Monthly Archives: April 2025

Episode 354. Get to Know April Cantelo

April 27, 2025Art Song, Forgotten Divas, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Richard Wagner, Twentieth Century MusicA Midsummer Night’s Dream, Alexander Gibson, April Cantelo, Béatrice et Bénédict, Benjamin Britten, Charles Jennens, Colin Davis, Das Liebesverbot, David Willcocks, Edvard Grieg, Edward Downes, Edwin Muir, George Frideric Handel, George Maran, Hector Berlioz, Henrik Ibsen, Hugh Wood, Ian Partridge, Marjorie Thomas, Maurice Greene, Messiah, Paul Hamburger, Peer Gynt, Raymond Leppard, Richard Wagner, Ted Hughes, Thomas Arne, Thomas Hemsley, Walter Süsskind, William Shakespearecountermelody

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Only recently have I become fully aware of the exceptional voice and artistry of the late April Cantelo (02 April 1928 -16 July 2024). When she died last summer, I began more fully exploring her recorded output and to my surprise and delight, I found myself ranking her among the very finest 20th century British sopranos. It’s my great privilege to offer a full episode showing the wide range of musical genres that she effortlessly assayed. If her performances of Handel seemed near-definitive, it must also be remembered that she created the role of Helena in Britten’s Midsummer Night’s Dream in the summer of 1960 and championed the work of countless contemporary composers, including two heard here, Hugh Wood, and Malcolm Williamson, with whose works in particular she was closely associated. She is also featured in recordings of Grieg, Berlioz, Arne, and Wagner.

Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” At Countermelody’s core is the celebration of great singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. By clicking on the following link (https://linktr.ee/CountermelodyPodcast) you can find the dedicated Countermelody website which contains additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. The link will also take you to Countermelody’s Patreon page, where you can pledge your monthly or yearly support at whatever level you can afford.

Episode 353. Canteloube Originals

April 25, 2025Art Song, Forgotten Divas, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Orchestral Songs, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Young SingersAntonio de Almeida, Bruno Laplante, Chants d’Auvergne, Folk Songs, Frederica von Stade, Geneviève Rex, Georges Thill, Gershon Kingsley, Jean Eudes Vaillancourt, Joseph Canteloube, Karen Coker Merritt, L’arada, Lucie Daullène, María Bayo, Martin Katz, Netania Davrath, Sean Kennard, Serge Baudo, Véronique Gens, Víctor Pablo Pérezcountermelody

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The composer Joseph-Marie Canteloube is primarily known for his lush orchestral arrangements of folk songs from his native Auvergne region. However, he also composed other work, including arrangements of French folk songs (from regions other than the Auvergne!) as well as original works including the lush orchestral song cycle Triptyque and a fascinating and unique cycle for voice and piano entitled L’arada (The Tilled Earth), set to poems in the Languedoc dialect. This work has been studied, promoted, and recorded by soprano Karen Coker Merritt, who deserves our especial thanks for bringing this unique work to our attention. Examples of all of these works are featured on this episode, which also does not shy away from exploring Canteloube’s difficult political legacy as a proud right-wing nationalist and supporter of the collaborationist Vichy government during World War II. I believe that we can and should decry such positions while at the same time exploring these works independently of and stripped (as much as possible) of their political associations. Performers (several accompanied by the composer himself) include Georges Thill, Karen Coker Merritt (performing two songs from L’arada with the exceptional pianist Sean Kennard), Geneviève Rex, Lucie Daullène, Véronique Gens, Netania Davrath, Bruno Laplante, María Bayo, and, transcendently, Frederica von Stade.

