Esther Corinne Winters, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra & Kirill Karabits

• Thomas de Hartmann (1885 - 1956): Esther, Act I, Scene 1:
• 1 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: Déplorable Sion, qu'a tu fait de ta gloire? (Cantor, Choir) 03:55
• 2 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: Est-ce toi, chère Élise? (Esther, Elise) 04:17
• 3 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: Peut-être on t'a conté la fameuse disgrâce (Esther) 02:26
• 4 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: De mes faibles attraits le roi parut frappé (Esther) 02:20
• 5 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: Hélas ! durant ces jours de joie et de festins (Esther) 01:41
• 6 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: N'avez-vous point au roi confié vos ennuis? (Elise, Esther, Women's Choir) 04:36
• 7 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 1: Quand verrai-je, ô Sion! (Women's Choir) 04:01
• Esther, Act I, Scene 2:
• 8 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 2: O reine infortunée! (Mordecai, Esther, Elise, Women's Choir) 05:08
• 9 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 2: Laissez les pleurs, Esther (Mordecai) 01:29
• 10 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 2: Hélas! ignorez-vous quelles sévères lois (Esther, Mordecai) 02:55
• 11 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 2: Allez: que tous les Juifs dans Suse répandus (Esther) 00:51
• 12 Hartmann: Esther, Act I, Scene 2: O mon souverain roi (Esther) 03:29
• Esther, Act II, Scene 1:
• 13 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 1: Adonaï (Choir) 02:39
• 14 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 1: Venez. Partout ailleurs on pourrait nous entendre (Hydaspe, Aman) 04:03
• 15 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 1: Dans les mains des Persans jeune enfant apporté (Aman) 02:11
• 16 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 1: Vous serez de sa vue affranchi dans dix jours (Hydaspe, Aman) 03:37
• Esther, Act II, Scene 2:
• 17 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: Ainsi donc, sans cet avis fidèle (Ahasuerus, Asaph, Hydaspe) 04:50
• 18 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: O Seigneur (Aman) 03:05
• 19 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: Je vois, que la sagesse elle-même t'inspire (Ahasuerus) 02:17
• 20 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: Seigneur, je n'ai jamais contemplé qu'avec crainte (Esther, Ahasuerus) 03:35
• 21 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: O bonté qui m'assure autant qu'elle m'honore! (Esther, Ahasuerus) 04:00
• 22 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: Dieu d'Israël (Choir, Cantor) 04:01
• 23 Hartmann: Esther, Act II, Scene 2: Orchestral interlude 02:10
• Esther, Act III, Scene 1:
• 24 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Danse Scythe 01:42
• 25 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Danse Hellenique 04:32
• 26 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Danse Assyrienne 05:20
• 27 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Danse Parthe 03:41
• 28 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Oui, vos moindres discours ont des grâces (Ahasuerus, Esther, Aman) 02:46
• 29 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Esther, Seigneur, eut un Juif pour son père (Esther, Aman, Ahasuerus) 06:08
• 30 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Notre ennemi cruel devant nous se déclare (Esther) 03:10
• 31 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Mardochée? (Ahasuerus, Esther, Aman) 02:20
• 32 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 1: Mortel chéri du ciel (Ahasuerus, Esther) 01:30
• Esther, Act III, Scene 2:
• 33 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 2: Dieu fait triompher l'innocence (Choir) 04:34
• 34 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 2: Réjouis-toi, Sion, et sors de la poussière (Choir) 01:52
• 35 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 2: Réjouis-toi, Sion (Esther, Elise, Mordecai, Ahasuerus, Choir) 01:47
• 36 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 2: Que le Seigneur est bon! (Mordecai, Esther, Elise, Ahasuerus) 01:11
• 37 Hartmann: Esther, Act III, Scene 2: Que son Nom soit bén (Esther, Elise, Mordecai, Ahasuerus, Choir) 01:22
• Total Runtime 01:55:31

Info for Esther

The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and conductor Kirill Karabits, joined by an outstanding cast led by Corinne Winters, present the world premiere recording of Thomas de Hartmann’s lost opera Esther. Often written by candlelight during the Nazi occupation of Paris, Esther was composed as de Hartmann—a non-Jewish Ukrainian expatriate—lived through the unfolding horrors of the Holocaust. He perceived profound parallels between those events and the Biblical story of Esther as dramatized in Jean Racine’s play, from whose text he adapted the libretto. Esther is perhaps the only major musical work composed contemporaneously as a direct artistic response to the Holocaust.

Bringing this long-neglected work to life has been a rewarding undertaking, involving extensive engagement with the composer’s handwritten score and the preparation of a new modern performing edition. This process required close study of de Hartmann’s orchestral writing and stylistic language.

Esther is a distinctive work that bridges opera and oratorio, its dramatic momentum shaped through extended monologues, choral commentary, and a triumphant final ensemble. Richly orchestrated, it reflects the full breadth of de Hartmann’s artistic development—from his early training in Saint Petersburg and the influence of Rimsky-Korsakov, Arensky, and Taneyev, to later creative periods in Munich and France, and his search for a deeply personal musical language. Esther, the composer’s largest and most ambitious later work, stands as a summation of his eclectic, polystylistic approach and a compelling rediscovery for today’s performers and listeners.

