Tag Archives: Maureen Lehane

Episode 405. Rescue Mission (Belated Birthday Edition)

October 24, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Bel canto, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Giuseppe Verdi, Great Baritones, Great Contraltos, Great Tenors, Johann Sebastian Bach, Lieder, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Pop Icons, Queer Pride, Richard Strauss, Singers in Old Age, Singers of Color, Sylvia Sass, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century OperaAdam Mickiewicz, Adolphe Jaime, Aida, Alec Wilder, Alexander Pushkin, Allen Rogers, Andrzej Hiolski, Ángel de Saavedra, Angelo Anelli, Antonino Votto, Antonio Ghislanzoni, Apollon Maykov, April Cantelo, Auguste Mariette, Borislav Ivanov, Carol Neblett, Charles Baudelaire, Charles Wadsworth, Claude Debussy, Dalton Baldwin, Dave Wolpe, David Rendall, Die Zauberflöte, Don Giovanni, Elly Ameling, Emanuel Schikaneder, Ernest Lush, Ethel Ennis, Étienne Tréfeu, Francesco Maria Piave, François Coppée, Franz Schreker, Fryderyk Chopin, Fulvio Vernizzi, Gabriele Ferro, Geneviève de Brabant, Gerard Souzay, Gioachino Rossini, Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti, Giuseppe Verdi, Gladys Shelley, Gloria Davy, Guido Menasci, Hector Crémieux, Heinrich Schütz, Helmuth Rilling, Hermann Schroeder, Ilse Wolf, Jacques Offenbach, Jennie Tourel, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johannes-Passion, John Pritchard, Karl Friedrich Henckell, Klaus Martin Ziegler, L’italiana in Algeri, La forza del destino, Lorenzo da Ponte, Malcolm Williamson, Marcel Cariven, Margaret Marshall, Maureen Lehane, Milton Kaye, Morty Palitz, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Peter Maag, Pietro Mascagni, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Richard Strauss, Robert Louis Stevenson, Robert Massard, Rosanna Carteri, Sarah Reese, Sergiusz Nadgryzowski, Shannon Bolin, Stuart Burrows, Sylvia Sass, Temistocle Solera, Veronica Tyler, William Engvick, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Zanettocountermelody

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Today’s episode is the latest installment in my series entitled “Rescue Mission,” which reintroduces great singers who have already been featured on the podcast. This is the Belated Birthday edition of that series, which reintroduces us to a wide range of Countermelody favorites, including jazz singer Ethel Ennis; baritones Robert Massard, Gérard Souzay, and Andrzej Hiolski; sopranos Sylvia Sass (pictured), Veronica Tyler, April Cantelo, Elly Ameling, Gloria Davy, Margaret Marshall, Rosanna Carteri, Sarah Reese, Ilse Wolf, and Carol Neblett; mezzo-sopranos Jennie Tourel, Maureen Lehane, and Shannon Bolin; and tenors David Rendall and Stuart Burrows. The repertoire is as varied and rare as are the artists featured, including songs by Rimsky-Korsakov, Chopin, Malcolm Williamson, and Alec Wilder; opera arias by Schreker, Mozart, Mascagni, and Verdi; and selections by Bach and Schütz. I love doing this kind of episode, because it allows me to cast my net wide and share with you the kinds of singers and repertoire that are bringing me comfort and joy in these trying times.

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 author 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 378. Rescue Mission III (Friends Edition)

