Richard Strauss: Salome - Op. 54 (Full Score)

Composed in July, 1905. 0:00- Scene I 5:21- Scene II 14:24- Scene III 40:24- Scene IV There is no work in the operatic canon quite like Salome. Not even Elektra, which was composed IMMEDIATELY after Salome. In Elektra, our lead character is a triumphant savior in the end; yes, she is driven to death by embracing Hatred and Revenge as her companions, but she can really be considered the deliverer of justice. In Salome, our character is a sexually confused and psychopathic teenager, driven to clinical insanity by the dull court life of Herod Antipas. She is an allegory of the role of sexual desire in society. She is described as beautiful, but she is also described as pale and sickly, perhaps suffering from a Jack Torrance-esque case of hormonal Cabin Fever. The simplistic language of Wilde’s play contributes to the effect of this opera, as if it were some kind of nightmare, like all of what we are seeing is not real. The scenes that are meant to poke fun at society (namely the Jewis