Lamenti

His engagement with the work of Claudio Monteverdi (1567–1643) shows Carl Orff the way to his own style. He adapts three works by the Italian composer, which are among the first operas in music history, and performs them anew.

Orpheus

Orpheus sets out to bring his deceased wife Eurydice back from the realm of the dead. Thanks to his musical talent, he succeeds. However, the condition is that he must not look back at his wife. But he lacks the confidence to do so. Orpheus looks back to see if Eurydice is really following him – and thus loses her forever.
Composed: 1924
Revised: 1939
Premiere: 17 April 1925 in Mannheim

Klage der Ariadne

After Ariadne and Theseus liberate the city of Thebes from the Minotaur, Theseus promises to marry her. On his journey home, he abandons Ariadne on the island of Naxos, where she laments her fate.
Composed: 1925
Revised: 1940
Premiere: 16 April 1925 in Mannheim

Tanz der Spröden

Cupid and Venus devise a plan to punish all young women who refuse to fall in love. To this end, they persuade Pluto, the god of the underworld, to summon the deceased ‘prudish’ women.
Creation: 1925
Revision: 1940
Premiere: 28 December 1925 in Karlsruhe