Atmen gibt das Leben

Atmen gibt das Leben (Breathing Gives Life), is a choral opera with orchestra by , written in 1974 and expanded in 1976–77. It is Number 39 in the catalogue of the composer's works, and lasts about 50 minutes in performance.

The first part of Atmen gibt das Leben was composed for a cappella choir during a composition seminar on 1 February 1974. This was in response to a request from the German Choral Association for a piece that could be sung by amateur choirs, and Stockhausen's original idea was that his students should each write a simple choral piece using a text from The Bowl of Saki, by Hazrat Inayat Khan, and then all the pieces would be published together in a single volume. Not all of his students reacted favourably, and so the piece he composed himself for the project became the first part of Stockhausen's choral opera (Kurtz 1992, 195–96). This part was premiered by the Choir of the North German Radio (NDR Chor) in a public concert in Hamburg as part of the series Das Neue Werk on 16 May 1975. The choir soloists in this performance were Susanne Denman (soprano) and Ulf Kenklies (tenor). This first version of the score is dedicated to Doris Stockhausen on her birthday, 28 February 1974 (, 243; ).

Stockhausen interrupted work on in order to compose two further sections in December 1976 and January 1977, this time with an orchestra (which may be played back on tape) to support and colour the choir. The first of these additions, "Sing ich für Dich, singst Du für mich" (If I sing for thee, you will sing for me) was premiered by the NDR Choir on 9 May 1977 at the Biennale Zagreb. The same choir gave the premiere of the third part, "Eine Welt von Sorge und Schmerz" (A world full of sorrow and pain), as part of the first integral performance of the work on 22 May 1977 at the Marc Chagall Museum in Nice, as a pre-celebration of Chagall's 90th birthday, made possible by a commission from the French Minister for Religious Affairs. The two new sections (printed as a single part II in the score) were dedicated to the composer's daughter Christel Stockhausen on the occasion of her 21st birthday, 22 January 1977 (Kurtz 1992, 208; , 243–44).

The libretto is by the composer, with the German text of part one being based on an aphorism by Hazrat Inayat Khan (Maconie 2005, 360). The German, English, and French text for the remainder incorporates six quotations: three haiku (by Shiki, Buson, and Issa), and one passage each from Socrates, the Gospel according to St. Thomas, and Meister Eckhart (). There is no plot, and though the score is furnished with copious instructions and photographs of the German premiere in 1979, very little stage action is actually specified (Maconie 2005, 360, 362).

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