In 1929, Schreker was in the midst of a creative crisis: his publisher and the public had rejected his 2 most recent operas. The public demanded sensational successes like Krenek’s Jonny spielt auf, and his publisher was pressuring him to produce a box-office hit. Instead of making concessions, Schreker decided to pursue a different path and set out on a quest to write music for an ideal, unspoiled public: the everyday man.