Tag Archives: Jussi Bjorling

Episode 312. John Reardon Revisited (World AIDS Day 2024)

December 2, 2024Art Song, Broadway, Crossover, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, In Memoriam, Interview, Listeners' Favorites, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Opera in Translation, Orchestral Songs, Queer Pride, Richard Strauss, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAdolph Green, Alan Jay Lerner, Alban Berg, Angiolo Poliziano, Anja Silja, Ariadne auf Naxos, Arrigo Boito, Arthur Siegel, Betty Comden, Beverly Sills, Beverly Wolff, Bliss Hebert, Carole Bogard, Cesare Siepi, Christoph von Dohnányi, Colette Collage, Denis Deal, Der Struwwelpeter, Erich Leinsdorf, Evelyn Lear, Fred Ebb, Frederic Waldman, George Frideric Handel, Giacomo Puccini, Gian Carlo Menotti, Giorgio Tozzi, Giuseppe Giacosa, Giuseppe Verdi, Harvey Schmidt, Heinrich Hoffmann, Henri Murger, Henry Butler, Herbert Grossman, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, James McCracken, James Pease, Janis Ian, Jo Sullivan, John Kander, John Reardon, Jorge Mester, Joseph Haydn, Judith Blegen, Judith Raskin, Jule Styne, Jussi Bjorling, Karl Paul Reichert, Kurt Weill, La Boheme, Lehman Engel, Leonard Bernstein, Lorenzo da Ponte, Luigi Illica, Lukas Foss, Maria Callas, Marvin David Levy, Otello, Paul Reif, Peter Herman Adler, Richard Hundley, Richard Strauss, Robert Merrill, Robert Sutherland, Sarah Caldwell, T.S. Eliot, The Rink, Thomas Beecham, Tom Jones, Vittorio Rieti, W.H. Auden, William Shakespeare, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Zubin Mehtacountermelody

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Yesterday was World AIDS Day and many of the people I admire and follow on various social media platforms made beautiful and heartfelt posts in commemoration of this day and all the many souls that have been lost over the decades to this hideous disease. I want to weigh in today with my own tribute: to the exceptional American baritone John Reardon, who died of this disease in 1988 at the age of 58. This is an expanded version of a bonus episode I published more than four years ago which constituted a deep exploration of his recorded legacy, in both live or studio recordings, of musical, opera (especially contemporary works), and art song. You’ll hear guest contributions from the two Judys, (Raskin and Blegen; sorry, no Garland today), as well as Jo Sullivan, Beverly Wolff, Anja Silja, Evelyn Lear, and James McCracken, conducted by Leonard Bernstein, Thomas Beecham, Sarah Caldwell, Erich Leinsdorf, Frederic Waldman, Lehman Engel, Jorge Mester, as well as that great stage director Bliss Hebert doing a guest turn tickling the ivories in two song cycles. If you listen extra closely, you may even hear a line or two from Beverly Sills, Robert Merrill, Cesare Siepi, and Jussi Björling! The episode also includes a birthday tribute to Maria Callas and, as a memorial to all who have succumbed to AIDS, “When Angels Cry,” a song by Janis Ian.

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 support at whatever level you can afford.

