In 1979, the Metropolitan Opera revived Kurt Weill's opera Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny which had originally appeared in Berlin in 1929, when Weill's wife LotteLenya sang Jenny. Teresa Stratas took the role in 1979 at the Metropolitan Opera. Lenya saw Stratas do it, and then packed up some unpublished and little known songs by Weill, and gave them to Stratas. Here, said Lenya, nobody sings Weill's music like you do and you should have these. Or words to that effect. The result was Stratas recorded an album of 14 of these songs, and this week we have some of them for you. Later in the hour LotteLenya sings a few of Weill's songs, and Weill will try his hand at his own music as well.
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