Tag Archives: Lovro von Matačić

Episode 285. Edda Moser Reappraised

August 31, 2024Art Song, Comic Relief, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Great BaritonesAdelheid Wette, Bruno Weil, Christoph von Dohnányi, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Claudio Nicolai, Clemens von Brentano, Der fliegende Holländer, Die lustige Witwe, Die Zauberflöte, Edda Moser, Elektra, Emanuel Schikaneder, Engelbert Humperdinck, Ernst von Steigentesch, Eugen d’Albert, Euripedes, Franz Lehár, George Frideric Handel, Gerd Feldhoff, Hans Werner Henze, Hänsel und Gretel, Hedwig Lachmann, Heinrich Heine, Heinrich Hollreiser, Heinz Wallberg, Herbert Blomstedt, Hermann Hesse, Hermann Prey, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Ingeborg Bachmann, Iphigénie en Tauride, Irwin Gage, Ivan Törzs, János Kulka, Jean Dupouy, Jean-Claude Malgoir, Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, Joseph Sonnleithner, Kent Nagano, Leo Stein, Leonore (Beethoven), Lovro von Matačić, Ludwig van Beethoven, Milan Horvat, Nicola Francesco Haym, Nicolas-François Guillard, Oscar Wilde, Pagliacci, Peter Maag, Peter Schneider, Riccardo Muti, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Robert Hale, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Salome, Siegmund Nimsgern, Sophocles, Tannhäuser, Vier letzte Lieder, Viktor Léon, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozartcountermelody

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:32:57 — 114.1MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Spotify | TuneIn | RSS | More

Lately I have been doing a series of episodes on artists that in my opinion deserve a reassessment, a second glance, if you will. Edda Moser is almost universally regarded as the “best” Queen of the Night that ever walked the earth. Certainly she is the most ominous and menacing, as well as the most monumental of voice and delivery. But there is a false narrative surrounding Frau Moser that over the course of her career, she lost control of her voice and pursued a repertoire that destroyed her voice. In this episode, I plead exactly the opposite: that Moser moved naturally and with dedicated assurance into the heavier roles of Strauss and Wagner, and that her voice from its origins displayed affinity for these more dramatic parts. Some of Edda Moser’s earliest successes were in the stratospheric vocal compositions of Hans Werner Henze, in which she displayed a fearless and limitless virtuosity. During her long career, her roles spanned nearly the entire range of the soprano repertoire, everything from her supreme Mozart characterizations to Hanna Glawari to Nedda to Iphigénie to Senta to Salome. Recently, some late-career live recordings of Edda Moser have appeared on the landscape, and instead of recycling one of my two previous Moser episodes, I have selected choice tidbits from these recordings, as well as more readily available material, that show Moser in all facets of her artistry, focusing on the epic, perhaps, but not overlooking her delicacy, sensitivity, pathos, charm, and delicious sense of humor. Guest singers heard on the episode include some of the finest baritones active during this period, including Siegmund Nimsgern, Hermann Prey, Gerd Feldhoff, Claudio Nicolai, and Robert Hale. Conductors include Heinrich Hollreiser, Riccardo Muti, Herbert Blomstedt, Lovro von Matačić, Christoph von Dohnányi, Kent Nagano, and many others. Give this episode a listen and may find yourself agreeing with me that she is one of the supreme classical vocalists of the twentieth century.