Episode 296. Dan’s Operatic Picks

October 8, 2024Art Song, Bel canto, Broadway, Claudia Muzio, Crossover, Eileen Farrell, Forgotten Divas, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Lieder, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Pop Icons, VerismoAdriana Lecouvreur, Aksel Schiotz, Alec Wilder, Alfred Bachelet, Alfredo Catalani, Alfredo Simonetti, Andrea Chénier, Andrée Esposito, Angela Lansbury, Antonino Votto, Carl Nielsen, Cesare Siepi, Chanson perpétuelle (Chausson), Charles Cros, Charles Gounod, Christian Morgenstern, Claudio Muzio, Daniel Beckwith, Daniel Gundlach, Don Carlo, Donald Pippin, Edith Mason, Eileen Farrell, Eleanor Steber, Elly Ameling, Ernest Chausson, Ettore Bastianini, Francesco Cilea, Franco Corelli, Franco Ferraris, Franz Lehár, Friedrich Schiller, Georg Solti, Georges Thill, Germaine Féraldy, Giacomo Puccini, Gioacchino Rossini, Giorgio Giorgetti, Giuseppe Verdi, Helmut Winschermann, Hermann Weigert, Hugo Hasslo, I Puritani, I vespri siciliani, Ian Partridge, Il barbiere di Siviglia, István Kertész, Jacques Offenbach, Jacques Prévert, James Quillian, Jean Morel, Jennifer Partridge, Jerry Herman, Johann Sebastian Bach, Jorma Hynninen, Joseph Kosma, Joseph-Étienne Szyfer, Jules Barbier, Jussi Bjorling, La Belle Helene, La Wally (Catalani), Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Loonis McGlohon, Lotte Lehmann, Lucia Popp, Madama Butterfly, Magda Olivero, Manon Lescaut, Maria Vitale, Mario Rossi, Nathaniel Shilkret, Nils Grevillius, Pierre Barbizet, Ralf Gothoni, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Riccardo Chailly, Riccardo Stracciari, Richard Crooks, Roméo et Juliette, Sándor Kónya, Sigmund Romberg, Susan Dunn, Svend Christian Felumb, The Desert Song (Romberg), Umberto Giordano, Victorien Sardou, Vincenzo Bellini, William Shakespeare, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Yrjö Kilpinencountermelody

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I’m still under the weather, but I can’t let that keep me from posting my usual Tuesday episode! Here is another recycled bonus episode, this one posted two years ago in honor of my birthday, which features some of my favorite singers. At that time I posted a brand new episode entitled “Dan’s Picks,” but many of the best selections ended up on the cutting room floor. That hurt my heart so much that I had no choice but to do a companion episode which features a number of things that were lacking from the main episode: first of all, more tenor goodness (Aksel Schiøtz, Franco Corelli, Sándor Kónya, Jussi Björling, Richard Crooks, Ian Partridge); second of all, more burly baritones (Jorma Hynninen, Ettore Bastianini, Riccardo Stracciari, and the lesser-known megawatt talent Hugo Hasslo). Also heard are a number of sopranos that have not received enough Countermelody airtime (Edith Mason, Maria Vitale, Andrée Esposito, Lucia Popp), as well as a number of favorites that we (I?) simply can’t get enough of: Muzio, Lehmann, Olivero, Farrell, Steber. I even set aside modesty to include a brief clip of me from a demo I recorded some time ago, back when I could still sing! Every selection in this episode is very dear to my heart; I hope you will enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed putting it together.

Episode 270. Eleanor Steber Revisited

July 5, 2024Art Song, Bel canto, Broadway, Crossover, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, In Memoriam, Lieder, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Opera in Translation, Operetta, Orchestral Songs, Queer Pride, Rescue Mission, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Singers in Old Age, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Verismo, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAl Goodman, Al Vann, Alexandre Dumas fils, Alfred Bachelet, Allen Rogers, Augustus Toplady, Barron Smith, Bernard Zaslav, Brian Sullivan, Buddy DeSylva, Carlo Gozzi, Carlo Zangarini, Cesare Sterbini, Charles Tomlinson Griffes, Claude Debussy, David Belasco, David Broekman, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Dimitri Mitropoulos, DuBose Heyward, Édouard Guinand, Edwin Biltcliffe, Eleanor Steber, Eugène Adénis-Colombeau, Francesco Maria Piave, Francis Scott Key, Frank Loesser, Frederick Flaxington Harker, Fritz Stiedry, George Gershwin, Giacomo Puccini, Gian Carlo Menotti, Giangiacom Guelfi, Gioachino Rossini, Giovanni Battista Guarini, Giuseppe Adami, Giuseppe Verdi, Guelfo Civinini, Hector Berlioz, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Hugo Wolf, Igor Kipnis, Il barbiere di Siviglia, Ira Gershwin, James Melton, Jean-Philippe Rameau, John Stafford Smith, Juan López de Úbeda, Jussi Bjorling, L’enfant prodigue, La Fanciulla del West, La Traviata, Les nuits d’été, Lilla Kalman, Lohengrin, Maytime (Romberg). Harold Barlow, Nelson Eddy, Oklahoma!, Oscar Hammerstein II, Paul Heyse, Pembroke Davenport, Pierre Beaumarchais, Porgy and Bess, Renato Simoni, Richard Rodgers, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Rida Johnson Young, Robert K. Evans, Robert Katscher, Rosalind Elias, Rupert Brooke, Samuel Barber, Sigmund Romberg, Sonya Monsoff, Spanisches Liederbuch, Sterling Hunkins, Théophile Gautier, Thomas Hastings, Turandot, Vanessa (Barber), Where’s Charley?, Wilfrid Pelletier, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