This album marks the next chapter of the Thomas de Hartmann Project, bringing the composer’s music back to the listening audience.

Corinne Winters, soprano
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Kirill Karabits, conductor

Corinne Winters
Recently named Best Female Singer of 2024 by the Oper! Awards, internationally acclaimed soprano Corinne Winters has sung over thirty leading roles in major opera houses around the world.

Corinne’s 25/26 opera season includes several house debuts, beginning with Houston Grand Opera as all three heroines in Puccini’s Il trittico, followed by Madama Butterfly at Staatsoper Berlin, Nedda in Pagliacci with the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, and Suor Angelica for Tiroler Festspiele Erl in a new production by Deborah Warner. Corinne returns to the Grand Théâtre de Genève in a new production of Madama Butterfly by Barbora Horáková Joly, and to the Palau de Les Arts Reina Sofía as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin. In concert, Corinne begins her season at the Slovak National Theatre, performing act two of Jenůfa in a gala honoring legendary soprano Gabriela Beňačková, a piece she will perform later in the season with the Bamberger Symphoniker and under the baton of Jakub Hrůša, and appears in two iconic works by Strauss: the final scene of Salome with Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, conducted by Daniel Harding, and Vier letzte Lieder with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Münchner Philharmoniker, both conducted by Jakub Hrůša. In addition, Corinne will perform an opera arias and duets program with Xabier Anduaga for Gstaad Music Festival and presents a solo recital with pianist Simon Lepper at the Grand Théâtre de Genève, inspired by the nineteenth century patroness of the arts, Nadezhda Von Meck. Her 25/26 season also includes two recording projects: the title role in Esther, a rediscovered piece by Ukrainian composer Thomas de Hartmann with The Bournemouth Symphony and conductor Kirill Karabits for the Pentatone label, and a disc of Verdi duets with tenor Charles Castronovo and the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Constantine Orbelian for Delos Productions.

Corinne’s debut at the Salzburger Festspiele in Barrie Kosky’s production of Káťa Kabanová garnered international acclaim, including an International Classical Music Award for Best Opera DVD and a Gramophone Award for Best Opera Recording. In addition to Salzburg, Corinne has performed her signature role of Káťa at the Bayerische Staatsoper, Seattle Opera, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Janáček Brno International Festival, Staatsoper Stuttgart, and Opéra de Lyon. Other recent opera highlights include Mimì in La bohème at The Metropolitan Opera, Jenůfa at the Royal Ballet and Opera, both title roles in Iphigénie en Aulide and Iphigénie en Tauride at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, which won Best New Production at the 2024 Opera Awards, Rusalka at the Wiener Staatsoper, Moniuszko’s Halka at Teatro Real and Theater an der Wien alongside Piotr Beczała, Madama Butterfly, Suor Angelica, and Blanche de la Force in Dialogues des Carmélites at Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Madama Butterfly and Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta at Oper Frankfurt, Jenůfa at the Grand Théâtre de Genève, Jenůfa and Mimì in La bohème at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía, Giorgetta in Il Tabarro and Suor Angelica at La Monnaie / De Munt, and Violetta in La traviata at Royal Ballet and Opera, a role which she has also performed at Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Seattle Opera, Opera Australia, English National Opera, Opera Hong Kong, and Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre, among others.

Recent concert performances include Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass with the Czech Philharmonic, both for the BBC Proms and the Dvořák Prague Festiva​​l, Strauss’s Vier letzte Lieder with the Bamberger Symphoniker at the Wiener Musikverein, the soprano soloist in Dvořák’s Stabat Mater with the Berliner Philharmoniker, and Dvořák’s cantata The Spectre’s Bride with the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, all with Jakub Hrůša, the title role in Puccini’s Manon Lescaut with Washington Concert Opera, and a Slavic Opera Scenes gala with tenor Pavel Černoch for Smetanova Litomyšl. Other concert highlights include a gala concert of arias with Andrea Battistoni and the Orchestre de Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège, the soprano solo in a European tour of Verdi’s Requiem with the Monteverdi Choir and Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, and Les nuits d’été with the Borusan Istanbul Philharmonic Orchestra. Corinne has appeared in recital with the George London Foundation, where she was praised by Opera News as “a striking brunette who manages to be simultaneously gamine and seductress, reveal[ing] an arresting, uniquely plum-colored soprano that could pass for mezzo in the middle but explodes with vibrant color on top,” as well as the New York Festival of Song, Tucson Desert Song Festival, and Vocal Arts DC.

Corinne earned a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory and a Bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from Towson University before appearing as a resident artist at the prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia. As a master teacher and career mentor, Corinne enjoys sharing her passion for the craft with organizations such as Opera di Roma’s Fabbrica Young Artist Program, YoungArts Miami, Premiere Opera Foundation, National Student Opera Society UK, The University of Arizona, and her alma maters Towson University and the Peabody Conservatory, as well as her private voice studio.

Booklet for Esther