Parabola and Circula: Marc Blitzstein’s forgotten Bauhaus opera to receive its premiere recording on Capriccio as part of new series by the Bauhaus-Archiv.

Marc Blitzstein is one of those 20th century figures whose name is perhaps better known than his work. The name of his 1937 pro-union musical The Cradle Will Rock still resonates, though his opera Regina, an adaptation of Lillian Hellman’s play The Little Foxes, has not made it much past a first revelatory recording (from John Mauceri and Scottish Opera in 1992). His best known work is perhaps that undertaken on the music of another composer, Kurt Weill, as Blitzstein’s translations and adaptations of The Threepenny Opera and Mahagonny played an important role in the widening appreciation of Weill’s music in the period after the composer’s death.

Blitzstein studied composition at the Curtis Institute of Music, then went to Europe to continue his studies. He failed to get on with Arnold Schoenberg in Berlin, but did study with Nadia Boulanger in Paris. Between 1929 and 1933 he travelled extensively in Europe, including a German tour with Aaron Copland. His music of this period includes his Piano Sonata (1927) and Piano Concerto (1931), works described as ‘Boulanger-influenced products of American modernism’ and which he referred to as “wild, dissonant and percussive.”

Now, another side to this European Blitzstein has been revealed, his opera Parabola and Circula from 1929. In November 2026, Capriccio will release the world premiere recording of Marc Blitzstein’s Parabola and Circula, the work having been premiered in a concert performance at the Berlin Philharmonie on 21 September 2025, as part of Musikfest Berlin when the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra performed it under the baton of Karl-Heinz Steffens.

Marc Blitzstein in 1937 [Photo: Federal Theatre Project – Library of Congress]

The work was originally intended to receive its premiere in 1930 in collaboration with the Bauhaus in Dessau. However, the planned production never materialised, and the opera largely fell into obscurity. 1930 was the year that Hannes Meyer was fired as director of the Bauhaus, to be replaced by Mies van der Rohe who refocused the school’s work to concentrate on teaching.

Since 2023, the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung has been exploring the largely overlooked musical history of the school through its Bauhaus Music project. The inaugural festival commemorated the legendary Bauhaus Week of 1923, presenting works by composers including Igor Stravinsky, Paul Hindemith, Kurt Weill and Stefan Wolpe. In 2024, the festival took place under the highly topical theme of Freedom. A particular highlight of the research project followed in 2025 with the world premiere of Marc Blitzstein’s Parabola and Circula at Musikfest Berlin. The 2026 edition, taking place in Berlin on 13 and 14 November, explores the interplay of music, colour, movement and perception under the motto I Feel Air from Another Planet.

Parabola and Circula is set in an abstract world of geometric shapes and tells a tragic love story between a parabola and a circle. The couple live in seemingly perfect harmony with their adopted children, Rectangle and Point. However, their friends begin to question this unconditional love, arguing that it restricts the lovers’ freedom and independence. Parabola’s growing doubts ultimately lead to catastrophe, culminating in Circula’s death. In this opera of approximately one hour, Blitzstein combines geometric abstraction with the powerful human emotions at the heart of musical theatre.

Marc Blitztein’s Parabola and Circula is released on the Capriccio label on 6 November 2026. Karl-Heinz Steffens conducts the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra with Aleksander Nohr, and Mari Eriksmoen. The release also marks the launch of a new CD series by the Bauhaus-Archiv. Full details from Capriccio.