Carl Orff was born in Munich, Germany, on July 10, 1895, and died there on March 29, 1982. The first performance of Carmina burana took place in Frankfurt, Germany, on June 8, 1937 with Bertil Wetzelsberger conducting the Frankfurt Opera. Carmina burana is scored for soprano, tenor, and baritone solos, large mixed chorus, small mixed chorus, children’s chorus, three flutes (2^nd and 3^rd doubling 1^st and 2^nd piccolo), three oboes (3^rd doubling English horn), three clarinets (2^nd doubling bass clarinet, 3^rd doubling E-flat clarinet), two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, xylophone, castanets, ratchet, sleigh-bells, triangle, crotale, cymbals, tam-tam, chimes, tambourin, bass drum, three glockenspiel, two suspended cymbals, two snare drums, second timpani, two pianos, celesta, and strings. Approximate performance time is sixty-five minutes.

The 20^th-century German composer Carl Orff was born into a family of army officers who maintained a keen interest in science, history, and music. Orff began his own music studies (piano, organ, and cello) at the age of five. While pursuing further studies in Munich, Orff became interested in the music of French Impressionist composer Claude Debussy and Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg, the latter a pioneer in atonal music expression.

Drafted into the army in 1917, Orff was wounded at the front, and discharged from service. Upon his return to Munich, Orff began an intensive study of music from the 16^th and 17^th centuries, and in particular, the works of the great Italian Baroque composer Claudio Monteverdi. Orff also co-founded the Güntherschule, an educational center that explored the synthesis of body movement, poetry, and music.

On June 8, 1937, Carl Orff’s “scenic cantata,” Carmina burana, premiered in Frankfurt. Carmina burana (Songs of Benediktbeuern) is Orff’s setting of texts discovered in the monastery of Benediktbeuern, located south of Munich. The texts are taken from the songs of the goliards—medieval students, monks, and seminarians who seem to have spent as much time carousing as they did studying. The songs of the goliards celebrate (sometimes in the most explicit terms) the pleasures of food, wine, and lovemaking.

Orff scored Carmina burana for soprano, tenor, and baritone soloists, large chorus, small chorus, children’s chorus, and orchestral forces. Orff also envisioned dance as an integral part of his “scenic cantata.”

In the early 20^th century, many composers attempted to stretch the traditional concepts of tonality to their limits. Some 20^th-century composers (such as Schoenberg) even abandoned conventional tonality altogether. Atonal compositions inspired heated reactions, both by critics and audiences. To this day, the subject of atonality is guaranteed to inspire lively exchanges among music lovers.

In that context, Carl Orff’s Carmina burana represents a stunning contrast to much of the concert music of the day. From the opening chorus, “O Fortuna”—a hymn to the inexorable power of Fate—it is clear that Orff’s Carmina burana marks an emphatic return to the forces of melody and rhythm in their most elemental form. 20^th–century atonality is nowhere to be found. Instead, Orff’s infectious and decidedly tonal melodies are repeated, with variety supplied by contrasts in dynamics, and vocal and instrumental colors. Throughout, Carmina burana’s raucous celebration of the philosophy of carpe diem creates an irresistible force.

To this day, Orff’s Carmina burana remains one of the most popular of all classical works, a constant presence in the concert hall and recording. Carmina burana may also be heard in numerous movies, television shows, and advertisements. More than eighty years after its premiere, Orff’s Carmina burana remains as irresistible as ever.