‘The Miraculous Mandarin’ (op. 19, Sz 73) is Bartók’s last work for the stage. The plot revolves around prostitution, brutality, robbery, murder, being an outsider, (unrequited) love and finally, as a catharsis, a kind of love-death. The music is relentlessly sharp for long stretches, garishly dissonant, radical, probably the most modern score Bartók created. The premiere (1926) in Cologne was a scandal and Konrad Adenauer, then Lord Mayor of Cologne, immediately cancelled the performances.

In the course of his long career, Michael Gielen has been Music Director of the Royal Opera in Stockholm, the Belgian National Orchestra in Brussels, the Dutch Opera and the Frankfurt Opera. He was also Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Staatskapelle Berlin as well as Chief Conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the Südwestfunk Symphony Orchestra. He developed an early interest in contemporary music and became known for his outstanding performances of Viennese classical music and works by Bruckner and Mahler. He has conducted several world premieres of important 20th century works such as Bernd Alois Zimmermann’s opera ‘Die Soldaten’ and György Ligeti’s ‘Requiem’.