Jazz at Deutsche Oper in Berlin
Syncopated Scheherazade
By: Susan Hall - Jul 14, 2026
Deutsche Oper presents a small series of narrated jazz concerts in their Tischlerei theater space in Berlin. Converted from former workshops, this intimate venue is the hub for the Junge Deutsche Oper and features world premieres, bold installations, participatory community projects, and chamber or jazz concerts.
High ceilings, an open floor, and informal seating provide a grand yet intimate atmosphere for audiences of all ages. This July featured readings from the Arabian Nights, accompanied by jazzy music from instrumentalists of the Wild Jazz Orchestra. Conducted by Martin Auer, the program was curated by Sebastian Krol and Rüdiger Ruppert.
A huge backdrop framed the stage—bright blue with a red-orange globe suggesting an endless day, alongside abstract oriental rugs piled one on top of the other. The performers themselves sat on oriental rugs you felt sure could fly. When Jimmy Carter was President of the US, he worked all day Saturday before world-class performers like Vladimir Horowitz came to play piano at the White House on Sunday, laying out oriental carpets on the floor of the East Room—an acoustical improvement achieved by a cultured President.
The readings at Deutsche Oper alternated between a man and a woman, providing rich textual variety.
And, of course, the music was haunted by Alexander Borodin, whose lyricism and syncopated beats inspired jazz musicians long before "Stranger in Paradise" was written for the Broadway production of Kismet and implanted forever in our ears.
For people in the audience whose memories go way back, there is Artie Shaw’s "My Fantasy," which ripped off Borodin without credit no less. Tony Bennett’s recording of "Stranger in Paradise" reached number two on the Billboard charts.
It’s that haunting augmented second in a minor scale that is associated the world over with the Orient—and with a delicious, agonizing yearning. The jazz orchestra at Deutsche Oper made the most of it. The audience was thrilled, with not a single twitch from its younger members. The show was over in a brief, captivating hour.