Desider Matray (Tenor) (1872? - ?)

                                                             Tannhauser

He studied singing under Adolf Robinson in Vienna. He was engaged in the 1899-1901 seasons by the Opera House of  Leipzig. From 1901-03 he appeared at the Opera House of Dusseldorf, but  in 1903 performed as the first heroic tenor at the opera house of Wroclaw, to which he belonged till 1905. In the 1906-07 season and from 1909-10 he sang at the Court Theatre of Karlsruhe. In 1900 he appeared at the Berlin Hofper and at the German Theatre of Brunn (Brno), in 1901 he made guest appearance at the Opera House of Frankfurt a. M.. The Berlin chief conductor Michael Balling recommended him to appear at Bayreuth, and in 1904 he sang  at the Bayreuth Festival in ‘’Tannhäuser’’. Although he was of Hungarian descent, but he appeared only once, in 1905, as a guest at the Court Opera of Budapest. He seems to have returned later in his native Hungarian country, where Odeon records with Hungarian songs were taken up. Nevertheless, more precise details about his career were not to be determined. He is also to be found under the name Desider Matray-Novák.

Chronology of some appearances

1899-1901 Leipzig Opera House

1900 Brno German Theatre

1901 Frankfurt a. M Opera House

1901-1903 Dusseldorf Opera House

1903-1905 Wroclaw Opera House

1904 Bayreuth Festival

1906-1907 Karlsruhe Court Theatre

1909-1910 Karlsruhe Court Theatre

RECORDINGS FOR SALE

G&T Bayreuth, 1904

Tannhäuser (Wagner): Dir töne Lob  2-42924 1132e

Odeon, Hungary 1906?

Kossuth Lajos azt uzente (Czigany zene kiserettel) 35403 HX 1327-G

Juhászlegény, szegény juhászlegény (Czigany zene kiserettel) 35405 HX 1331-D