Monthly Archives: June 2025

Episode 369. Joséphine Baker Revisited (Live Edition)

June 20, 2025African American Singers, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, Broadway, Comic Relief, Drag Performance, Holiday Music, Honor Your Mentors, In Memoriam, Listeners' Favorites, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Pop Icons, Protest Songs, Queer Pride, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Voiceless WondersAndré Hornèz, Arthur Freed, Augusto Alguerro, Bruno Coquatrix, Charles Aznavour, Claude François, Eddie Barclay, Flavien Monod, Géo Koger, Guy Lafarge, Henri Betti, Honoré Trenchant, Jacques Revaux, Jacques Trenchant, Jerome Kern, Jo Bouillon, Joaquín Prieto, Joséphine Baker, Karl Hampton Porter, Leon Arias Rafael, Morton Craft, Nacio Herb Brown, Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Lington, Paul Anka, Peter Kreuder, Richard Rodgers, Selma Craft, Tony Renis, Vincent Scottocountermelody

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Yesterday was a crucial celebration for all US-Americans: Juneteenth. In honor of that event and in continuing observation of Pride 2025, I offer today an episode in honor of the great Joséphine Baker (1906 – 1975). I have been an avid (not to say rabid) Baker fan for more than thirty years, so when she was inducted by the French government into the Panthéon in the fall of 2021, I took the opportunity to devote a pair of Countermelody episodes to her. This refurbished episode includes personal reminiscences about my journey on the route to full Bakermania, while the bulk of the musical content consists of possibly the most vibrant extant live recording of Joséphine Baker, which took place on 30 June 1963, the final performance of her month-long engagement at the Tivoli Varietéen in Copenhagen. I’m pretty sure it’s not currently available elsewhere on the interwebs. Joséphine Baker’s magnetism, seductiveness, self-mockery, sauciness, and sincerity are all on full display. Some favorite and/or rare Baker material rounds out the episode, including a pair of Pathé recordings made during the War, when she was an active member of the French Resistance; the soundtrack of an early sound film in which she performs her signature number, “J’ai deux amours”; a recording made in conjunction with her final performance at the Bobino in Paris in 1975 (just before her death); a 1966 live recording from one of her many appearances in Havana; and her final appearance in her native United States at Carnegie Hall on 05 June 1973, in which a laryngitic, nearly voiceless Baker delivers her artistic credo in a riveting performance of “My Way.” The episode begins with a tribute to the late Alfred Brendel.

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 368. Gay Eccentrics (Pride 2025)

June 17, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Broadway, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Baritones, Honor Your Mentors, In Memoriam, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Pop Icons, Queer Pride, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Opera, Voiceless WondersArthur Siegel, Bea Arthur, Beatrice Arthur, Ben Bagley, Bernard Dickerson, Bill McCutcheon, Bobby Short, Bud McCreery, Charles Strouse, Charlotte Rae, Cole Porter, David Baker, David Brynley, Dody Goodman, Dorothea Freitag, Dorothy Greener, Dorothy Loudon, Eddie Hilton, Esther Lilian Duff, Fay De Witt, Felicity Lott, G. Wood, George Marcy, Georges Jean-Aubry, Gerald Hugh Tyrwhitt-Wilson, Heinrich Heine, Henry Lawes, Herb Hartig, Hugo Wolf, Ian Caddy, Ian Partridge, Joel Grey, John Bartis, John Hilton the Younger, John Masefield, John Winfield, Kaye Ballard, Le Carrosse du Saint-Sacrement, Lee Adams, Len Vorster, Liza Redfield, Lord Berners, Lorenz Hart, Meriel Dickinson, Mike Stewart, Nicholas Cleobury, Norman Notley, Norman Paris, Panama Hattie, Paul Wolfe, Peter Dickinson, Peter Lawson, Prosper Mérimée, Ralph Roberts, Richard Rodgers, Richard Rodney Bennett, Robert Graves, Robert Jones, Sheldon Harnick, Shoestring ’57, Skip Redwine, Tammy Grimes, Tennessee Williams, The Littlest Revue, The Shoestring Revue, Thomas Campion, Thomas Dekker, Thomas Morley, Tommy Morton, Vernon Duke Ogden Nash, Will Irwin, William Hickeycountermelody

