Judith Weir

It must be a mixed blessing for a scholar to discover that an opera has been written about her area of knowledge. Opera, as an art form, is not known for its fidelity to sources or its careful attention to scholarly detail. Conversely, speaking as a composer of opera, in the past I used to dread meeting academics who 'knew about' the subjects on which I had based my work. Sometimes I felt as if I had blundered into a place where I had no business to be.

All this was to change for me when I wrote an opera based on Ludwig Tieck's 'Der blonde Eckbert' for English National Opera, and the late Nicholas John, then Dramaturge at ENO, introduced me to Dr Hanne Castein. I still remember that exciting first meeting, hearing Dr Castein speak with authority and passion about a story that had become very important to me. From that moment on, she became a treasured member of our production team, circulating articles, advising on and writing in the printed programme and libretto, speaking to music critics and giving a pre-performance talk at the London Coliseum.

In the intervening years, Dr Castein has continued to write about my offbeat version of Tieck's astonishing story; and also about my dance-opera based on Hoffmann, 'Heaven Ablaze in His Breast'. I have felt greatly honoured and encouraged by what she has written. It is a rare pleasure to read such an imaginative response to one's own work, or indeed to any contemporary musical subject.

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