Carmina Burana is a scenic cantata

Cantata

A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....

 composed by Carl Orff

Carl Orff

Carl Orff was a 20th-century German composer, best known for his cantata Carmina Burana . In addition to his career as a composer, Orff developed an influential method of music education for children.-Early life:...

 in 1935 and 1936. It is based on 24 of the poems found in the medieval

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

 collection Carmina Burana

Carmina Burana

Carmina Burana , Latin for "Songs from Beuern" , is the name given to a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th century, although some are from the 13th century. The pieces were written principally in Medieval Latin; a few in Middle High German, and some with traces...

. Its full Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 title is Carmina Burana: Cantiones profanæ cantoribus et choris cantandæ comitantibus instrumentis atque imaginibus magicis ("Songs of Beuern

Benediktbeuern

Benediktbeuern is a municipality in the district of Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen in Bavaria, Germany. The distance between Bichl and Benediktbeuern is only 2 kilometers, or 1.25 miles. The village has about 3,500 residents as of 2004....

: Secular songs for singers and chorus

Choir

A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...

es to be sung together with instruments and magic images.") Carmina Burana is part of Trionfi

Trionfi (Carl Orff)

Trionfi is a trilogy of cantatas by German composer Carl Orff:* Carmina Burana* Catulli Carmina* Trionfo di AfroditeCarmina Burana is by far the most famous of the three....

, the musical triptych

Triptych

A triptych , from tri-= "three" + ptysso= "to fold") is a work of art which is divided into three sections, or three carved panels which are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works...

 that also includes the cantata Catulli Carmina

Catulli Carmina

Catulli Carmina is a cantata by Carl Orff dating from 1940-1943. The work sets the texts of Catullus to music. Orff himself provided the text, in Latin, of the opening. Catulli Carmina is part of Trionfi, the musical triptych that also includes the Carmina Burana and Trionfo di Afrodite...

and Trionfo di Afrodite

Trionfo di Afrodite

Trionfo di Afrodite is a cantata called "concerto scenico" written in 1951 by the German composer Carl Orff. It is part of Trionfi, the musical triptych that also includes Carmina Burana and Catulli Carmina...

. The best-known movement is "Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi" ("O Fortuna

O Fortuna

"O Fortuna" is a medieval Latin Goliardic poem written early in the thirteenth century, part of the collection known as the Carmina Burana. It is a complaint about fate, and Fortuna, a goddess in Roman mythology and personification of luck....

") that opens and closes the piece.

Text

In 1934, Orff encountered the text in the 1847 edition of the Carmina Burana by Johann Andreas Schmeller

Johann Andreas Schmeller

Johann Andreas Schmeller was a German philologist who initially studied the Bavarian dialect. From 1828 until his death he taught in the University of Munich. He died in 1852.-Biography:...

. Michel Hofmann, then a young law student and Latin and Greek enthusiast, assisted Orff in the selection and organization of 24 of these poems into a libretto

Libretto

A libretto is the text used in an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata, or musical. The term "libretto" is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...

, mostly in Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 verse, with a small amount of Middle High German

Middle High German

Middle High German , abbreviated MHG , is the term used for the period in the history of the German language between 1050 and 1350. It is preceded by Old High German and followed by Early New High German...

 and Old Provençal. The selection covers a wide range of topics, as familiar in the 13th century as they are in the 21st century: the fickleness of fortune

Luck

Luck or fortuity is good fortune which occurs beyond one's control, without regard to one's will, intention, or desired result. There are at least two senses people usually mean when they use the term, the prescriptive sense and the descriptive sense...

 and wealth

Wealth

Wealth is the abundance of valuable resources or material possessions. The word wealth is derived from the old English wela, which is from an Indo-European word stem...

, the ephemeral nature of life, the joy of the return of Spring, and the pleasures and perils of drinking

Drinking

Drinking is the act of consuming water or a beverage through the mouth. Water is required for many of life’s physiological processes. Both excessive and inadequate water intake are associated with health problems.-Physiology:...

