Punch and Judy
E590935
Punch and Judy is a modern chamber opera by British composer Harrison Birtwistle, known for its darkly comic reinterpretation of the traditional puppet show through complex, avant-garde music.
Observed surface forms (1)
| Surface form | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| punch and judy show | 1 |
Statements (45)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf | chamber opera ⓘ |
| basedOn | Punch and Judy puppet show NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| commissionedBy | Aldeburgh Festival NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| composer | Harrison Birtwistle NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin | United Kingdom ⓘ |
| criticalReception |
controversial at premiere
ⓘ
later regarded as key work in late-20th-century British opera ⓘ |
| firstPublisher | Universal Edition NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| genre |
avant-garde music
ⓘ
contemporary classical music ⓘ |
| hasCharacter |
Choregos
ⓘ
Doctor NERFINISHED ⓘ Hangman NERFINISHED ⓘ Judy NERFINISHED ⓘ Lawyer ⓘ Pretty Polly NERFINISHED ⓘ Punch NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasTheme |
distortion of domestic life
ⓘ
subversion of popular entertainment traditions ⓘ violence and ritual ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| librettist | Stephen Pruslin NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| movementInComposerOutput | early major stage work of Harrison Birtwistle ⓘ |
| musicCharacter |
fragmented melodic lines
ⓘ
highly dissonant ⓘ rhythmically intricate ⓘ |
| notableCharacteristic |
complex rhythmic structures
ⓘ
darkly comic tone ⓘ dense orchestral textures ⓘ violent reinterpretation of traditional puppet show ⓘ |
| orchestration | small chamber ensemble ⓘ |
| premiereDate | 1968-06-08 ⓘ |
| premiereFestival | Aldeburgh Festival NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| premiereLocation | Aldeburgh, England NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| relatedWorkOfComposer |
The Mask of Orpheus
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
The Minotaur NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| structure | one act ⓘ |
| style |
expressionist
ⓘ
modernist ⓘ |
| subjectMatter |
grotesque comedy
ⓘ
marital conflict ⓘ murder ⓘ |
| timePeriodOfComposition | 1960s ⓘ |
| vocalForces |
small chorus
ⓘ
solo voices ⓘ |
Referenced by (3)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
punch and judy show