Despite masks and tests: the musical director of the new “Ring des Nibelungen”, Pietari Inkinen, is ill – and he is not the only one taking part in the Bayreuth Festival.
Corona is messing up rehearsals at the Bayreuth Festival. Because the musical director of the new “Ring des Nibelungen”, Pietari Inkinen, is ill, Cornelius Meister had to step in. This was confirmed by festival spokesman Hubertus Herrmann on Thursday.
The “Nordbayerischer Kurier” had previously reported on numerous corona cases among the participants in the world-famous festival.
Meister is the conductor of the opening premiere of “Tristan and Isolde”. In an interview a few weeks ago, festival director Katharina Wagner had already announced that Meister would be available as a replacement for the other productions.
Meister, who is the general music director of the Stuttgart State Opera, wrote on Twitter that he wished Pietari Inkinen all the best. And rehearse “with a lot of momentum” in addition to “Tristan und Isolde” now also the “Ring”: The trust of the members of the festival orchestra “is great, together we have a lot of fun”.
The festival begins on July 25th. The first opera of the four-part work “Der Ring des Nibelungen” is to be performed on July 31.
The festival management relies on a strict mask requirement for the participants and self-tests, which are used numerously, Herrmann said.
While in the previous year there were still strict access restrictions for the Festspielhaus and only half of the seats could be occupied, this year there are hardly any measures for the audience, only a recommendation to wear a mask during the performances. (dpa)