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I sat in my apartment in Berlin on the Fourth of July wondering how, after the events of this past Monday, I can possibly pay tribute to our nation as it “celebrated” its birthday. Then it hit me: since I would never in a million years produce an episode of patriotic musical material, why not pay tribute to a great American singer instead? I had already been planning an upcoming bonus episode on ELEANOR STEBER, the singer I consider to be one of the greatest (if not the greatest) soprano that our country has ever produced! Nearly two years ago, with the help of my dear friend Michelle Oesterle, who was Eleanor’s step-daughter, I produced an episode dedicated to her; today’s episode will not delve so much into the (still-controversial) person that Eleanor was, but rather offer a cross-section, over the course of more than 40 years, of the wide variety of styles and repertoire in which Steber excelled. Who else could traverse a range of repertoire from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Mozart, Rameau to Wagner, Berlioz to Romberg with such ease and joyful authority? Not only do I explore her longevity, I explore her unparalleled prowess as a vocal technician; as well as her well-documented bad treatment by the Metropolitan Opera and its then-general manager, Rudolf Bing. I also look at the recordings that Steber and her then-husband, Michelle’s father, produced on their own ST/AND label in the early sixties, and then hear Steber sing some quintessentially American music from classic musicals. Along the way, I consider some serious topics, including betrayal, alcoholism, and the power of embedded memory. Finally, I consider the possibility that Eleanor Steber’s celebrated portrayal of Minnie in La fanciulla del West might just offer a possible solution for the divisiveness and political turmoil in which our country currently finds itself. Featured guest singers on the episode include Nelson Eddy, Brian Sullivan, Rosalind Elias, and Jussi Björling; musical collaborators include Dimitri Mitropoulos, Igor Kipnis, Allen Rogers, Fritz Stiedry, and her frequent concert and radio collaborators Howard Barlow and Edwin Biltcliffe.

Episode 233 – Dusty Pörn Introduces Eleanor Steber (Listeners’ Favorites IV)

January 10, 2024Art Song, Bel canto, Broadway, Crossover, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Tenors, Interview, Listeners' Favorites, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Opera in Translation, Operetta, Orchestral Songs, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, Verismo, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAlban Berg, Alexandre Dumas, Arabella, Astrid Varnay, Cosi fan tutte, David Belasco, Der Rosenkavalier, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Dusty Pörn, Edwin Biltcliffe, Eleanor Steber, Enzo Viaro, Eric Coates, Ernani, Fausto Cleva, Frederick Weatherly, Fritz Busch, Fritz Stiedry, Georg Büchner, George London, Giuseppe Antonicelli, Giuseppe di Stefano, Howard Barlow, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, I Puritani, Il Trovatore, James A. Bland, James Agee, Jean Madeira, Joseph Keilberth, Jussi Bjorling, Karl Böhm, La Fanciulla del West, La Traviata, Lohengrin, Madama Butterfly, Mario del Monaco, Max Rudolf, Naughty Marietta, Nicholas Harsanyi, Percy Faith, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Risë Stevens, Royden Barrie, Rudolf Kempe, Samuel Barber, Victor Herbert, Victor Hugo, Vincenzo Bellini, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Wozzeckcountermelody

