Jakub Flügelbunt... and Magdalena Rotenband

Children love action, as Miroslav Srnka knows. Therefore, for his piece Jakub Flügelbunt .. und Magdalena Rotenband (Jacob Colourwing … and Magdalena Redribbon), the Czech composer teaching in Cologne chose a narrative form that is full of tempo and punchlines: "To myself, I call it a comic strip opera, because everything races forward in short dialogues. In between, there’s a lot of flying, falling, running, searching, arguing, counting and building." Jakub, the title hero, is a young bird who tries to take flight too soon and too high, breaks a wing when he crashes to the ground, makes friends, wins the animals’ big forest race and finds true love. It’s a piece about growing up – and that is reflected in Jakub’s part, which sinks from countertenor to baritone, occasionally switching between registers like a boy undergoing his vocal mutation. The other singers, soprano and bass, take different roles, and even the orchestra musicians occasionally intervene in the action. Jakub Flügelbunt is an amusing fairy-tale for listeners of any age, and it explores the immense possibilities of the human voice. The music is quite modern – but children don’t mind that.