On 3rd and 4th December 2009, the first performances for 111 years of Johann Strauss II’s final operetta, Die Göttin der Vernunft (The Goddess of Reason), took place at the Fatra Palace of Arts in Zilina, Slovakia. This is the world premiere recording of the complete work.

Set in the town of Chalons near the German border at the time of the French Revolution during the Reign of Terror in 1794, its light-hearted mockery of the aristocracy, morality and the army, controversial at the time, seems as harmless now as that of Bernstein’s ebullient opera Candide.

Abounding in waltz tunes and marches, its exuberant music is vintage Strauss. For this recording, Christian Pollack has reconstructed the score as it would have been heard on its opening night, with additional items that Strauss added for its 25th performance.

Cast:
- Comtesse Mathilde de Nevers: Veronika Groiss (soprano)
- Colonel Furieux: Manfred Equiluz (tenor)
- Captain Robert: Kirlianit Cortez (tenor)
- Bonhomme: Franz Födinger (tenor)
- Ernestine: Isabella Ma-Zach (soprano)
- Jacquelin: Wolfgang Veith (tenor)
- Susette: Eva-Maria Kumpfmüller (soprano)
- Sergeant Pandore: Andreas Mittermeier (baritone)