July 21, 2025African American Singers, Art Song, Bel canto, Black History Month, Black History Month 2025, Broadway, Canadian Singers, Crossover, Forgotten Divas, French Opera, Full-Figured Baroque, Giacomo Puccini, Great Baritones, Great Contraltos, Great Tenors, Happy Birthday, Honor Your Mentors, In Memoriam, Johann Sebastian Bach, Lieder, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, NYCO Divas, Opera in Translation, Pop Icons, Queer Pride, Rescue Mission, Schubert, Singers of Color, Spirituals, Twentieth Century Music, Twentieth Century Opera, VerismoAlessandro Cerè, Annabelle Bernard, Anne Wiggins Brown, April Cantelo, Barbara Wimunc, Béatrice Uria-Monzon, Carlo Gozzi, Carlo Zangarini, Carol Neblett, Cesar Franck, Charles Wadsworth, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, Colin Davis, David Belasco, Denise Duval, Die schöne Müllerin, Du Bose Heyward, Ed Spanjaard, Édouard Blau, Eleanor Steber, Émile Belcourt, Émile Deschamps, Emmanuel Bondeville, Ernest Ragogini, Eugen Jochum, Eugène Scribe, Franco Corelli, Franz Schubert, Frederick Marshall, George Gershwin, George Shirley, Gérard de Nerval, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Giacomo Puccini, Gioachino Rossini, Giuseppe Adami, Gloria Davy, Guelfo Civinini, Hector Berlioz, Heinrich Hollreiser, Helen Watts, Humbert Ferrand, Ira Gershwin, James Demster, Jan Behr, Jerry Hadley, Johan Hye-Knudsen, Johann Sebastian Bach, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, John Fletcher, John Williams, Jorma Hynninen, La Fanciulla del West, Leonard Bernstein, Les francs-juges (Berlioz), Lois Marshall, Mario Rossi, Mass in b minor, Massimo de Bernart, Maureen Lehane, Maurice Jacquemot, Michel Plasson, Ottorino Respighi, Paul Collin, Peter Pears, Porgy and Bess, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Rébecca (Franck), Rédemption (Franck), Renato Simoni, Robert Merfeld, Sandra Warfield, Sarah Caldwell, Sarah Reese, Semirâma, Stephen Sondheim, Tancredi, Turandot, Valerie Masterson, Veronica Tyler, Voltaire, West Side Story, Wilhelm Müller, William Parker, Yevdokya Rostopchinacountermelody

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Even after I publish a Countermelody episode on a favorite singer, I continue to collect material on them, which I then occasionally fold into a potpourri episode of vocal and musical delights. I have dubbed such episodes part of my “Rescue Mission” series and I’m tempted to call today’s episode I’m tempted to call “Friend Edition” (even though there are several good friends I’ve made in recent years who are not represented today). Be that as it may, I do love putting out such episodes, especially as it gives new listeners some idea of the range and depth of the podcast, and the joys of dipping into Countermelody’s back catalogue. For today’s episode I spread the net particularly wide, and in some cases went way back into my archives so present you with some rarities which I have programmed in such a way to take us from the despair and confusion that many of us are feeling right now into a place of both resolution and resolve to keep holding on and fighting for what is right. Today’s setlist includes many Countermelody favorites: tenors George Shirley, Peter Pears, and Jerry Hadley; baritones William Parker and Jorma Hynninen, mezzo-soprano Maureen Lehane; and sopranos Eleanor Steber, Carol Neblett, Sarah Reese, Anne Wiggins Brown, Veronica Tyler, Annabelle Bernard, Denise Duval, Lois Marshall, Gloria Davy, and April Cantelo; with appearances by other great singers who have not yet been featured in full episodes, including Franco Corelli, Sandra Warfield, Helen Watts, Émile Belcourt, Valerie Masterson, and, in memoriam, Béatrice Uria-Monzon. We hear music from César Franck, Ottorino Respighi, Johann Sebastian Bach, Giacomo Puccini, Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky, Franz Schubert, George Gershwin, Gioachino Rossini, Leonard Bernstein, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, Emmanuel Bondeville, and Giacomo Meyerbeer. As always, queer artists and artists of color are prominently featured, as one of my objectives in producing this podcast is to foreground such historical artists as essential to our growth and self-awareness. If you’re just getting to know the podcast, this is as good a place to start as anywhere!

