With the new album *Menschheit*, Challenge Classics presents a special selection of orchestral works by Erwin Schulhoff, performed by the Residentie Orkest , The Hague, under the direction of Jun Märkl and featuring mezzo-soprano Barbara Kozelj. The album centers on the two impressive vocal symphonies *Landschaften* and *Menschheit*, works that Schulhoff composed shortly after World War I and in which loss, spirituality, humanity, and hope converge.

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Schulhoff’s music was composed during a period of great social upheaval. His experiences during World War I brought about a profound change in his musical language. In *Landschaften* (1918–1919), for mezzo-soprano and orchestra, he sets five poems by Johannes Theodor Kuhlemann to music. The work is predominantly subdued and contemplative and was long considered lost, until it was rediscovered and performed again in 1999. Menschheit (1919), for alto and orchestra, was also rediscovered much later. Drawing on five poems by Theodor Däubler, Schulhoff reflects on humanity and the consequences of war. Recurring musical motifs connect the various movements, which ultimately culminate in a powerful and hopeful conclusion. The Suite for Chamber Orchestra, Op. 37, from 1921, then reveals a completely different side of Schulhoff. As one of the first composers to draw inspiration from jazz, he incorporates influences from ragtime, tango, and jazz, among others, into the six movements. The album concludes with Schulhoff’s orchestration of Beethoven’s Rondo a capriccio in G major, Op. 129, better known as “Rage Over a Lost Penny.” Composed in 1940, this arrangement gives Beethoven’s piano work an exuberant and colorful orchestral form.

The Hague City Orchestra ( Residentie Orkest ) brings this versatile music to life under the baton of Jun Märkl. With his extensive experience in the German and French repertoires and his international career, Märkl is uniquely qualified to connect the various facets of Schulhoff’s musical language.

Jun Märkl has been chief conductor of the Residentie Orkest since the summer of 2025, after having regularly conducted the orchestra for many years. He has served as chief conductor of the Orchestre National de Lyon and the MDR-Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, among others. In addition to the Residentie Orkest , he is currently chief conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan and the Indianapolis Symphony, as well as principal guest conductor of the Oregon Symphony. Slovenian mezzo-soprano Barbara Kozelj, acclaimed worldwide for her expressive and versatile voice, performs the solo parts in *Landschaften* and *Menschheit *.

This album, recorded in the exceptional acoustics of the “ Amare ” in The Hague—one of Europe’s most modern and inspiring concert halls and home to the “ Residentie Orkest ”—celebrates both the rediscovery of a remarkable musical voice and the artistic excellence of one of the Netherlands’ leading orchestras.

Order the CD here.