Written in 1930 by the Czech composer Hans Krasa , Betrothal in a Dream is based on a tale by Fyodor Dostoyevsky and tells the story of Sina, who is persuaded by her social-climber mother to accept the marriage proposal of an elderly prince. This way, she would soon become a wealthy widow and could marry the man she loves. When the prince begins to have second thoughts, he suggests that the episode was all a dream, much to the mother's anguish. Sina is forced to reveal the truth and beg the prince's forgiveness. That would seem to be the end of the story, but it has a sting in its tail - Sina's real lover dies, and she ends up as the wife of an old provincial governor.
She has everything - power, prestige and beauty - but she also has a cold heart. Sung in German.
German Symphony Orchestra, conductor Lothar Zagrosek