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Somewhere along the line in planning my Pride 2025 episodes, I hit upon the idea of paying tribute to Gay Eccentrics. (Maybe because I am one of them myself?) There are many mad queer geniuses in the history of music, and I have chosen today to focus on three twentieth-century case studies. First, the husband and husband team of Norman Notley (1890 – 1980) and David Brynley (1902 – 1981), musical and artistic polymaths who settled in the small Dorset village of Corfe Castle. They were both members of the innocuously-named New English Singers, which was actually an early version of the high-caliber vocal chamber ensembles in such profusion today. In recent times their archives have been digitized and exhibited at the Dorset Museum and Art Gallery, which has led to their story going viral. In 1957 while living in the US, the pair made a recording of Elizabethan Songs that is a model of its kind and is featured on the episode. Next up us Gerald Hugh Tyrwhitt-Wilson (1883 – 1950), much better known as Lord Berners, the quintessential upper-class British eccentric who also happened to be the leading British avant-garde composer of his day (as well as a “notorious” homosexual!) I feature an excerpt from his single opera as well as a passel of songs from his small output. Finally, we cross the Atlantic to encounter the prescience, acerbic wit and borderline insanity of Ben Bagley (1933 – 1998), the producer of off-Broadway theatrical revues and a series of recordings featuring unknown material by the top Broadway composers of the day, including fellow gay eccentrics Cole Porter and Lorenz Hart. I may be a day late with this week’s episode, but I’m definitely not a dollar short! This episode has something for everyone!

Episode 367. Bernac Sings Not-Poulenc (Pride 2025)

June 13, 2025UncategorizedAlphonse de Lamartine, André Jolivet, Boris Golschmann, Camille Saint-Saens, Charles Fontaine, Charles Gounod, Charles Munch, Claude Debussy, Dichterliebe, Don Quichotte à Dulcinée, Emmanuel Chabrier, Éphraïm Mikhaël, Ernest Chausson, Francis Poulenc, Franz Liszt, Georges Auric, Gerald Moore, Henri Cazalis, Histoires naturelles, Jean Doyen, Jean Lahor, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Jules Barbier, Jules Renard, Leconte de Lisle, Leïla ben Sedira, Louis Beydts, Maurice Ravel, Mélodies Passagères, Paul Bourget, Paul Morand, Paul Verlaine, Pierre Bernac, Pierre Vellones, Rainer Maria Rilke, René Chalupt, Reynaldo Hahn, Robert Casadesus, Robert Schumann Heinrich Heine, Samuel Barber, Stéphane Mallarmé, Tristan L’Hermitecountermelody

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Continuing our exploration of queer pride in classical music, I bring you the great baryton-martin Pierre Bernac (1899 – 1979), known first and foremost as a creator of some of the most exquisite mélodies of his friend and musical partner Francis Poulenc. Later Bernac became renowned as the exemplar of style and taste in the interpretation of French art song. In this episode, however, I wanted to explore his contribution as a singer of the music of composers other than Poulenc. I had already found some great orchestral song cycles by André Jolivet and Louis Beydts, as well as a sublimely anachronistic recording of a Bach cantata, but just yesterday I came upon a series of rare recordings that Bernac made in 1935 for the Ultraphone label. These include songs by Debussy and Hahn accompanied by pianists Jean Doyen and Boris Golschmann (who was the brother of the conductor Vladimir Golschmann, and whose tragic story I relate), as well as an earlier (and even more exquisite) recording of Chausson’s “Le colibri.” But perhaps the crown jewels among these early records were two duets with the exquisite French-Algerian soprano Leïla Ben Sedira which won the Grand Prix du Disque in 1936. I have folded these deeply satisfying early recordings into the setlist that I had already partially assembled for a very special episode that I hope that you will enjoy!

