Columbus – An Opera for Listening By the term “radio opera”, people understood, above all, the adaptation of stage works for radio. The first attempts were carried out in Berlin and soon commissions were offered for original works in the medium. General comprehensibility was the most important principle and the listener was supposed to have an exciting listening experience with the help of modern technical means. Werner Egk, too, although still lacking in dramatic musical experience, sensed the fascination emanating from this avant-garde genre. His chief model here was Igor Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex. The booklet contains liner notes and synopsis in German and English language and the German libretto.