
- Stimmen, 22 songs for mezzo-soprano, tenor and instrumental ensemble
- The Raft of the Medusa, oratorio for soprano, baritone, speaker, chorus, boys' voices and orchestra
- Versuch über Schweine, for baritone and orchestra
- Whispers from Heavenly Death, cantata for soprano or tenor and small ensemble
Related composers
Keep a listening journal.
Opus is free on the App Store.