Episode 352. Faboo Young Singers, Part II

April 21, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, Canadian Singers, Crossover, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, Gustav Mahler, Lieder, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Pop Icons, Queer Pride, Richard Strauss, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Young SingersAchim von Arnim, Aleksandr Pushkin, Antonio Vivaldi, Apostolo Zeno, Artur Ruciński, Ben Jonson, Beth Taylor, Carlo Gozzi, Claudio Monteverdi, Clemens Brentano, Craig Ketter, Des Knaben Wunderhorn, Die schweigsame Frau, Domènec Terradellas, Domtille Murez, Ella O’Neill, Endgame, Eugene Onegin, Ewa Płonka, Fin de Partie, Francesca Pia Vitale, Francesco Barfoed, Francesco Corti, Georg Zeppenfeld, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Adami, Gustav Mahler, György Kurtág, Hall Johnson, John Austin Clark, John Holiday, John Masefield, Joseph Parrish, Julius Drake, Kent Nagano, Key’mon Murrah, La Merope, Langston Hughes, Laurence Kilsby, Omer Meir Wellber, Paul Mc Cartney, Philippe Sly, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Rebecca Clarke, Renato Simoni, Richard Strauss, Samuel Beckett, Simone Young, Stefan Zweig, Steven Blier, Theo Hoffman, Thibaut Roussel, Thomas de Pierrefeu, Turandot, Yevgeny Onegin, Zachary Wildercountermelody

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This is the second part of an episode begun last week featuring the cream of the crop of today’s young artists. As with the performers heard last week, they represent the finest opera and classical singers working today; it is my distinct pleasure (and honor) to present them to you. They include sopranos Francesca Pia Vitale and Ewa Płonka; mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor; countertenors John Holiday, Key’mon Murrah, and Reginald Mobley (pictured); tenors Laurence Kilsby and Zachary Wilder; baritones Artur Ruciński and Theo Hoffman; and bass-baritones Philippe Sly, Joseph Parrish, and Georg Zeppenfeld in repertoire ranging from Monteverdi and Vivaldi to Rebecca Clarke, Hall Johnson, and Paul McCartney. It has been my pleasure to hear many of these singers live and I look forward to hearing them all again in person (and as soon as possible!)

Episode 351. Schubert in Not-German

April 18, 2025Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Broadway, Comic Relief, Crossover, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, In Memoriam, Lieder, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Queer Pride, Richard Wagner, Schubert, Singers in Old Age, Singers of ColorAntoine Bélanger, Aune Antti, Bo Setterlind, Boris Gmyrya, Camille Maurane, Chip Zien, Cy Walter, Daniel Barenboim, Die schöne Müllerin, Franz Schubert, Friedrich zu Stolberg-Stolberg, Germaine Martinelli, Gioachino Rossini, Greta Keller, Gustave Samazeuilh, Håkan Hagegård, Harry Plunket Greene, Heinrich Heine, Ivan Kozlovsky, Jacopo Ferretti, James Kushner, Jean Doyen, Johann von Salis-Seewis, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, La belle meunière, La Cenerentola, Lev Ostrin, Lily Bienvenu, Ludwig Rellstab, March of the Falsettos, Matthäus von Collin, Michael Rupert, Michael Starobin, Naum Walter, Pentti Koskimies, Peter Seiffert, Peter Strummer, Pierre Maillard-Verger, Piotr Nikitin, Richard Wagner, Robert Dean, Robert Holl, Stephen Bogardus, Thomas Schuback, Wilhelm Müller, William Finn, Winterreisecountermelody

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I have been fascinated for years by operas performed in the vernacular, a phenomenon which was common in Germany until quite recently. Even more interesting in many ways is the performance of art song in the language of the audience. Some time ago I produced an episode featuring the Lieder of Franz Schubert performed in both French and Russian translation. As a supplement to that episode, I present here two of the featured artists from that episode, the French baryton martin Camille Maurane (1911 – 2010) and the Russian lyric tenor Ivan Kozlovsky (1900 – 1993), quintessential representatives of their respective vocal categories, both of whom happened to live well into their nineties. They are featured singing the songs of Schubert in their native languages in recordings made between 1946 and 1962. Certain songs are sung by both artists, allowing one to make direct comparisons between their very different vocal styles. In addition I feature excerpts from Schubert’s two supreme masterpieces, Die schöne Müllerin and Winterreise, the latter excerpts sung in Finnish, Swedish, and English, with an additional shocking surprise before the end. The episode begins with brief memorial tributes to three significant musicians who have died recently: composer William Finn, basso buffo Peter Strummer, and Heldentenor Peter Seiffert.