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Today’s subject is Eleanor Steber, certainly one of the greatest and most versatile of American sopranos. She is introduced by one of the most recent (and most colorful) of all of my listeners, the San Francisco-based drag artiste (and vocalist extraordinaire) Dusty Pörn. In this very special episode, which I first posted in the summer of 2022 in honor of Steber’s 108th birthday, musical selections from across the duration of Steber’s long career, are supplemented by the generous and loving commentary of my friend, singer and conductor Michelle Oesterle, who was Eleanor’s stepdaughter. As such Michelle spent time (especially in the summer months) with her father and Eleanor at Melodie Hill, Eleanor’s estate on Long Island. She provides us with an unparalleled intimate portrait of Eleanor as woman and as singer and describes the profound influence that Eleanor had in her life, as well as the characteristics that combined to make her the profoundly appealing and moving interpreter that she was. She also addresses the white elephant in the room, that is, Eleanor’s alcoholism, and makes a plea for tolerance and understanding vis-à-vis this serious disease. Many thanks to both Dusty and Michelle for their loving and perceptive tributes to this greatest of singers and artists.

Episode 153. Eleanor Steber I

July 15, 2022Bel canto, Broadway, Crossover, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, Happy Birthday, Interview, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Opera in Translation, Operetta, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Twentieth Century MusicAlban Berg, Alexandre Dumas, Arabella, Astrid Varnay, Cosi fan tutte, David Belasco, Der Rosenkavalier, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Edwin Biltcliffe, Eleanor Steber, Enzo Viaro, Eric Coates, Ernani, Fausto Cleva, Frederick Weatherly, Fritz Busch, Fritz Stiedry, Georg Büchner, George London, Giuseppe Antonicelli, Giuseppe di Stefano, Howard Barlow, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, I Puritani, Il Trovatore, James A. Bland, James Agee, Jean Madeira, Joseph Keilberth, Jussi Bjorling, Karl Böhm, La Fanciulla del West, La Traviata, Lohengrin, Madama Butterfly, Mario del Monaco, Max Rudolf, Naughty Marietta, Nicholas Harsanyi, Percy Faith, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Risë Stevens, Royden Barrie, Rudolf Kempe, Samuel Barber, Victor Herbert, Victor Hugo, Vincenzo Bellini, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Wozzeckcountermelody

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July 17 is the 108th birthday of Eleanor Steber, surely one of the all-time greatest singers that the United States has ever produced (as well as one of the most versatile and technically-accomplished!) In long overdue Countermelody tribute to this exceptional artist, I present the first of two very special episodes honoring Eleanor. After the “usual” career overview featuring mostly live highlights from her operatic appearances all over the world, I turn the stage (or in this case the mic), over to my dear friend Michelle Oesterle, founder and conductor of the Manhattan Girls Chorus, who was also Eleanor Steber’s stepdaughter. As such she spent time (especially in the summer months) with her father and Eleanor at Melody Hill, Eleanor’s estate on Long Island. She provides us with an unparalleled intimate portrait of Eleanor as woman and as singer and describes the profound influence that Eleanor had in her life, as well as the characteristics that combined to make her the profoundly appealing and moving interpreter that she was. She also addresses the white elephant in the room, that is, Eleanor’s alcoholism, and makes a plea for tolerance and understanding vis-à-vis this serious disease. The Steber tribute will continue with a further episode sometime in the next month. For now, let us raise our glasses (of sparkling mineral water), in tribute to this phenomenal artist, the like of which we will never see again. Musical selections range from Victor Herbert to Alban Berg and everything in between. Thank you, Michelle, and evviva Eleanor!

