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Hans Werner Henze called the opera of Pollicino and Clotide that he wrote in his adopted homeland of Italy, based on the tale of Tom Thumb as told by Collodi, a "fairy tale for music," and dedicated it to the children of Montepulciano. The opera deals with matters of life and death, difficult relationships between parents and children, poverty and hunger, staying in and being freed from inhuman conditions.

The little hero, Pollicino (Italian: "little thumb"), and his six brothers who have to seek for shelter in the house of Orco, the maneater (whose daughters are Clotilde and her six sisters), because poverty drove them away from home, have to go through several adventures before they all together manage to turn their fate for the better. First recording with extensive booklet and German-English libretto.