Monteverdi’s operas are rightly considered as the fi rst masterpieces in opera history. Much like DNA, they contain all characteristics of today’s opera, 400 years later. Elena Kats-Chernin, a successful international composer from Tashkent, used Monteverdi’s musical material, even though it barely contains any concrete orchestration details, and has provided a new and idiosyncratic instrumentation. Similar to what Monteverdi did in his time, Kats-Chernin incorporates various styles, from Jazz, Klezmer, to Tango and Ragtime into her style. This new creation of Monteverdi’s opera uses the traditional orchestral instrumentation, and adds exotic instruments from Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Western Africa. Strong, comic, enthralling, stark and sensitive images, with which Barrie Kosky fascinates the audience, stirring them to raucous applause.