, gluttony

Gluttony

Gluttony, derived from the Latin gluttire meaning to gulp down or swallow, means over-indulgence and over-consumption of food, drink, intoxicants or wealth items to the point of extravagance or waste...

, gambling

Gambling

Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...

 and lust

Lust

Lust is an emotional force that is directly associated with the thinking or fantasizing about one's desire, usually in a sexual way.-Etymology:The word lust is phonetically similar to the ancient Roman lustrum, which literally meant "purification"...

.

Reception

Carmina Burana was first staged in Frankfurt by the Frankfurt Opera

Alte Oper

The Alte Oper is a major concert hall and former opera house in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The building was inaugurated in 1880. Many important works have been premiered at the Alte Oper, including Carl Orff's Carmina Burana in 1937....

 on June 8, 1937 (conductor: Bertil Wetzelsberger, choir Cäcilienchor, staging by Oskar Wälterlin and sets and costumes by Ludwig Sievert). Shortly after the greatly successful premiere, Orff wrote the following letter to his publisher, Schott Music

Schott Music

Schott Music is one of the oldest German music publishers. It is also one of the largest music publishing houses in Europe and is currently the second oldest music publishing house. The company headquarters of Schott Music was founded by Bernhard Schott in Mainz, Germany in 1770.Established in...

:

"Everything I have written to date, and which you have, unfortunately, printed, can be destroyed. With Carmina Burana, my collected works begin."

Several performances were repeated elsewhere in Germany. The Nazi regime

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

 was at first nervous about the erotic tone of some of the poems, but eventually embraced the piece. It became the most famous piece of music composed in Germany at the time. The popularity of the work continued to rise after the war, and by the 1960s Carmina Burana was well established as part of the international classic repertory.

Alex Ross wrote that "the music itself commits no sins simply by being and remaining popular. That Carmina Burana has appeared in hundreds of films and television commercials is proof that it contains no diabolical message, indeed that it contains no message whatsoever."

The desire Orff expressed in the letter to his publisher has by and large been fulfilled: No other composition of his approaches its renown, as evidenced in both pop culture's appropriation of "O Fortuna" and the classical world's persistent programming and recording of the work. In the United States, Carmina Burana represents one of the few box office certainties in 20th-century music.

Structure

Carmina Burana is structured into five major sections, containing 25 movements

Movement (music)

A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...

 total. Orff indicates attacca markings between all the movements within each scene.

Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi		Fortune, Empress of the World
1. O Fortuna O Fortuna "O Fortuna" is a medieval Latin Goliardic poem written early in the thirteenth century, part of the collection known as the Carmina Burana. It is a complaint about fate, and Fortuna, a goddess in Roman mythology and personification of luck....	Latin	O Fortune	choir
2. Fortune plango vulnera	Latin	I lament the wounds that Fortune deals	choir
I – Primo vere		In Spring
3. Veris leta facies	Latin	The joyous face of Spring	small choir
4. Omnia sol temperat	Latin	All things are tempered by the Sun	baritone
5. Ecce gratum	Latin	Behold the welcome	choir
Uf dem Anger		In the Meadow
6. Tanz		Dance	instrumental
7. Floret silva	Latin/Middle High German	The forest flowers	choir
8. Chramer, gip die varwe mir	Middle High German	Monger, give me coloured paint	choir (small and large)
9. a) Reie		round dance Round dance There are two distinct dance categories called round dance. The specific dances belonging to the first of these categories are often considered to be ethnic, folk or country dances...	instrumental
b) Swaz hie gat umbe	Middle High German	They who here go dancing around	choir
c) Chume, chum, geselle min	Middle High German	Come, come, my dear companion	small choir
d) Swaz hie gat umbe (reprise)	Middle High German	They who here go dancing around	choir
10. Were diu werlt alle min	Middle High German	If the whole world were but mine	choir
II – In Taberna		In the Tavern
11. Estuans interius	Latin	Seething inside	baritone
12. Olim lacus colueram	Latin	Once I swam in lakes	tenor, choir (male)
13. Ego sum abbas	Latin	I am the abbot of Cockaigne Cockaigne Cockaigne or Cockayne is a medieval mythical land of plenty, an imaginary place of extreme luxury and ease where physical comforts and pleasures are always immediately at hand and where the harshness of medieval peasant life does not exist...	baritone, choir (male)
14. In taberna quando sumus	Latin	When we are in the tavern	choir (male)
III – Cour d'amours		Court of Love
15. Amor volat undique	Latin	Love flies everywhere	soprano, boys' choir
16. Dies, nox et omnia	Latin/Provençal	Day, night and everything	baritone
17. Stetit puella	Latin	There stood a girl	soprano
18. Circa mea pectora	Latin/Middle High German	In my breast	baritone, choir
19. Si puer cum puellula	Latin	If a boy with a girl	3 tenors, baritone, 2 basses
20. Veni, veni, venias	Latin	Come, come, pray come	double choir
21. In trutina	Latin	On the scales	soprano
22. Tempus est iocundum	Latin	Time to jest	soprano, baritone, boys' choir
23. Dulcissime	Latin	Sweetest boy	soprano
Blanziflor et Helena		Blancheflour Floris and Blancheflour Floris and Blancheflour is the name of a popular romantic story that was told in the Middle Ages in many different vernacular languages and versions. It first appears in Europe around 1160 in "aristocratic" French...  and Helen
24. Ave formosissima	Latin	Hail to the most lovely	choir
Fortuna Imperatrix Mundi		Fortune, Empress of the World
25. O Fortuna (reprise)	Latin	O Fortune	choir

Much of the compositional structure is based on the idea of the turning Fortuna Wheel. The drawing of the wheel found on the first page of the Burana Codex includes four phrases around the outside of the wheel:

"Regnabo, Regno, Regnavi, Sum sine regno". (I shall reign, I reign, I have reigned, I am without a kingdom).

Within each scene, and sometimes within a single movement, the wheel of fortune turns, joy turning to bitterness, and hope turning to grief. "O Fortuna", the first poem in the Schmeller

Johann Andreas Schmeller

Johann Andreas Schmeller was a German philologist who initially studied the Bavarian dialect. From 1828 until his death he taught in the University of Munich. He died in 1852.-Biography:...

 edition, completes this circle, forming a compositional frame for the work through being both the opening and closing movements.

Staging

Orff developed a dramatic concept he called "Theatrum Mundi" in which music, movement, and speech were inseparable. Babcock writes that "Orff's artistic formula limited the music in that every musical moment was to be connected with an action on stage. It is here that modern performances of Carmina Burana fall short of Orff's intentions." Although Carmina Burana was intended as a staged work involving dance, choreography, visual design and other stage action, the piece is now usually performed in concert halls as a cantata. A notable exception is the Trans-Siberian Orchestra version which features strobe lights and what appears to be flames engulfing the stage, wings and balconies, pulsing intensely in time to the music.

Musical style

Orff's style demonstrates a desire for directness of speech and of access. Carmina Burana contains little or no development

Musical development

In European classical music, musical development is a process by which a musical idea is communicated in the course of a composition. It refers to the transformation and restatement of initial material, and is often contrasted with musical variation, which is a slightly different means to the same...

 in the classical sense, and polyphony

Polyphony

In music, polyphony is a texture consisting of two or more independent melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice or music with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ....

 is also conspicuously absent. Carmina Burana avoids overt harmonic complexities, a fact which many musicians and critics have pointed out, such as Ann Powers

Ann Powers

Ann Powers is an American writer and pop music critic.Powers has been writing about popular music and society since the early 1980s...

 of The New York Times

The New York Times

The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...

.

