It is the first murder in human history, yet, as we know, not the last. For according to biblical tradition, we are all descended from a murderer: Cain, the first human to be born on earth. Together with his younger brother Abel, he is raised by his parents Adam and Eve in reverence for God. But when Abel’s ritual offerings are favored one day, dark impulses break through: Cain kills Abel, thereby incurring the wrath of God.

The story from Genesis raises numerous questions that have preoccupied humanity ever since. Why am I not as well off as others? Why are some people seemingly favored for no reason? Is the existence of evil inherent in human nature? Does it perhaps even serve a hidden function within the plan of creation? Are we all part of a divine experiment? Can or must one forgive a murderer? Is peace even possible, or is the existence of violence indelibly inscribed in human history?

Alessandro Scarlatti received much of his musical education in Rome, the center of oratorio composition at the beginning of the 18th century. He also benefited from the era of the “opera proibita”: between 1698 and 1710, opera performances were banned in Rome, and composers concealed their stage works behind the façade of oratorios, causing the genre to develop in an increasingly dramatic direction. With this experience, Scarlatti arrived in Venice in 1706, then the center of opera. The following year he composed CAIN AND ABEL, a gripping dramatization of the biblical story, which he sets in virtuosic Baroque sound.

The acclaimed production by Dietrich W. Hilsdorf, which premiered in 2020 at the Aalto Theatre in Essen, focuses on the existential core of biblical prehistory. Hilsdorf presents the first fraternal conflict as a timeless human drama, shaped by envy, guilt, and the desperate search for recognition. Under the direction of Rubén Dubrovsky, the music unfolds a powerful intensity that is both precise and expressive.