Metamorphosen

A tribute to Richard Strauss

An Artwork in collaboration with Oren Lazovski for the Deutsche Oper. Berlin

 

 

 

     The video dance „ Metamorphosen“ was especially created for a chamber music Konzert , at the Tischlerei, Deutsche Oper Berlin, dedicated to the composer Richard Strauss, marking 150 years to his birth.

 

     The piece „Metamorphosen „ was composed during the closing months of the Second World War, from August 1944 to March 1945.A few days after the completion of Metamorphosen, he wrote in his private diary:"The most terrible period of human history is at an end, the twelve year reign of bestiality, ignorance and anti-culture under the greatest criminals, during which Germany's 2000 years of cultural evolution met its doom".

 

    As Israeli artist living and working in Berlin for the past years, this music and its unique background story, has inspired me deeply to comment on the past lessons regarding also the current states of events in the world.

I have approached the international video artist Irene Cruz and we decided to film in three different locations in Berlin-Tempelhof airport, Soviet War Memorial and an abandoned water park called BLUB inside a forest on the borders of the city.

 

     While listening to the sound track, the viewer is invited to a journey through different stations - Nature, relic to a past wars, no man land and back to a nature- relating to the musical building of the composition as a counterpoint and to reflect on the consequences of war- a very actual theme in our present time.

 

Oren Lazovski