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SKU: ae0070c | see all opera disks
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Lohengrin is one of the most popular rôles in all German opera. It should be sung by a...
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Germanic Tenors: In fernem Land
From Mike Richter:
The CD-ROM "Fanget an! - Germanic Tenors" poses a
problem for excerpting. With nearly 700 selections from more than 80 singers,
how can one provide a practical sampling for download. Indeed, there are 33
performances of "In fernem Land", so how can they be winnowed to the
few that make sense to offer here?
Lohengrin is one of the most popular rôles in all German opera. It
should be sung by a Jugendlicher Heldentenor - essentially a spinto - or a
Heldentenor with a good top and a fine timbre. The rôle has a high
tessitura and is relatively long so it can be a trial for a lyric tenor, even
one with a large voice. Nevertheless, it is a favorite so is offered by many
singers at least on record if not in performance.
Karl Erb (1877-1958) was a light,
lyric tenor best known for oratorio and twentieth-century opera. Early in his
lengthy career (1911), he offered this very light reading.
Jacques Urlus (1867-1935) was all
sorts of tenor at once, singing the classic lyric, spinto and dramatic
repertoire through most of his career; he was the preferred Siegfried at
Bayreuth for many years. This recording made when he was 61 shows both his
lyricism and his power well preserved.
Fritz Krauss (1883-1976) had a
well honed spinto heard most often at his home base in Munich. With singing
such as this (from 1927), one wonders why he was not better known
internationally.
John Gläser (1888-1968) is
one of the surprises on this disc - one of those tenors who make you wonder:
where has he been all along and why/how could we have missed him. He was
largely at Frankfurt am Main, a fine house but not a great one. Perhaps that
alone explains why he was not a favorite for recording. Regardless, this 1919
example makes one wish for more than the seven selections on the CD-ROM.
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