Orff was influenced melodically by late Renaissance and early Baroque models including William Byrd

William Byrd

William Byrd was an English composer of the Renaissance. He wrote in many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard and consort music.-Provenance:Knowledge of Byrd's biography expanded in the late 20th century, thanks largely...

 and Claudio Monteverdi

Claudio Monteverdi

Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, gambist, and singer.Monteverdi's work, often regarded as revolutionary, marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two individual styles of composition – the...

. It is a common misconception that Orff based the melodies of Carmina Burana on neume

Neume

A neume is the basic element of Western and Eastern systems of musical notation prior to the invention of five-line staff notation. The word is a Middle English corruption of the ultimately Ancient Greek word for breath ....

atic melodies; while many of the lyrics in the Burana Codex are enhanced with neumes, almost none of these melodies had been deciphered at the time of Orff's composition, and none of them had served Orff as a melodic model. His shimmering orchestration shows a deference to Stravinsky

Igor Stravinsky

Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....

. In particular, Orff's music is very reminiscent of Stravinsky's earlier work, Les noces

Les Noces

Les noces by Igor Stravinsky, is a dance cantata, or ballet with vocalists.-History:The ballet was premiered on June 13, 1923 at the Théâtre de la Gaîté, by the Ballets Russes with choreography by Bronislava Nijinska...

(The Wedding).

Rhythm, for Orff as it was for Stravinsky, is often the primary musical element. Overall, it sounds rhythmically straightforward and simple, but the metre will change freely from one measure to the next. While the rhythmic arc in a section is taken as a whole, a measure of five may be followed by one of seven, to one of four, and so on, often with caesura

Caesura

thumb|100px|An example of a caesura in modern western music notation.In meter, a caesura is a complete pause in a line of poetry or in a musical composition. The plural form of caesura is caesuras or caesurae...

 marked between them. These constant rhythmic changes combined with the caesura create a very "conversational" feel – so much so that the rhythmic complexities of the piece are often overlooked.

Some of the solo arias pose bold challenges for singers: the only solo tenor aria, Olim lacus colueram, must be sung almost completely in falsetto

Falsetto

Falsetto is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds, in whole or in part...

 to demonstrate the suffering of the character (in this case, a burning swan). The baritone arias often demand high notes not commonly found in baritone repertoire, and parts of the baritone aria Dies nox et omnia must be sung in falsetto: a unique example in baritone repertoire. Also noted is the solo soprano aria, Dulcissime which demands extremely high notes. Orff intended this aria for a lyric soprano

Lyric soprano

A lyric soprano is a type of operatic soprano that has a warm quality with a bright, full timbre which can be heard over an orchestra. The lyric soprano voice generally has a higher tessitura than a soubrette and usually plays ingenues and other sympathetic characters in opera. Lyric sopranos have...

, not a coloratura

Coloratura soprano

A coloratura soprano is a type of operatic soprano who specializes in music that is distinguished by agile runs and leaps. The term coloratura refers to the elaborate ornamentation of a melody, which is a typical component of the music written for this voice...

, so that the musical tensions would be more obvious.

Instrumentation

Carmina Burana is scored for a large orchestra, choir and soloists:

• Woodwinds
  Woodwind instrument
  A woodwind instrument is a musical instrument which produces sound when the player blows air against a sharp edge or through a reed, causing the air within its resonator to vibrate...
  
  : 3 flute
  Flute
  The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
  
  s (2nd and 3rd doubling piccolo
  Piccolo
  The piccolo is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The piccolo has the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written...
  
  s), 3 oboe
  Oboe
  The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
  
  s (3rd doubling English horn), 3 clarinet
  Clarinet
  The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
  
  s in B-flat and A (2nd doubling E-flat clarinet
  E-flat clarinet
  The E-flat clarinet is a member of the clarinet family. It is usually classed as a soprano clarinet, although some authors describe it as a "sopranino" or even "piccolo" clarinet. Smaller in size and higher in pitch than the more common B clarinet, it is a transposing instrument in E, sounding a...
  