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 374. Maureen Lehane Sings Bach

July 7, 2025Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Contraltos, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle DropBarry McDaniel, Eigel Kruttke, Gerhard Wilhelm, Gisbert Schneider, Günther Höller, Helmut Hucke, Helmut Kahlhöfer, Hermann Schroeder, Johann Sebastian Bach, Kurt Thomas, Maureen Lehane, Rudolf Pohl, Wilhelm Ehmancountermelody

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Today’s episode offers music of consolation, divinely sung. On a Sunday morning back in December, freshly arrived back in New York from a challenging trip to my home state of Wisconsin, I sat down to a cup of coffee and began playing a setlist that I had created in the aftermath of my “Great Contraltos Sing Bach” episode a few weeks before. This setlist was comprised of arias from Bach cantatas sung by the British contralto Maureen Lehane (18 September 1932 – 27 December 2010) which I had discovered on YouTube as part of a huge cache of Bach cantata recordings from German radio, many of which featured Lehane as the alto soloist. I was thrilled to find such a treasure trove, since during the preparation of that episode, Lehane had stood out for her impeccable diction and fluid vocal technique, which served her equally well in recitative, cantilena, and coloratura. As I listened to that setlist and contemplated the texts, I realized that these recordings needed to be shared. I have chosen fourteen of the very finest of those recordings and am presenting them today to all who are seeking to make some kind of sense of the world in its current chaos. May the voice of Maureen Lehane singing the music of Bach provide you with a momentary oasis of order and beauty. A biographical sketch of Lehane rounds out the episode.

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 291. A Bevy of Bachian Contraltos

September 22, 2024African American Singers, Forgotten Divas, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Contraltos, Listeners' Favorites, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle DropAafje Heynis, Antonio Janigro, Benjamin Britten, Bernard Greenhouse, Bernardette Greevy, Brigitte Fassbaender, Carol Smith, Christa Ludwig, Claudia Hellmann, Diethard Hellmann, Elly Ameling, Erich Itor Kahn, Franz Holetschek, Fritz Werner, Germaine Cernay, Hans Heintze, Hans Thamm, Helen Watts, Helmut Hucke, Helmuth Kahlhöfer, Helmuth Rilling, Hermann Sauter, Hilde Rössel-Majdan, Janet Baker, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Newmark, John O’Sullivan, Karl Richter, Kathleen Ferrier, Kurt Thomas, Madeleine Berkeley, Marga Höffgen, Margarethe Bence, Marian Anderson, Martha Angelici, Maureen Forrester, Maureen Lehane, Maurice Wilk, Millicent Silver, Noélie Pierront, Norma Procter, Richard Harand, Robert Bloomcountermelody

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This week I pull out all the Baroque stops (appropriately enough), to present you with an episode chock full of contraltos, all singing the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. I have chosen 28 different contraltos, active between the late 1930s and the early 2000s, who excelled in the singing and interpretation of this most spiritual, and most genius, of composers. I am dividing this episode into two separate segments, the first of which I present here, a group of singers which includes such legendary historical figures as Kathleen Ferrier and Marian Anderson, and Christa Ludwig, as well as such exceptional voices from the Americas as Maureen Forrester and Carol Smith; and, from the continent, Aafje Heynis, Germaine Cernay, Brigitte Fassbaender, Hilde Rössel-Majdan, Claudia Hellmann, Marga Höffgen, and Margarethe Bence. These women are joined by a further a group of British contraltos and mezzo-sopranos, each with distinctive and exceptional approaches to the music of Bach, including Helen Watts, Norma Procter, Maureen Lehane (for me, the big discovery of the week), and of course Janet Baker, beloved to all of us. I also pay tribute to a select group of exceptional Kapellmeister including Karl Richter, Helmuth Kahlhöfer, Fritz Werner, Kurt Thomas, and Hans Thamm, who thrived in recordings and live performances from the 1950s and beyond. If certain favorite names of yours are missing from this week’s setlist, no worries: they may well appear on next week’s episode, which continues to combine Bachian expressive profundity with plummy contralto depths.

