JULIUS LIEBAN (LUNDENBURG, MÄHREN, 19 FEBRUARY, 1857 – BERLIN, GERMANY, 1 FEBRUARY, 1940)
He was the son of a Jewish cantor who worked in various locations, including Brno. Three of his brothers—Adalbert, Adolf, and Siegmund Lieban—also pursued careers as singers. At the age of 14, he left home and initially supported himself as a violinist in a Gypsy band, later joining the orchestra of the Theater an der Wien in Vienna. He subsequently studied singing with Joseph Gänsbacher in Vienna.
In 1878, he made his stage debut at the Opera House in Leipzig, where he remained until 1881. During his time there, he created the role of Jakob in the premiere of Viktor Nessler’s opera Der Rattenfänger von Hameln (1879). Initially performing as a baritone, he sang roles such as Rigoletto and Count di Luna in Il Trovatore.
He transitioned to tenor buffo roles and gained international fame, particularly as Mime in Wagner’s Ring cycle. In 1882–1883, he participated in Angelo Neumann’s traveling Wagner theater tour, earning high praise, including commendation from Richard Wagner himself, who considered him the finest Mime he had ever heard. Despite this acclaim, he was never invited to perform at Bayreuth.
From 1882 to 1912, he was a celebrated member of the Berlin Court Opera (later the Staatsoper). He premiered numerous works there, including Moritz Moszkowski’s Boabdil (1892), Wilhelm Kienzl’s Don Quixote (1892) and Heilmar, der Narr (1902), and Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Roland von Berlin (1904). He also sang in the Berlin premiere of Puccini’s Madame Butterfly (1907).
In 1910, he appeared at the Salzburg Mozart Festival as Monostatos in Die Zauberflöte. From 1912 to 1915, he performed at the Städtische Oper in Berlin, participating in the 1914 premiere of Ignatz Waghalter’s Mandragola.
Even after retiring, he made a notable return to the Berlin Staatsoper on his 75th birthday, reprising his iconic role as Mime. He later taught singing in Berlin, counting among his students Ejnar Forchhammer, Peter Cornelius, Albert Reiss, and Mafalda Salvatini.
He was married to soprano Helene Lieban-Globig (1866–1916), a soloist at the Berlin Court Opera. Remarkably, despite being Jewish, he survived the Nazi era.
TRACKLIST
Siegfried (Wagner) Er sinnt und erwägt (w. Kraus) 044288 850m Gramophone, Berlin 1915-0506
Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini) Sieh’ schon die Morgenröte 116 Lyrophon, Berlin 1905
Boccaccio (Suppé) Wie Gott will, ich halt still 942760 18623L Gramophone, Berlin 1916-07
Carmen (Bizet) Halt, zwischen den Felsen vergilt (w. Destinn, Nast, Dietrich, Parbs, Jörn, Bachmann, Krasa & chorus) 044103 0839v Gramophone, Berlin 1908-10-17
Carmen (Bizet) Hola, Carmen, hola (w. Destinn, Dietrich, Parbs, Jörn, Krasa, Dahn & chorus) 044100 0844v
Carmen (Bizet) Kommt herein (w. Metzger, Dietrich, Parbs & Krasa) 044098 900i Gramophone, Berlin 1908-11-17
Chanson de Fortunio (Offenbach) Was ich so tief und heimlich trage 8558 Beka, Berlin 1906-09
Der Schweinehirt (Schwedisches Volkslied) 2-42533 1509x G&T, Berlin 1903
Fledermaus (Strauss) Dialog, act 1 (w. Herzog) 41971, 3037r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Fledermaus (Strauss) Glücklich ist, wer vergisst (w. Herzog) 2-44213 3012r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Fledermaus (Strauss) Ich stehe voll Zagen (w. Herzog & Philipp) 2-44220, 3015r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Fledermaus (Strauss) Mein schönes grosses Vogelhaus (w. Herzog & Arnold) 2-44215 3014r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Hans Sachs (Lortzing) Die Schusterzunft bleibt immer noch 3-42792 2962r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Mikado (Sullivan) Bachstelzenlied 3-42820, 2959r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Orphée aux Enfers (Offenbach) Als ich einst Prinz war von Arkadien 3-42819 2958r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Schäfers Sonntagslied (Kreutzer) (w. Adalbert, Siegmund & Adolf Lieban, as Lieban Quartett) 679 Lyrophon, Berlin 1905
Siegfried (Wagner) Sieh’, du bist müde (w. Kraus) 044289, 851m Gramophone, Berlin 1915-0506
Undine (Lortzing) Im Wein liegt Wahrheit (w. Adolf Lieban) 3-44101 1584ak Gramophone, Berlin 1912-10-08
Undine (Lortzing) Was mag das für ein Ding wohl sein 3-42793, 2961r G&T, Berlin 1907-0507
Zar und Zimmermann (Lortzing) Sonst spielt’ ich mit Zepter 253 a Lyrophon
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