  , 3rd doubling Bass clarinet
  Bass clarinet
  The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B , but it plays notes an octave below the soprano B clarinet...
  
  ), 2 bassoon
  Bassoon
  The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
  
  s and a contrabassoon
  Contrabassoon
  The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon or double-bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower...
  
  

• Brass
  Brass instrument
  A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
  
  : 4 horns
  Horn (instrument)
  The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
  
   in F, 3 trumpet
  Trumpet
  The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
  
  s in B-flat and C, 3 trombone
  Trombone
  The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
  
  s (2 tenor and 1 bass) and a tuba
  Tuba
  The tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...
  
  

• Keyboards
  Keyboard instrument
  A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
  
  : 2 piano
  Piano
  The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
  
  s, and a celesta
  Celesta
  The celesta or celeste is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. Its appearance is similar to that of an upright piano or of a large wooden music box . The keys are connected to hammers which strike a graduated set of metal plates suspended over wooden resonators...
  
  

• Percussion
  Percussion instrument
  A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
  
  : timpani
  Timpani
  Timpani, or kettledrums, are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum, they consist of a skin called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally made of copper. They are played by striking the head with a specialized drum stick called a timpani stick or timpani mallet...
  
  , 2 snare drum
  Snare drum
  The snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...
  
  s, a bass drum
  Bass drum
  Bass drums are percussion instruments that can vary in size and are used in several musical genres. Three major types of bass drums can be distinguished. The type usually seen or heard in orchestral, ensemble or concert band music is the orchestral, or concert bass drum . It is the largest drum of...
  
  , a triangle
  Triangle (instrument)
  The triangle is an idiophone type of musical instrument in the percussion family. It is a bar of metal, usually steel but sometimes other metals like beryllium copper, bent into a triangle shape. The instrument is usually held by a loop of some form of thread or wire at the top curve...
  
  , several cymbal
  Cymbal
  Cymbals are a common percussion instrument. Cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys; see cymbal making for a discussion of their manufacture. The greater majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sound a...
  
  s (crash, suspended and antique), a ratchet
  Ratchet (instrument)
  A ratchet, also called a noisemaker , is an orchestral musical instrument played by percussionists. Operating on the principle of the ratchet device, a gearwheel and a stiff board is mounted on a handle, which can be freely rotated...
  
  , castanets, a tambourine
  Tambourine
  The tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
  
  , sleigh bells
  Jingle bell
  A jingle bell is a type of bell which produces a distinctive 'jingle' sound, especially in large numbers. They find use in many areas as a percussion instrument, including the classic sleigh bell sound and morris dancing...
  
  , a tam-tam
  Gong
  A gong is an East and South East Asian musical percussion instrument that takes the form of a flat metal disc which is hit with a mallet....
  
  , tubular bell
  Tubular bell
  Tubular bells are musical instruments in the percussion family. Each bell is a metal tube, 30–38 mm in diameter, tuned by altering its length. Its standard range is from C4-F5, though many professional instruments reach G5 . Tubular bells are often replaced by studio chimes, which are a smaller...
  
  s, 3 bells
  Bell (instrument)
  A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
  
  , 3 glockenspiel
  Glockenspiel
  A glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
  
  s, and a xylophone
  Xylophone
  The xylophone is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets...
  
  

• Strings
  String instrument
  A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
  
  : 1st and 2nd violin
  Violin
  The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
  
  s, viola
  Viola
  The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
  
  s, violoncellos
  Cello
  The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
  
  , and double bass
  Double bass
  The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
  
  es

• Voices
  Human voice
  The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
  
  : SATB
  SATB
  In music, SATB is an initialism for soprano, alto, tenor, bass, defining the voices required by a chorus or choir to perform a particular musical work...
  
   mixed choir
  Choir
  A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
  
  s (large, small) (all divisi), a boys' choir
  Boys' choir
  A boys' choir is a choir primarily made up of choirboys who have yet to begin puberty or are in the early to middle stages of puberty and so retain their more highly pitched childhood voice type...
  