Episode 366. Donald Gramm Revisited (Pride 2025)

June 8, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Bel canto, French Opera, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, In Memoriam, Listeners' Favorites, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Opera in Translation, Orchestral Songs, Queer Pride, Richard Wagner, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Verismo, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAndrew Porter, Antal Dorati, Arnold Schoenberg, Arrigo Boito, Benvenuto Cellini, Beverly Sills, Bruno Bartoletti, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Don Giovanni, Don Pasquale, Donald Gramm, Donald Hassard, Edoardo Gimenez, Elyakum Shapirra, Eugene Istomin, Falstaff, Federico Davià, Fedora Barbieri, Fidelio, Francesco Petrarch, Friedrich Schiller, Gaetano Donizetti, George Shirley, Giacomo Puccini, Gianni Schicchi, Gioacchino Rossini, Giovacchino Forzano, Giuseppe Verdi, Hector Berlioz, Henry David Thoreau, Igor Stravinsky, Il Turco in Italia, James Hooper, Janice Felty, Jean Cocteau, Jean Fournet, John Duykers, John Edmunds, John LaMontaine, Jules Massenet, Karl Forster, Le Rossignol, Leonard Bernstein, Leonard Feeney, Lorenzo da Ponte, Ludwig van Beethoven, Manon (Massenet), Maria Stuarda, McHenry Boatwright, Montserrat Caballé, Ned Rorem, Norma, Oedipus Rex, Pamela South, Paul Bowles, Peter Strummer, Reri Grist, Richard Cumming, Richard Wagner, Robert Craft, Sarah Caldwell, Tennessee Williams, Theodore Chanler, Theodore Roethke, Thomas Schippers, Vincenzo Bellini, Walt Whitman, William Dansby, William Dooley, William Shakespeare, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

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I’m going all out (literally) for this year’s Pride celebrations, especially because the haters are out there in such force. Today I pay tribute to my fellow Milwaukeean, the marvelous bass-baritone Donald Gramm (1927-1983), one of the central house singers at both the Metropolitan Opera and New York City Opera from the 1960s through his premature death at the age of 56. Gifted with an intrinsically beautiful voice, an impeccable technique and an expansive range, he also was a crackerjack musician whose repertoire easily encompassed musical styles from florid Baroque music through the thorniest contemporary idioms. He is probably best celebrated these days for his commitment to American art song. This episode focuses on both his intrepid and thoughtful programming of such songs, as well as a cross-section of his achievements on the operatic stage. Though Gramm may not have been “out” by today’s standards, he lived his life unapologetically and is still remembered today for his exacting yet bountiful musicianship and voice. It’s a treat to revisit his legacy today.

Episode 365. Flying Down to Rio (Latin American Song II)

June 6, 2025Canadian Singers, Great Baritones, In Memoriam, Listeners' Favorites, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Orchestral Songs, Protest Songs, Queer Pride, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Young SingersAgainst the Grain Ensemble, Alberto Ginastera, Alejandro Casona, Alexander Sevastian, Ayre (Golijov), Barbara Allen, Biella Da Costa, Bomarzo, Brian Priestman, Cantata para América Mágica, Carlos López Buchardo, Carol Gimbel, Christian Baldini, Christopher Dylan Herbert, Dan Brantigan, Dan Wions, Dave Burns, David Grossman, Dawn Upshaw, Don Rodrigo, Elmer Ferrer, Emily Dickinson, Falling Out of Time (Golijov), Floro Melitón Ugarte, Francesco Ignazio Mannu, Franz Kafka, Gabriel Radford, Gino Nastrucci, Gisèle Ben-Dor, Gustavo Caraballo, Henri Djian, Henri Temianka, Hina Spani, Ilana Davidson, Jacques Demarny, James Baker, Jean Musy, Jered Egan, Jeremy Flower, Joanne Wu, Johnny Gandelsman, Jonathan Bagg, Juan Gabriel Olivares, Karen Ouzounian, Kathe Jarka, Kayhan Kalhor, Krastian Toczko, Laura Gilbert, Lúa Descolorida. Nadine Sierra, Manuel Mujica Lainez, Mazz Swift, Melchiorre Murenu, Mercedes de Toro, Milena, Miriam Khalil, Mónica Ferracani, Nicholas Cords, Nicole Croisille, Nora Fischer, Phyllis Curtin, Raphael Weinroth-Browne, Raquel Adonaylo, Rayanne Dupuis, Robert Spano, Roberto Occhipinti, Rosalía de Castro, Shane Shanahan, Shawn Conley, Silkroad Ensemble, Stefan Asbury, Todd Palmer, Virginia Tola, Wu Man, Wu Tongcountermelody