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 140. Universal Passion

April 14, 2022African American Singers, Art Song, Behind the Iron Curtain, Canadian Singers, Full-Figured Baroque, Great Baritones, Holiday Music, In Memoriam, Lieder, Mezzo Madness, Music for a World in Crisis Series, Needle Drop, Schubert, Singers of Color, Twentieth Century Music, Voiceless WondersAdele Addison, Alexander Young, Andrzej Hiolski, Arvo Pärt, August Wenzinger, Barthold Heinrich Brockes, Benjamin Luxon, Brockes-Passion (Handel), Christus am Ölberge (Beethoven), Daniel Pinkham, Das Marienleben, David Willison, Edda Moser, Eduard Mörike, Elzbieta Szmytka, Eric Tappy, Erich Itor Kahn, Ernst Haefliger, Eugen Jochum, Eugene Ormandy, Florence Quivar, Francis Poulenc, Franco Caracciolo, François Couperin, Frank Martin, Franz Crass, Franz Schubert, Friedrich Schlegel, George Frideric Handel, Georges Pretre, Gilbert Kalish, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Golgotha (Martin), Gundula Janowitz, Hannu Holma, Hans-Joachim Rotzsch, Heinrich Schütz, Henryk Czyz, Herbert von Karajan, Hugo Wolf, Hugues Cuenod, Irmgard Seefried, Irwin Gage, Jan DeGaetani, Jennie Tourel, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Shirley-Quirk, Jorma Hynninen, Judith Raskin, Jukka Vaari, Julius Baker, Karol Szymanowski, Kristina Boerger, Krzysztof Penderecki, Leçons de Ténèbres, Lotte Lehmann, Ludwig van Beethoven, Lukas-Passion (Penderecki), Maria Stader, Maria Triptychon (Martin), Marie-Lise de Montmollin, Matthäus-Passion, Maureen Lehane, Meriel Dickinson, Muriel Smith, Passio (Pärt), Paul Hindemith, Peter Pears, Peter Schreier, Philippe Huttenlocher, Pierre Mollet, Rainer Maria Rilke, Regine Crespin, Richard Lewis, Robert Bloom, Robert Faller, Robert Shaw, Roger Norrington, Rolf Apreck, Rudolf Jürgen Bartsch, Rudolf Mauersberger, Simon Rattle, Spanisches Liederbuch (Wolf), Spirituals, St. John Passion, Stabat Mater (Pergolesi), Stabat Mater (Poulenc), Stabat Mater (Szymanowski), Tauno Satomaa, Teppo Lampela, Theo Adam, Topi Tuuli Lindeberg, Wally Stämpfli, Walter Berry, Wolfgang Schneiderhancountermelody

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For Christians, this week is probably the most central to the theology of their faith, focusing as it does on the story of the Passion of the Christ. My dear friend, the choral conductor and singer Kristina Boerger posted a fascinating meditation this week about her “complicated” relationship with this theology, and how the performance of music for Holy Week over the years has given her insight into some universal tenets about human nature and behavior. She very kindly agreed to read her essay for me to use as the basis of this week’s podcast, which features music written for, and associated with, the Passion. Composers featured include, from the Baroque era, Couperin, Schütz, Handel, and Bach (with Pergolesi right on the cusp); from the 19th century, Beethoven, Schubert, and Wolf; and from the 20th century, Hindemith, Szymanowski, Poulenc, Penderecki, Frank Martin, and Arvo Pärt. Featured singers include Régine Crespin, Irmgard Seefried, Peter Schreier, Gundula Janowitz, Richard Lewis, Florence Quivar, Andrzej Hiolski, Judith Raskin, Jorma Hynninen, Margaret Marshall, Benjamin Luxon, Muriel Smith, Walter Berry, Edda Moser, and Adele Addison, plus further encounters with several of the Swiss singers we explored last week (Hugues Cuénod, Maria Stader, Eric Tappy, Pierre Mollet, and Ernst Haefliger). Whether you are Christian, agnostic, atheist, Muslim, Jew, or fall into a different category altogether, there will be something here for you of value in this episode.

The Countermelody podcast is 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. Bonus episodes available exclusively to Patreon supporters are currently available and further bonus content including interviews and livestreams is planned for the upcoming season.