Santtu-Matias Rouvali
Oslo Philharmonic Choir Carl Orff's Carmina Burana

“Everything I have written up to now, and which you have unfortunately published, can be destroyed. With Carmina Burana, my collected works begin,” wrote Carl Orff (1895–1982) to his publisher after the 1937 premiere of Carmina Burana in Frankfurt. Orff’s secular cantata was met with overwhelming enthusiasm and would, in the decades to come, make him world-famous.

Orff borrowed the title Carmina Burana from a medieval manuscript collection of song texts. Most of the poets remain anonymous, though many were likely goliards—a free-spirited group of wandering theology students and provocateurs. The collection includes drinking songs, love lyrics, erotic poetry, and satire aimed at religious hypocrisy.

Carmina Burana became by far Orff’s most popular work, and its iconic opening movement, O Fortuna, is one of the most frequently performed pieces in classical music. Orff’s distinctive musical style blends influences from Igor Stravinsky, the rhythmic energy of folk music, and the modal character of Gregorian chant, creating a vibrant masterpiece of immense musical and emotional range.