  , a soprano
  Soprano
  A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
  
   solo, a tenor
  Tenor
  The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
  
   solo, a baritone
  Baritone
  Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
  
   solo, and short solos for 3 tenors, a baritone and 2 basses
  Bass (voice type)
  A bass is a type of male singing voice and possesses the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, a bass is typically classified as having a range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C...
  
  .

A reduced version for soloists, mixed choir, children's choir, 2 pianos and 6 percussion (timpani + 5) was prepared by Orff's disciple Wilhelm Killmayer

Wilhelm Killmayer

Wilhelm Killmayer is a German composer of classical music and an academic.-Professional career:Wilhelm Killmayer studied conducting and composition from 1945 to 1951 in Munich at Hermann Wolfgang von Waltershausen’s Musikseminar...

 in 1956 and authorized by Orff himself, to afford smaller ensembles the opportunity of performing the piece.

An arrangement for wind ensemble was prepared by Juan Vicente Mas Quiles (b. 1921), who wanted both to give wind bands a chance to perform the work and to facilitate performances in cities that have a high quality choral union and wind band but lack a symphony orchestra. A performance of this arrangement was recorded by the North Texas Wind Symphony under Eugene Corporon

Eugene Migliaro Corporon

Eugene Migliaro Corporon is an American conductor, known for his work with wind ensembles and is a scholar of wind/band music repertoire. He is co-editor of two literature catalogues, Wind Ensemble/Band Repertoire and Wind Ensemble Literature , as well as all seven volumes of the Teaching Music...

. In writing this transcription, Quiles maintained the original chorus, percussion, and piano parts.

An additional arrangement for concert band was prepared by John Krance and does not include chorus. Various arrangements of different movements for young bands also exist.

Notable recordings

• Eugen Jochum
  Eugen Jochum
  Eugen Jochum was an eminent German conductor.Born in Babenhausen, near Augsburg, Germany, Jochum studied the piano and organ in Augsburg until 1922. He then studied conducting in Munich...
  
   with the choir and orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin
  Deutsche Oper Berlin
  The Deutsche Oper Berlin is an opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, Germany. The resident building is also home to the Berlin State Ballet.-History:...
  
   and Gundula Janowitz
  Gundula Janowitz
  Gundula Janowitz is an Austrian lyric soprano singer of operas, oratorios and concerts. She is one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century and was pre-eminent in the 1960s and 1970s.-Career:...
  
  , Gerhard Stolze
  Gerhard Stolze
  Gerhard Stolze was a German tenor.A character tenor best known as a Wagner singer. His most famous roles were Mime , David , Loge , Aegisth and Herod...
  
  , and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
  Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
  Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau is a retired German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous lieder performers of the post-war period and "one of the supreme vocal artists of the 20th century"...
  
  . Recorded October 1967 in Berlin's Ufa-Studio, released 1968 (Deutsche Grammophon
  Deutsche Grammophon
  Deutsche Grammophon is a German classical record label which was the foundation of the future corporation to be known as PolyGram. It is now part of Universal Music Group since its acquisition and absorption of PolyGram in 1999, and it is also UMG's oldest active label...
  
  ). This version was endorsed by Carl Orff himself and was the first choice of the BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
  
   CD Review "Building a Library" review in 1995 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/building/data2/rev_62_206.shtml.
• Riccardo Muti
  Riccardo Muti
  Riccardo Muti, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI is an Italian conductor and music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.-Childhood and education:...
  
   with Philharmonia Orchestra
  Philharmonia Orchestra
  The Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
  
   and Chorus and Arleen Auger
  Arleen Auger
  Joyce Arleen Auger was an American soprano singer, admired for her coloratura voice and interpretations of works by Bach, Handel, Haydn, Monteverdi, Gluck, and Mozart.-Biography:...
  