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 236. Howard Hart Introduces Christa Ludwig (Listeners’ Favorites VII)

January 23, 2024African American Singers, Art Song, Bel canto, Broadway, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi, Gustav Mahler, Interview, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Opera in Translation, Orchestral Songs, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Schubert, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Wolfgang Amadeus MozartAlban Berg, Charles Spencer, Christa Ludwig, Cosi fan tutte, Das Lied von der Erde, Der Rosenkavalier, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Fidelio, Franz Schubert, Gioacchino Rossini, Gloria Davy, Gundula Janowitz, Gustav Mahler, Gwyneth Jones, Herbert von Karajan, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, Jonathan Alder, Karl Böhm, Karl Richter, La Cenerentola, Leonard Bernstein, Leopold Ludwig, Lohengrin, Lovro von Matačić, Ludwig van Beethoven, Reri Grist, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Victoria de los Angeles, Walter Berry, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Wozzeckcountermelody

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:47:22 — 110.1MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Spotify | TuneIn | RSS | More

My friend and fellow opera podcaster Howard Hart introduces the first of this week’s Listeners’ Favorites episodes, my 2021 tribute to the superb zwischenfach singer Christa Ludwig, who died nearly three years ago. Ludwig was a singer whose repertoire centered around the great German composers but who also sang Verdi and French repertoire with stunning results; a mezzo-soprano who was unparalleled in Wagner, Mahler, and Brahms, but who also sang the great soprano heroines of Richard Strauss; a Lieder singer of great perception and textual acuity whose supple technique nonetheless was centered on legato singing: the greatness of this artist simply cannot be overestimated. I focus on the key composers (Richard Strauss, Gustav Mahler, and Richard Wagner) and conductors (Karl Böhm, Herbert von Karajan, and Leonard Bernstein) with whom she was most closely associated, while also examining some roles that might surprise you: Cenerentola, Amneris and Marie in Wozzeck. Vocal guest stars include Gloria Davy, Victoria de los Ángeles, Reri Grist, Gundula Janowitz, Gwyneth Jones, and Ludwig’s one-time husband Walter Berry. Thank you, Howard, for lending your enthusiasm and passion to my podcast in your introduction of one of your (and my) favorite singers.

Episode 87. Christa Ludwig In Memoriam

May 2, 2021African American Singers, Art Song, Bel canto, Full-Figured Baroque, Giuseppe Verdi, Gustav Mahler, In Memoriam, Lieder, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Opera in Translation, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, SchubertAlban Berg, Charles Spencer, Christa Ludwig, Cosi fan tutte, Das Lied von der Erde, Der Rosenkavalier, Die Frau ohne Schatten, Fidelio, Franz Schubert, Gioacchino Rossini, Gloria Davy, Gundula Janowitz, Gustav Mahler, Gwyneth Jones, Herbert von Karajan, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes Brahms, Jonathan Alder, Karl Böhm, Karl Richter, La Cenerentola, Leonard Bernstein, Leopold Ludwig, Lohengrin, Lovro von Matačić, Ludwig van Beethoven, Reri Grist, Richard Strauss, Richard Wagner, Victoria de los Angeles, Walter Berry, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Wozzeckcountermelody

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:41:49 — 104.9MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Spotify | TuneIn | RSS | More

The world of singing sustained an enormous loss a week ago: the death of the great German singer Christa Ludwig on April 24 at the age of 93. A singer whose repertoire centered around the great German composers but who also sang Verdi and French repertoire with often stunning results; a mezzo-soprano who was unparalleled in Wagner, Mahler, and Brahms, but who also sang the great soprano heroines of Richard Strauss; a Lieder singer of great perception and textual acuity whose supple technique nonetheless centered on legato singing: the greatness of this artist simply cannot be overestimated. In this, the first of several episodes that, over the next few months, I will devote to one of my favorite singers, I focus on the key composers (Richard Strauss, Gustav Mahler, and Richard Wagner) and conductors (Karl Böhm, Herbert von Karajan, and Leonard Bernstein) with whom she was most closely associated, while also examining some roles that might surprise you: Cenerentola, Amneris and Marie in Wozzeck. Vocal guest stars include Gloria Davy, Victoria de los Ángeles, Reri Grist, Gundula Janowitz, Gwyneth Jones, and Ludwig’s one-time husband Walter Berry. A bonus Patreon episode published concurrently with this one explores Ludwig’s mastery in the field of Lieder.

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. 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 including artist photos and episode setlists. And please head to my 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.