Artist: Houston Grand Opera

Title: Mazzoli: Breaking the Waves

Condition:

Format: SACD

Release Date: 2026

Label: Houston Grand Opera

UPC: 1230000270076

Genre: Opera/Operetta

Details

1. Prologue, His Name Is Jan
2. Prologue, We Do Not Favor Matrimony with Outsiders
3. Scene 1, Wedding
4. Scene 2, Ring the Bells
5. Scene 2, Golden Heart
6. Scene 2, We Two People Are Joined in God
7. Scene 3, the Gift of Jan
8. Scene 3, Your Body Is a Map
9. Scene 4, I Wish That the Church Had Bells
10. Scene 4, We Endure
11. Scene 4, I Thank You for Your Love
12. Scene 5, Prayer of a Selfish Girl
13. Interlude, Drill Deep, Men
14. Scene 6, Phone Booth
15. Scene 6, Prayer for Jan to Come Home
16. Scene 7, Accident
17. Scene 7, What Is It Now, Bess?
18. Scene 1, Your Husband Has Suffered Serious Injuries
19. Scene 1, Goodness, What Powers You Possess
20. Scene 2, Love of My Life
21. Interlude, Wives, Submit Yourselves Unto Your Own Husbands
22. Scene 3, Jan, What Have You Done?
23. Scene 3, Love Will Keep Me Alive
24. Scene 3, I'm Tired of Waiting
25. Scene 4, I Brought Supplies
26. Scene 4, I Am Lying on My Back
27. Scene 5, Drrichardson, I've Come to Dance
28. Scene 5, We Breathe, We Drip, We Bleed
29. Scene 1, My Body Is a Map
30. Scene 1, Feeble Girl
31. Scene 1, I Saved Jan When His Heart Stopped
32. Scene 1, There's Fluid in Jan's Head
33. Scene 2, Red Boat
34. Scene 3, Be Gone from the House of God
35. Scene 3, Who's a Tart?
36. Scene 3, Let This Be Over Now
37. Scene 3, Prayer to a Sleeping God
38. Scene 4, Complete the Task
39. Scene 4, My Poor Darling
40. Scene 5, Doctor's Report
41. Scene 5, You Deserve Your Place in Hell
42. Epilogue, I've Stolen You Back

Marking the tenth anniversary of it's 2016 premiere, Houston Grand Opera unveils the first commercial recording of Breaking the Waves, Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek's landmark opera. Long acclaimed as one of the most important American operas of the past decade, this release brings the work's searing emotional world to a global audience, making it accessible beyond the stage for the first time. Set in the Scottish Highlands in the early 1970s, Breaking the Waves tells the story of Bess McNeill, a religious young woman with a deep love for her husband Jan, a handsome oil rig worker. When Jan becomes paralyzed in an off-shore accident, Bess's marital vows are put to the test as he encourages her to seek other lovers and return to his bedside to tell him of her sexual activities. He insists that the stories will feel like they are making love together and keep him alive. Bess's increasing selflessness leads to a finale of divine grace, but at great cost. Led by conductor Patrick Summers, the new recording features some of today's most compelling operatic voices, including Lauren Snouffer as Bess McNeill and Ryan McKinny as Jan Nyman. Hailed by The New Yorker as a "once‑in‑a‑generation magician of the orchestra", Mazzoli brings a distinctive musical voice that has established Breaking the Waves as a modern classic.