  , John van Kesteren
  John van Kesteren
  John van Kesteren was a Dutch operatic tenor.Van Kesteren first worked as an electronic telex specialist for the Dutch Telegraph Company PTT. His very first appearance as a non-professional singer was in 1942 with an operetta company in Apeldoorn in the French operetta The Bells of Corneville...
  
   and Jonathan Summers
  Jonathan Summers
  Jonathan Summers is an Australian operatic baritone. He notably sang the role of Captain Balstrode in the 1980 recording of Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes which won a Grammy award for Best Opera recording.- Early life :...
  
  . Recorded 1979 (EMI
  EMI
  The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
  
  ), featured in the top three of BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
  
  's review and is also recommended by Classics Today http://www.classicstoday.com/features/100cds.asp
• Leonard Slatkin
  Leonard Slatkin
  Leonard Edward Slatkin is an American conductor and composer.-Early life and education:Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His father Felix Slatkin was the violinist, conductor and founder of the Hollywood String Quartet,...
  
   with Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
  Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
  The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the SLSO is the second-oldest symphony orchestra in the United States as it is preceded by the New York Philharmonic.-History:The St...
  
   and Chorus, RCA 09026 61673-2, featured in the top three of BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3
  BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
  
  's review
• James Levine
  James Levine
  James Lawrence Levine is an American conductor and pianist. He is currently the music director of the Metropolitan Opera and former music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Levine's first performance conducting the Metropolitan Opera was on June 5, 1971, and as of May 2011 he has...
  
   with Chicago Symphony Orchestra
  Chicago Symphony Orchestra
  The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the five American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1891, the Symphony makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival...
  
   and Chorus and June Anderson
  June Anderson
  June Anderson is a Grammy Award-winning American coloratura soprano. Originally known for bel canto performances of Rossini, Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini, she was the first non-Italian ever to win the prestigious Bellini d'Oro prize...
  
  , Phillip Creech, and Bernd Weikl
  Bernd Weikl
  Bernd Weikl is an Austrian operatic baritone, best known for his performances in the operas of Richard Wagner.- Early career :...
  
  . Recorded 1984 (Deutsche Grammophon). This version won the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance
  Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance
  The Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance has been awarded since 1961. There have been several minor changes to the name of the award over this time:*In 1961 the award was known as Best Classical Performance - Choral ...
  
  .
• Christian Thielemann
  Christian Thielemann
  -Career:Thielemann studied viola and piano at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin and took private lessons in composition and conducting before becoming répétiteur aged 19 at the Deutsche Oper Berlin with Heinrich Hollreiser and working as Herbert von Karajan's assistant...
  
   with the choir and orchestra of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and Knabenchor Berlin. Released 2003 by Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Hamburg. Named "Editor's Choice" by Gramophone.
• Charles Dutoit
  Charles Dutoit
  Charles Édouard Dutoit, is a Swiss conductor, particularly noted for his interpretations of French and Russian 20th century music...
  
   with the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal & Saint Lawrence Choir (Beverly Hoch (s), Stanford Olsen (t), Mark Oswald (bar). 1997, Decca 028945529028. High quality recording technically (balancing orchestra and choir).

External links

• Carmina Burana Web Comprehensive site about Carl Orff's Carmina Burana
• Text, Original and Translated in English, as it appears in Orff's libretto
• The complete Carl Orff setting of Carmina Burana in MIDI format
• Notes on Carmina Burana
• "The Lasting Appeal of Orff's Carmina Burana" (sound files at NPR)
• Full lyrics to Carmina Burana
• "Carl Orff: Carmina Burana" (complete performance, 1:11 hours), University Chorus and Alumni Chorus, UC Davis
  University of California, Davis
  The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
  
   Symphony Orchestra and the Pacific Boychoir at the Mondavi Center
  Mondavi Center
  The Mondavi Center, or Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, is a performing arts venue located on the UC Davis campus in Davis, California...
  
  (4 June 2006)