Episode 53. Justice (In Memoriam RBG)

September 20, 2020African American Singers, Bel canto, Eileen Farrell, Giuseppe Verdi, In MemoriamAmilcare Ponchielli, Antonino Votto, Arlene Saunders, Barbara Hendricks, Bernard Haitink, Beverly Sills, Brigitte Fassbaender, Bruno Bartoletti, Carlo Felice Cillario, Carlos Kleiber, Carol Neblett, Cesare Siepi, Christiane Eda-Pierre, Der Rosenkavalier, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Don Giovanni, Eileen Farrell, Elisabeth Grümmer, Elisabeth Soderstrom, Ettore Bastianini, Fernando Corena, Fidelio, Franco Corelli, Georg Solti, Giacomo Puccini, Gianpiero Mastromei, Giuseppe Verdi, Götterdämmerung, Gottlob Frick, Gwyneth Jones, Il Trovatore, Jessye Norman, Jussi Bjorling, Kenneth Collins, La Boheme, La Fanciulla del West, La forza del destino, La Gioconda, Le nozze di Figaro, Leonard Warren, Leontyne Price, Leopold Simoneau, Lisa Della Casa, Lucia Popp, Ludwig van Beethoven, Margaret Price, Maria Callas, Max Rudolf, Renata Tebaldi, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Rita Streich, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Victor de Sabata, Walter Berry, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

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I awoke Saturday morning in Berlin to the apocalyptic news that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had died. Once again a crisis in the United States has prompted me to quickly put together a different episode than originally planned. The late Justice Ginsburg was a particular lover of opera, and so I have decided to showcase some of her favorite operas and performers. We will hear extended scenes from La Gioconda, Le nozze di Figaro, Der Rosenkavalier, Otello, Don Giovanni, La Fanciulla del West, Fidelio, Götterdämmerung, and others in performances featuring favorite singers of hers, including Jussi Björling. Renata Tebaldi, Leontyne Price, Franco Corelli, and Cesare Siepi. Other featured singers are Gottlob Frick, Fernando Corena, Margaret Price, Leonard Warren, Arlene Saunders, Carol Neblett, Gianpiero Mastromei, Beverly Sills, Gwyneth Jones, Lucia Popp, Brigitte Fassbaender, Christiane Eda-Pierre, Elisabeth Söderström, Eileen Farrell, among many others. The episode also incorporates a memorial tribute to Maria Callas on the 43rd anniversary of her death, and to Jessye Norman on what would have been her 75th birthday.

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.” Occasional guests from the “business” (singers, conductors, composers, coaches, and teachers) lend their distinctive insights. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please visit the Countermelody website (www.countermelodypodcast.com) for additional content. And please head to our Patreon page at www.patreon.com/countermelody to pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available only to Patreon supporters are currently available!

Episode 50. Rogue Tenors (Crossover Classics VI)

August 30, 2020African American Singers, CrossoverAgustín Lara, Ah Sweet Mystery of Life, Al Dubin, Ay ay ay, Beniamino Gigli, Boudleaux and Faye Bryant, Bronislau Kaper, Camille Nickerson, Carlo Bergonzi, Cesare Andrea Bixio, Charles Kullman, Charles Marshall, Dermot Macmurrough, Erich Korngold, Ernesto de Curtis, Fernando de Lucia, Francisco Araiza, Franco Corelli, Fritz Wunderlich, Gene Pitney, Georges Thill, Granada, Hans May, Harry Warren, Hello Mary Lou, Irving Berlin, James Melton, Jan Kiepura, Javier Camarena, Jerry Hadley, John McCormack, Joseph Schmidt, Júrame, Jussi Bjorling, Knut O.W. Almroth, Lao Silésu, Lauritz Melchior, Lennon & McCartney, Leonello Casucci, Love Hurts, Macushla, Mamma, Marcel Wittrisch, María Grever, Miguel Fleta, Oh What a Beautiful Mornin’, Osmán Pérez Freire, Paolo Tosti, Peter Hofmann, René Kollo, Richard Crooks, Richard Tauber, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Roland Hayes, Sammy Fain, Schöner Gigolo [Just a Gigolo], September in the Rain, Tandy MacKenzie, Tito Schipa, Tu ca non chiagne, W.J. Coelho, What’ll I Do?, Yesterdaycountermelody