Episode 350. Young Singers I Admire

April 14, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Contraltos, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Operetta, Queer Pride, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Young SingersAgustin Rodríguez, Aleksandr Pushkin, Andrea Molino, Antonín Dvořák, Ben Glassberg, Carl Maria von Weber, Cecilia Valdés, Cirilo Villaverde, Countee Cullen, Dalibor Karvay, Der Favorit, Die tote Stadt, Dirk Kaftan, Erich Korngold, Fritz Grünbaum, Gary Matthewman, George Frideric Handel, Georges Rodenbach, Gonzalo Roig, Huw Montague Rendall, Ivor Bolton, James Planché, Jaroslav Kvapil, Jasmin White, José Sánchez-Arcilla, Julius Korngold, Krassimira Stoyanova, Lakmé, Léo Delibes, Lisette Oropesa, Maayan Licht, Margaret Bonds, Mario Hosen, Modest Tchaikovsky, Nicole Car, Oberon, Óliver Díaz, Paul Schott, Philipp Riga, Philippe Gille, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Rachael Wilson, Raphaël Pichon, Rebecca Clarke, Renato Simoni, Richard Strauss, Robert Stolz, Rusalka, Sabine Devieilhe, Silvio Stampiglia, Stefan Zweig, Theador Hell, Théodore Pavie, Thibaut Roussel, Thomas de Pierrefeu, Turandot, Vera-Lotte Böcker, Wilhelm Sterk, Yevgeny Onegin, Zachary Wildercountermelody

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Today we celebrate 350 episodes of Countermelody since the inception of the podcast in the fall of 2019. Given that this is a momentous occasion (probably mostly to me, just for sticking with this thing!), I wanted to do something special today. For some time I have been promising an episode on Young Singers I Admire. This is different than the usual Countermelody fare because I almost always focus on great singers of the past. The world of the “opera singer” is very different today than when I was trying to carve out a professional career as a countertenor more than 30 years ago. I would say the huge difference is the way that social media has become such a prominent tool in shaping and maintaining a career. Even today, however, it is possible to do both of these things, to be a singer primarily focused on her technique and expressing the integrity of the music, as well as focusing on their marketing and their identity, whether that be queerness, Blackness, glamour, physical fitness, or whatever. Every single singer I feature today displays a solid and viable vocal technique and a profound connection to the music that they are singing while also, in most cases, deftly managing their online presence. Listen to these young singers and see if you don’t agree: sopranos Lisette Oropesa, Sabine Devieilhe, Nicole Car, and Vera-Lotte Böcker; contralto Jasmin White; mezzo-soprano Rachael Wilson; baritone Huw Montague Rendall; and countertenor Maayan Licht. Midway through constructing this episode, I realized that I had enough material for two episodes, so a pendant to this episode will be published next Easter Monday. It thrills me to celebrate these young artists: all possessors of gorgeous voices, fine technique, superb communicative powers, and a much, much better sense of entrepreneurship than I ever had!

Episode 349. Lenten Melody

April 10, 2025Art Song, Canadian Singers, Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, Holiday Music, Johann Sebastian Bach, Lieder, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Orchestral Songs, Richard Wagner, Singers in Old Age, Voiceless WondersAlbert de Klerk, Alfred Zighera, Alfreda Hodgson, Ambrose Gauntlett, Antonín Dvořák, Benjamin Britten, Camille Maurane, Cesar Franck, Charles Gounod, Daniel Pinkham, Das Marienleben, Elly Ameling, Erich Itor Kahn, Felix Mendelssohn, François Couperin, Françoise Pollet, Gundula Janowitz, Hans Knappertsbusch, Heinz Hoppe, Hendrik Andriessen, Henri Büsser, Henri Ghéon: Miroir de Peine, Henry Purcell, Hugues Cuenod, Ilse Wolf, Jacques Mercier, Jean Luce, Jennie Tourel, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes-Passion, John Donne, John Shirley-Quirk, Jon Vickers, Joseph Haydn, Kurt Masur, Laszlo Heltay, Lotte Lehmann, Marcel Journet, Marie-Claire Alain, Martin Isepp, Michael Tippett, Pablo Casals, Parsifal, Paul Hindemith, Paulus (Mendelssohn), Pelham Humfrey, Peter Pears, Picander, Rafael Kubelik, Rainer Maria Rilke, Richard Verreau, Richard Wagner, Sena Jurinac, Stabat Mater, Walter Bergmann, William Fullercountermelody

