Forgotten Opera Singers

Forgotten Opera Singers

Jun 30, 2016

Edoardo Nicolicchia (Baritone) (? 1877 - ?)




Probably he made his debut in 1900 at the Teatro Garibaldi  in Trapani as Schaunard in ‘’La Boheme’’.

Chronology of some appearances

1901 Trapani  Teatro Garibaldi Boheme (Schaunard)
1902 Brescia  Teatro Grande Werther (Jokhaan)
1904 Pavia  Teatro Fraschini Boheme (Schaunard)
1906 Genova  Politeama Genovese Pagliacci (Silvio)
1908 Palermo  Teatro Massimo Ballo in maschera (Tom)
1910 Alessandria Teatro Verdi Wally (Pedone)
1912 Bologna  Teatro Del Corso Boheme (Schaunard)
1914  Milano  Teatro Del Popolo Wally (Pedone)
1917 Torino  Politeama Chiarella Tosca (Sagrestano)
1920 Badia  Polesine Politeama Piana Andrea Chenier (Mathieu)
1923 Milano  Teatro La Scala I Quattro Rusteghi (Cancian)
1928 Napoli  Teatro San Carlo I Quattro Rusteghi (Cancian)

RECORDINGS FOR SALE









Victrola, 1909-05-12
Boccaccio (Suppé): Donna amata (Serenata) with Badini 62747

Victrola 1909-05-14
Manon (Massenet): O dolor with Giorgini, Santoro & chorus  87083
















Hans Bechstein (Tenor) (München 1872, 17/7 - München 1943, 20/2)


                                                                                Mime


First he received his education as pianist as well as as an actor at the Academy of music in Munich and began his stage activity in 1893 at the Municipal Theater of Luzern as an actor. Then he appeared in Meiningen, Nuremberg and at the Gärtnerplatztheater in Munich (1899-1900), where he already began to appear as singer. Then he stuied singing in Munich and made his debut as singer at the  Stadttheater of Lübeck (1902-1903). Then he sang at the Hoftheater of Altenburg in Thuringia, in the 1907-1908 season at the Stadttheater of Mülhausen (Elsaß), in the 1908-1911 seasons at the Stadttheater of Bremen. He counted as one of the most significant tenors of character parts in Germany. His best part was Mime in Nibelungenring, which he sang more than 300 times at important international guest performances. He appeared as Mime in the 1907-1914 seasons at the Covent Garden in London. In 1922 he created the part of Mime during the first entire performance of the Ring Cycle at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He guested at the Hofopern in Dresden (1905) and Berlin (1909, as Mime), in Amsterdam (1908 as Steuermann in ‘’Fliegenden Holländer’’), at the Hoftheatern of Mannheim (1909) and Wiesbaden (1910), at the Teatro Real in Madrid and in 1922 at Rio de Janeiro. In 1913 he sang at the Covent Garden in the English première of the opera ‘’Colonel Chabert’’ of Waltershausen. The same year he formed in the première there of Richard Strauss’s ‘’Der Rosenkavalier’’ as Valzacchi. During the 1920’s he took part in an USA tour with appearances in Chicago and Philadelphia and was often to be heard at the Staatsoper in Munich. He also appeared as an operetta singer. He was active in Munich also in an educational area. Since 1933 he had to give up as a Jew in Germany his career.

Chronology of some appearances

1899-1900 Munich Gärtnerplatztheater
1902-1903 Lübeck Stadttheater
1907-1908 Mülhausen Stadttheater
1907-1914 London Covent Garden
1908-1911 Bremen Stadttheater
1912 Buenos Aires Teatro Colón

RECORDINGS FOR SALE









Parlophon, Berlin 1911-05?
Undine (Lortzing): Da lieg', du altes Mondgewehr P689
Nozze di Figaro (Mozart): In den Jahren P690
Rheingold (Wagner): Immer ist Undank Loges Lohn! P691
Siegfried (Wagner): Nun tobst du wieder wie toll P694


Emil Adami (Tenor) (Östra Nöbbelöv 1860, 8/2 -Täby, Stockholm 1938, 14/8)




After his education he made his debut in 1888 at the Royal Opera in Stockholm as Piféar in ‘’Si j'étais Roi’’ of A. Adam. Till 1891 he remained engaged by this opera house and during the following ten years he made guest appearances in other theaters, primarily in Stockholm and Gothenburg. Then from 1901  to 1917 he was a member of the Stockholm Opera again. At the beginning of his career he sang mostly lyric parts like Wilhelm Meister in ‘’Mignon’’ of A. Thomas and the Roméo in ‘’Roméo et Juliette’’ by C. Gounod, later he took over Buffo and character roles and appeared also in operettas (Pitou in ‘’La fille de Mme Angot’’ by Lecocq, Don Ranudo in ‘’Don Caesar’’ of R. Dellinger). He made only one record.

