The pedagogical material (in German), elaborated by students of the GMPU under direction of Helmut Schaumberger and Esther Planton, is now available (protected by password). For more information please contact our team: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

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 Tickets for the Performances of PENELOPE 2025 on 23. and 24. May 2025 are now available! 

You missed the opportunity to attend the rehearsals on January 26 and the dress rehearsal on February 3, 1724, or you lacked the contacts at the Imperial Court to gain admission?
Unfortunately, you also missed the premiere on February 6 and the reprises on February 13, 20 and 26, 1724? 

Then now – after a long 300+1 years and 3 months of waiting – you have the chance to enjoy Conti's carnival opera Penelope again, at the Konzerthaus Klagenfurt with masterfully performing students from the Gustav Mahler Private University of Music and the Conservatorio di musica in Venice, in an enchanting production by Stefanie Planton and under the spirited direction of Klaus Kuchling! 

Ulisse and Penelope meet again after 24 years: were they faithful to each other? 
Who will take the throne and rule in Ithaka? 
Who will sing the great love duet?
Which aria sounds like a word rap? 
Why is Tersite afraid of a bassoon?

The unique chance to find out the answers is only on May 23 and 24 in Klagenfurt – don't miss it (again)!

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…and who pays the bills?

A guest commentary by Elisabeth Theresia Hilscher (Vienna)

This question was rarely (if ever) asked at courts in the High Baroque period, as representation was seen as a dynastic, if not a political necessity. As Julius Bernhard von Rohr aptly formulated in his Einleitung zur Ceremoniel-Wissenschaft Der großen Herren (New Edition, Berlin 1733): “If the subjects are to recognize the majesty of the king, they must understand that he has supreme power and authority, and accordingly they must arrange their actions in such a way that they have reason to recognize his power and strength. The ordinary man, who clings only to the outward senses and makes little use of reason, cannot always imagine what the king’s majesty is, but through the things that catch his eye and stir his other senses, he gets a clear idea of his majesty, power and authority.”

The music education program for the opera Penelope 

Staging and communicating baroque opera in Klagenfurt

Text & conzept: Esther Planton 

The opera production “Penelope” offers a comprehensive music education program that aims to inspire its audience – especially young people – for the world of opera and baroque music. 

The length of the original version can only be estimated today, as we have too little information about it. It can be assumed that the original version of the opera “Penelope” lasted around 4 hours. For the opera performance in Klagenfurt, the original version is shortened to approx. 3 hours including breaks and is directed at upper school classes and adults. A youth opera with a length of 70 minutes will be staged for young people between the ages of 10 and 14.

Opera – what does that actually mean? In the sense of our project’s ambition to closely intertwine artistic work and scientific reflection, the legitimate question arises about our subject matter. If something is difficult to explain, it makes sense to first ask about the meaning of the term: What does “opera” mean? Where does this term come from? Can the word “opera” be translated into English?