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Today is the second part of my Latin American orchestral song tribute. Last week we explored Villa-Lobos and Revueltas; today we devote ourselves to Argentina, and primarily two composers: Alberto Ginastera, and Osvaldo Golijov, in settings by writers as varied as Emily Dickinson, Rosalía de Castro, Manuel Mujica Lainez, David Grossman, Mercedes de Toro, Alejandro Casona, and Franz Kafka; performed by Hina Spani, Phyllis Curtin, Dawn Upshaw, Nadine Sierra, Virginia Tola, Mónica Ferracani, and Miriam Khalil, among others, alongside three artists (Rayanne Dupuis, Christopher Dylan Herbert, and Ilana Davidson) who happen to be friends and colleagues of mine. The episode begins with memorial tributes to iconic writer Edmund White and beloved French singer Nicole Croisille, both of whom died this week.

Episode 364. Grace Bumbry: Proud Soprano (Live Edition)

June 2, 2025African American Singers, Bel canto, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, French Opera, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Interview, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Richard Strauss, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century OperaAida, Amilcare Ponchielli, Anton Guadagno, Antonio García Gutiérrez, Antonio Ghislanzoni, Arrigo Boito, Auguste Mariette, Berislav Klobučar, Donato Renzetti, DuBose Heyward, Ernani, Eugène Scribe, Felice Romani, Francesco Maria Piave, Franco Corelli, Frank Little, Gaetano Donizetti, George Gershwin, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Giacosa, Giuseppe Patanè, Giuseppe Verdi, Grace Bumbry, Gregg Baker, Hedwig Lachmann, Il Trovatore, Ippolito Pindemonte, Ira Gershwin, James Levine, L’Africaine, Lorin Maazel, Louis Quilico, Luigi Illica, Michelangelo Veltri, Nabucco, Nello Santi, Norman Bailey, Oscar Wilde, Peter Maag, Porgy and Bess, Richard Strauss, Salome, Salvadore Cammarano, Shirley Verrett, Temistocle Solera, Tobio Gorria, Tosca, Victor Hugo, Victorien Sardoucountermelody

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It’s Pride Month, and what better time to focus on queer musical culture in all its various manifestations! As far back as I can remember, I have been an Opera Queen, and today I kick off our queer celebrations with the a tribute to one of our favorite divas, the late Grace Bumbry. The chutzpah that she demonstrated throughout her career found particularly thrilling manifestation when she began transitioning to soprano roles in the early 1970s. Always an intrepid singer, Bumbry had a confidence, a fearlessness that swept all before it. Sometimes her reach exceeded her grasp, but even so, the results were always breathtaking, more often than not in a good way. I am not going to make the tired claim that Bumbry should have remained a mezzo and that when she started singing soprano, she destroyed her instrument. This tired trope is belied by the evidence at hand, including an active singing career that lasted more than 60 years. A while back I did a version of this episode featuring her studio recordings of the soprano repertoire, but there’s a wild, abandoned quality to her soprano singing that is especially compelling in live recordings. So today I have sought out live performances captured on recordings between 1971 and 2007 (at a seventieth birthday concert) which reveal La Bumbarina at her most thrilling, including excerpts from Tosca, La Gioconda, Il Trovatore, Nabucco, Porgy and Bess, Ernani, L’Africaine, Aida, Salome, and Anna Bolena with such co-stars as Franco Corelli, Norman Bailey, Louis Quilico, and her beloved frenemy Shirley Verrett. If you love Grace, you don’t want to miss this episode.