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I’ve already done a Lententide episode devoted to contraltos singing the music of Bach, but it seemed to me that in the upheaval of today’s vengeful and war-hungry world, we could use another contemplative episode to provide us with meditative (and even tuneful!) music to calm our spirits. The tunefulness comes especially from recordings of favorite religious music by Gounod, Franck, and other 19th-century French composers sung by Camille Maurane, Marcel Journet, Richard Verreau, and Françoise Pollet. Also included are a live excerpt from Parsifal with Jon Vickers and Hans Knappertsbusch; the miraculous yet voiceless Hugues Cuénod performing an excerpt from the first of Couperin’s Leçons de Ténèbres; the unsung German-British soprano Ilse Wolf in a live performance of the Bach Johannes-Passion conducted by Pablo Casals; Gundula Janowitz in a searing but brief aria from Mendelssohn’s Paulus; excerpts from settings of the Stabat Maters of Haydn and Dvorák, sung by Alfreda Hodgson, Sena Jurinac, and Heinz Hoppe; the original version of Hendrik Andriessen’s exquisite Miroir de Peine cycle for voice and organ featuring our beloved Elly Ameling; and Jennie Tourel in an excerpt from her ultra-rare recording of Hindemith’s Das Marienleben preceded by Lotte Lehmanns’s recitation of the same Rilke poem. The episode begins and ends with realizations by Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett of Baroque masters Henry Purcell and Pelham Humfrey sung, respectively, by Peter Pears and John Shirley-Quirk.

Episode 348. Rescue Mission II

April 8, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Bel canto, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, Comic Relief, Crossover, Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, Great Contraltos, Great Tenors, In Memoriam, Johann Sebastian Bach, Lieder, Listeners' Favorites, Margaret Price, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Orchestral Songs, Rescue Mission, Richard Wagner, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Verismo, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAh Perfido!, Alan Paton, Alexandre Dumas fils, Alfredo Kraus, Anton Guadagno, Arrigo Boito, Benjamin Luxon, Berislav Klobučar, Bruno Walter, Carlo Franci, Carlo Zangarini, Claudio Abbado, Conchita, Cosi fan tutte, David Willison, Dora Wilson, Edith Mathis, El amor brujo, Eleanor Steber, Ellabelle Davis, Eugene Holmes, Ferdinando Bertoni, Francesco Maria Piave, Frederick Weatherly, Fritz Busch, George Frideric Handel, Gilda Cruz-Romo, Giuseppe Verdi, Gloria Davy, Hans Thamm, Helga Görlin, Hermann Lohr, Hugo Cohn, Hugo Conrat, Hugo Hasslo, Janet Baker, Jean Féline, Joaquín Turina, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, John Alexander, Josefina de Attard, Judith Layng, Karl Böhm, Kjell Olsson, Kurt Weill, La Traviata, Le nozze di Figaro, Léo Chauliac, Leopold Stokowski, Lohengrin, Lorenzo da Ponte, Loris Gavarini, Lost in the Stars, Ludwig van Beethoven, Mady Mesple, Manuel de Falla, Mara Coleva, Margaret Marshall, Margaret Price, María de la O Lejárraga García, Martina Arroyo, Maurizio Vaucaire, Maxwell Anderson, Mefistofele, Musas de Andalucía, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Oralia Dominguez, Orfeo ed Euridice, Paul Misraki, Pierre Louÿs, Pietro Metastasio, Ranieri de’ Calzabigi, Raymond Leppard, Ria Bollen, Riccardo Zandonai, Richard Wagner, Roberta Alexander, Walter Herbert, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Zigeunerliedercountermelody