Chronology of some appearances

1888-1891 Stockholm Royal Opera
1901-1917 Stockholm Royal Opera

Jun 29, 2016

Augusto Vicentini (Tenor) (Verona, Italia 18. 06. 1926 - ?)


                                                                             Faust


Around 1930 he moved with his family to Legnago. After his education at the Schola  Cantorum di Legnago, he received the first recommendations by maestro Guido Stello and his wife, soprano Adelina Ambroso. Abandoned his university studies, he dedicated himself completely to the artistic activity. First he studied with maestro Ferruccio Cusinati, then with tenor Guido Ederle. On January 28, 1948 he made his debut at the Astra Theatre in Legnago in a Symphony concert. In 1953 he made his debut at the Nuovo in Milano in ‘’Tosca’’, which was a part of the school of La Scala, then he subsequently was engaged by the Italian and foreign theaters. On September 15, 1956 he appeared at the Teatro Salieri in Legnago in ‘’La Boheme’’ and ‘’La Traviata’’. That same year he made his debut at the Arena di Verona in ‘’Faust’’. In the 1973-1974 season he sang here in ‘’Aida’’, ‘’Un ballo in maschera’’, ‘’La Boheme’’ and ‘’Samson and Delilah’’.

Chronology of some appearances

1948 Legnago Astra Theatre
1953 Milano Nuovo
1956 Legnago Teatro Salieri
1973-1974 Verona Arena

RECORDINGS FOR SALE









Vienna State Opera, 1961
Traviata (Verdi): Un dì, felice with Elena Todeschi
Traviata (Verdi): Lunge da lei... De' miei bollenti spiriti
Traviata (Verdi): Parigi, o cara with Elena Todeschi


Fanchette Verhunk (Soprano) (1874 Ljubljana, Slovenia † Golnik, Slovenia 1944)


                                                                             Salome


She was a pupil of pedagogues J. Gänsbacher and Mancio in Vienna. In the 1897-1898 season she appeared at the Municipal Theater of Posen (Poznan) and was engaged in 1898 by the Opera House of Wroclaw, where she had a successful career. In 1901 she sang at the Bayreuth festival as Freia in "Rheingold". In 1903 she guested very successfully at the Vienna Court Opera in the title parts in A. Thoma’s ‘’Mignon’’ and ‘’Louise’’ of G. Charpentier. In 1901 she appeared at the Court Opera of Dresden, in 1902 at the Munich Court Opera. In 1907 she sang at the Vienna People's Opera the title part in ‘’Salome’’ by R. Strauss. Also she made guest appearances in Amsterdam and Budapest. In Wroclaw, where she was highly appreciated by the audience, in 1916 she gave a recital and retired from the stag in 1917. Since that time she worked as a pedagogue in Wroclaw. She was married the conductor Julius Prüwer (1874-1943), who was active after 1933 as a conductor of the orchestra of the Jewish cultural alliance in Berlin. In 1938 she lived in Frankfurt a. M., but returned to the Yugoslavia, where she and died in 1944.

Chronology of some appearances

1897-1898 Posen Municipal Theater
1898 Wroclaw Opera House
1901 Bayreuth festival
1901 Dresden Court Opera
1902 Munich Court Opera
1903 Vienna Court Opera
1907 Vienna People's Opera

RECORDINGS FOR SALE









Gramophone, Breslau 1908-02/03
Mignon (Thomas): Kennst du das Land? 2-43087  12434u
Contes d'Hoffmann (Offenbach): Schöne Nacht (Barcarole) with Neisch 2-44358  12435u

Odeon, Berlin 1911-05?
Aida (Verdi): Bald kommt Radamès X99533
Carmen (Bizet): Wenn dir die Karten einmal bitt'res X99528  xB4907