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Our crossover series continues, this time with a full episode dedicated to more than a century of great tenors singing crossover material, beginning in 1902 with Fernando de Lucia’s recording of “Serenata” by Paolo Tosti . Along the way we observe the evolution of the genre from Victorian ballads through Neapolitan songs and Spanish-tinged material (you have not lived until you have heard Fritz Wunderlich sing “Granada”!); from folk songs and musicals to international film theme songs and popular rock hits. Other featured singers include John McCormack, Richard Crooks, Charles Kullman, Tito Schipa, Carlo Bergonzi, Franco Corelli, Miguel Fleta, Jussi Björling, Roland Hayes, Tandy MacKenzie, Francisco Araiza, Joseph Schmidt, Beniamino Gigli, Marcel Wittrisch, Georges Thill, Richard Tauber, Jan Kiepura, James Melton, Lauritz Melchior, René Kollo, Peter Hofmann, Javier Camarena, and Jerry Hadley. Today’s episode is pure escapism, until you find yourself weeping at the unexpected beauty and pathos of it all.

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.” Occasional guests from the “business” (singers, conductors, composers, coaches, and teachers) lend their distinctive insights. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please visit the Countermelody website (www.countermelodypodcast.com) for additional content. And please head to our Patreon page at www.patreon.com/countermelody to pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available only to Patreon supporters are currently available!

Episode 3. Creating Magic, Interview with Nicholas Tamagna, Part 2

October 6, 2019InterviewAkhnaten, Alpha Classics, Arrigo Boito, Arthur Johnston, As long as he needs me, Atlantic Starr, Au mont Ida, Backlash Blues, Bagdad Cafe, Benjamin Britten, Bidu Sayao, Billie Holiday, Calling You, Carnegie Hall, Cesare Siepi, Charles Gounod, Clori Tirsi e Fileno, Daniel Gundlach, Don Carlo, Edvard Grieg, Elisabeth Rethberg, Elisabeth Soderstrom, Emil Cooper, Faust, Franz Schubert, Frederick Schauwecker, Gabriela Benackova, George Frideric Handel, Georgia Brown, Giuseppe Verdi, Hector Berlioz, Hilde Güden, Hilde Gueden, Ich habe genug, Indianapolis Opera, Jacques Offenbach, Janet Baker, János Ferencsik, Jean Morel, Jean Sibelius, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johnny Burke, Judy Garland, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Jussi Bjorling, La Belle Helene, Le Poeme Harmonique, Leather and Lace, Les Troyens, Lionel Bart, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Ludwig van Beethoven, Maria Vitale, Mefistofele, Nicholas McGegan, Nicholas Tamagna, Nina Simone, Oliver!, Pennies from Heaven, Peter Lieberson, Phaedra, Philharmonia Baroque, Philip Glass, Porter Carroll Jr., Reviewing the Situation, Richard Strauss, Rigoletto, Robert Merrill, Roger VIgnoles, Roméo et Juliette, Samuel Ramey, San Francisco Opera, Teddy Wilson, Thelma Votipka, Theodora, Un ballo in maschera, Vera Zorina, Verve Records, Vincent Dumestre, Who will buycountermelody

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In the second part of our interview Nicholas discusses his early experiences with music, names three of his favorite singers, and riffs further on the themes of language and communication. Musical excerpts include a performance by Leather and Lace, the rock group that featured Nicholas’s mother and aunts, and Nicholas’s youthful stage performances as Oliver and Fagin in the musical Oliver! Nicholas is also featured in recordings of Henry Purcell and Philip Glass and we also include performances by Maria Vitale, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Jussi Björling, and Nina Simone.

Countermelody is a new podcast devoted to the glories of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great classical and opera singers of the past and present with the help of guests from the classical music field: singers, conductors, composers, coaches, agents, and voice teachers. 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 interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please also visit the Countermelody website for updates, additional content, and to pledge your support. www.countermelodypodcast.com