The Miraculous Mandarin, BB 82, Sz. 73, op. 19
The Miraculous Mandarin Op. 19, Sz. 73 (BB 82), is a one act pantomime ballet composed by Béla Bartók between 1918 and 1924, and based on the 1916 story by Melchior Lengyel. Premiered on 27 November 1926 conducted by Eugen Szenkar at the Cologne Opera, Germany, it caused a scandal and was subsequently banned on moral grounds. Although more successful at its Prague premiere, it was generally performed during the rest of Bartók's life in the form of a concert suite, which preserves about two-thirds of the original pantomime's music.
Movements
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: I. Introduction
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: II. 1st Decoy Game
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: III. 2nd Decoy Game
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: IV. 3rd Decoy Game
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: V. The Mandarin Enters
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: VI. Dance of the Girl
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: VII. The Chase
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: VIII. Suddenly the Mandarin's Head Appears
- The Miraculous Mandarin, Sz. 73: IX. The Mandarin Falls on the Floor
Recommended recordings
- Chicago Symphony Orchestra · Pierre Boulez YouTubeSpotify (subscription)
- London Symphony Orchestra · Georg Solti YouTubeSpotify (subscription)
Most recent recordings
- Bartok: The Miraculous Mandarin Suite: The Dance Concludes – The Mandarin Chases the Girl — Béla Bartók, Edward Gardner, London Philharmonic Orchestra (2026) Spotify
- Bartók: The Miraculous Mandarin. Concerto for Orchestra — Béla Bartók, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Gustavo Gimeno, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir (2026) Spotify
- Bartók: String Quartet No. 3 & Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin — Béla Bartók, The Cleveland Orchestra, Franz Welser-Möst (2024) Spotify
New releases via Spotify — surfaced automatically, not editorial picks.