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After I post a Countermelody episode on a cherished singer, my relationship with these artists continues: one of those manifestataions is that I never stop seeking out rare and unusual recordings featuring those singers. This results in a grab-bag of fascinating and often obscure material that is simply too good not to share with my listeners. Today I present you with the second episode of such genre, which I have collectively dubbed “Rescue Mission.” On this episode I feature singers you’ve heard on the podcast over the course of the past several weeks and months, including, among many others, Janet Baker, Oralia Domínguez, Eugene Holmes, Ellabelle Davis, Gilda Cruz-Romo, Benjamin Luxon, Mara Coleva, Hugo Hasslo, Margaret Marshall, Gloria Davy, and Mady Mesplé, performing work by Handel, Verdi, Weill, Bach, Brahms, Boito, and Mozart. The episode concludes with Eleanor Steber (because, as I affirmed laast week, you can never have enough of her), in a 1949 performance of “Ah, Perfido!” that will have you picking your dislocated jaw up off the floor. Also expect shout-outs to friends of the podcast, old and new, as well as a certain amount of political snippiness!

Episode 347. Will the Real Eleanor Steber Please St/And Up?

April 4, 2025Art Song, Bel canto, Broadway, Crossover, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Johann Sebastian Bach, Lieder, Listeners' Favorites, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Orchestral Songs, Queer Pride, Singers in Old Age, Twentieth Century Music, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAl Vann, Alban Berg, Alfred Hay Malotte, Allen Rogers, Alois Jeitteles, An die ferne Geliebte, Ariettes oubliées, Barron Smith, Benjamin Britten, Carl Maria von Weber, Carlo Pepoli, Claude Debussy, Der Freischütz, Edward Dearle, Edwin Biltcliffe, Eleanor Steber, Friedrich Kind, Friedrich Laun, George Frideric Handel, Giacomo Puccini, Giulio Cesare, Giuseppe Giacosa, I Puritani, Igor Kipnis, James J. Rome, James Joyce, Johann August Apel, Johann Sebastian Bach, John La Montaine, Joyce Kilmer, Live at the Continental Baths, Ludwig van Beethoven, Luigi Illica, Mary Baker Eddy, Ned Rorem, Nicholas Harsanyi, Nicola Francesco Haym, Oscar Rasbach, Paul Verlaine, Rainer Maria Rilke, Robert K. Evans, Robert Lawrence, Samuel Barber, Sieben frühe Lieder, Song of Songs, Thomas A. Ainsworth, Thomas Hardy, Tosca, Victorien Sardou, Vincenzo Bellini, Winter Words, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

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Because there is no such thing as too much Eleanor Steber, today’s episode once again features the prodigiously gifted singer, in my opinion the greatest soprano the United States has ever produced, singing a dizzying range of material, most of it recorded live between the years 1958 and 1979. These recordings were nearly all private releases on Steber’s own record labels.. First, ST/AND Records, which she formed with her second husband Gordon Andrews, and which between 1960 and 1962 produced approximately fifteen LPs, all but one of them featuring Steber. Second, recordings released under the aegis of the Eleanor Steber Music Foundation, which she formed in 1973 and which released a few choice live recordings of Steber’s late career recitals. The material ranges from selections from the Christian Science Hymnal, piously presented; sentimental ballads, tackily arranged; Bach and Mozart arias; art songs by Rorem, Barber, Britten, Debussy, Berg, and Beethoven; and opera arias from I Puritani, Der Freischütz, Giulio Cesare, and Tosca, the last performed at her campy Live at the Continental Baths concert in October 1973. Though as Steber grew older, her voice occasionally sounded blowsy, on the vast majority of these recordings she sounds stunningly good. And no matter what repertoire she was singing, her impeccable technique and pristine musicianship remained intact throughout. Much of source material from which these performances stem is exceedingly rare, and for the most part difficult and costly to obtain. So in my role as supreme Steber groupie, I am honored and thrilled to share these recordings, all of them from my own personal collection.