KLEIBERG: David and Bathsheba

The libretto of the opera David and Bathsheba is from the Old Testament story of King David who fell in love with Uria's wife Bathsheba and sent Uria to war in order to die.
Ståle Kleiberg
Composer Ståle Kleiberg was born in Stavanger in 1958. He graduated from the University of Oslo with a degree in musicology and later from the Norwegian State Academy of Music with a diploma degree in composition. In addition Kleiberg has studied in England. His output ranges from chamber music to works for full orchestra; a number of these are the result of commissions from leading orchestras and ensembles. In 1999 Kleiberg was awarded the Fartein Valen Prize, and was composer-in-residence during the Valen Days the following year. Valen's output ranges from chamber music to works for full orchestra; a number of these are the result of commissions form leading orchestras and ensembles. Kleiberg's works are often to be found on concert programmes. Among his works for full orchestra is the symphony "Klokkeskjæret" (The Bell Reef), commissioned by the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Kleiberg has also completed a number of major works commissioned by the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, and was their composer in residence for the 2000/2001 season. Three of his works that were performed during that season have been recorded on a portrait CD with Kleiberg's orchestral music, An other portrait CD features five of his chamber works, and he is also represented a t other recordings with single pieces. Many of Kleiberg's works have a literary source. Poetic images often give rise to musical associations, and these imagined sounds and sound-textures form the basis of the inspiration for the composer's work.