Erich Zeisl, Ilse Weber, Rosy Wertheim, Georg Kreisler - these are all known to us as great composers of the early 20th century. Above all, however, in addition to their music, we know the stories of their humiliation, expulsion, or death at the hands of those in power under the National Socialist regime. Many of their works are only slowly returning to the public consciousness and into concert halls, mainly under the title 'Verfemte Musik' ('Ostracized Music'). But, according to soprano Pia Davila and pianist Linda Leine, the association occurs all too often! The two musicians have been successfully performing together since 2014; the first prize at the Verfemte Musik competition in Schwerin was the beginning of working together on this subject. In doing so, they have a common goal: "This music is so beautiful, having such great harmonies and so many subtleties - and it's new every time you play it! That's why we want so much for this music to be performed more often and played as a natural part of the repertoire," explains Pia Davila. "These artists are always only referred to as 'Ostracized Composers' - we think that's such a shame because it makes you see them primarily from this single angle that asks, 'What has been done to them?' It's time to look at and listen to these composers differently." And thus, the composers that Linda Leine and Pia Davila have chosen for their first joint album, Irgendwo auf der Welt, have one thing in particular in common: almost all of them have tragic life stories, but their works are characterized by humor, exuding a joie de vivre and cheerfulness. "We were particularly struck by the fact that the humor of the artists we selected 100 years ago is still relevant today. And not only are the lyrics of the songs humorous, but the music is too! This is something we notice above all in our concerts: people are often amused by the solo piano pieces themselves because the music is so mischievous," says Linda Leine. The Comedian Harmonists, for example, enjoyed great success in the early 1930s with the album's eponymous title, Irgendwo auf der Welt (Somewhere in the World), or the song Mein kleiner gr?ner Kaktus (My Little Green Cactus), also took advantage of this. The better-known repertoire on the album is supplemented by numerous first recordings, such as On Top of a Hill by Ursula Mamlok, Arabic Song by Paul Ben-Chaim, and Kater as well as The Lonely Sheperd by Erich Zeisl. Another thing the songs chosen for Irgendwo auf der Welt have in common: they are all about nature and animals. This is a deliberately chosen theme because "we all know how nature influences our lives, we all know animals that we love and coddle", as the musicians write in the preface to the CD. And: "We all recognize their language and see ourselves in them." Othmar Schoeck and Rudi Stephan, the only composers represented on the album who did not share the fate of ostracism with the others, also add to the animal theme of the recording. By doing so, Pia Davila and Linda Leine take us on a humorous journey on Irgendwo auf der Welt, showing us how much animalism there can be in people and reminding us that Erich Zeisl, Ilse Weber, Rosy Wertheim, and all the other composers whose songs we can hear on Irgendwo auf der Welt were, above all, fantastic musicians whose works belong on stage!
