At night, a fisherman thinks of the nightingale’s song, which makes him forget everything else. When the nightingale appears, it enchants him with its singing. That same night, an imperial delegation is on its way, sent by the Emperor to bring the nightingale to the imperial court. The nightingale accepts the Emperor’s invitation and appears before his throne. The Emperor has never heard anything more beautiful than the nightingale’s song, which makes him forget all his worries.

The next day, two Japanese envoys arrive at court and present the Emperor with a mechanical nightingale. Everyone is fascinated by this machine, and the real nightingale flies away.

Many weeks later, the Emperor lies dying. Death itself appears before him, and the Emperor calls for music to drive away the dark presence. Only the nightingale hears his cries and triumphs over Death.

This poetic opera has accompanied the Cologne Children’s Opera since its founding: for its opening in 1996, it was arranged into a chamber version by the composition class of Manfred Trojahn. In this production, the work enjoyed many successful performances for young audiences in Cologne. In 2015, the Children’s Opera commissioned a new production, which continues to enchant audiences to this day.