Anna Reynolds (singer)
Encyclopedia
Anna Reynolds is an English classical mezzo-soprano
and contralto
singer in opera and concert.
. She continued her voice studies with Debora Fambri and Re Koster in Rome, where she adopted Anna as her stage name.
Reynolds made her operatic debut in 1960 in Parma as Suzuki in Puccini's Madama Butterfly
. Her debut in England was in 1962 as Geneviève in Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande
at Glyndebourne
, and she also sang there the roles of Ortensia (La pietra del paragone
, 1964) and Annina (Der Rosenkavalier
, 1965). In 1963 she performed the part of the Angel in Edward Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius
in London, conducted by Sir John Barbirolli
. Her first appearance at Covent Garden
in London was in 1967, Adelaide in Richard Strauss's Arabella, and returned in 1975 for Andromache in Michael Tippett's King Priam
.
Reynolds first sang at the Metropolitan Opera
in 1968-9, as Flosshilde in Wagner's Das Rheingold
, and she returned in the 1975 Ring cycle
as Fricka in Das Rheingold and Die Walküre
, and Waltraute and the Second Norn in Götterdämmerung
. At the Bayreuth Festival
, she first appeared in 1970 as Fricka in Die Walküre
and sang regularly through 1976. Also in 1970 she first performed at the Salzburg Festival
in the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen
, conducted by Herbert von Karajan
.
Reynolds recorded in 1958 Bach's Magnificat
and Actus Tragicus
with Hermann Scherchen
conducting Orchestra Sinfonica e Coro di Milano della RAI
. With Lorin Maazel
conducting the RIAS-Kammerchor and the Berlin Radio-Symphonie Orchester, she recorded in 1965 Bach's Mass in B minor with Teresa Stich-Randall
, Ernst Haefliger
and John Shirley-Quirk
, and in 1966 Bach's Easter Oratorio
with Helen Donath
, Haefliger and Martti Talvela
. She recorded several Bach cantata
s with Karl Richter, the Münchener Bach-Chor
and the Münchener Bach-Orchester, including in 1972 Jesus schläft, was soll ich hoffen? BWV 81, with Peter Schreier
and Theo Adam
She participated in Leonard Bernstein
's renditions of Gustav Mahler
's symphonies, his Das Lied von der Erde
and other Lied
er. She premiered John Tavener's dramatic cantata The Whale at a Proms concert on 1 August 1969, conducted by David Atherton
, with soloists Raimund Herincx
and Alvar Liddell and the composer playing pipe
and hammond organ
s. She also participated in its recording.
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
and contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
singer in opera and concert.
Professional career
Ann Reynolds first studied piano, then voice at the Royal Academy of MusicRoyal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
. She continued her voice studies with Debora Fambri and Re Koster in Rome, where she adopted Anna as her stage name.
Reynolds made her operatic debut in 1960 in Parma as Suzuki in Puccini's Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
. Her debut in England was in 1962 as Geneviève in Debussy's Pelléas et Mélisande
Pelléas et Mélisande (opera)
Pelléas et Mélisande is an opera in five acts with music by Claude Debussy. The French libretto was adapted from Maurice Maeterlinck's Symbolist play Pelléas et Mélisande...
at Glyndebourne
Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an English opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England.-History:...
, and she also sang there the roles of Ortensia (La pietra del paragone
La pietra del paragone
La pietra del paragone is an opera, or melodramma giocoso, in two acts by Gioachino Rossini, to an original Italian libretto by Luigi Romanelli.-Performance history:...
, 1964) and Annina (Der Rosenkavalier
Der Rosenkavalier
Der Rosenkavalier is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel Les amours du chevalier de Faublas by Louvet de Couvrai and Molière’s comedy Monsieur de Pourceaugnac...
, 1965). In 1963 she performed the part of the Angel in Edward Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius
The Dream of Gerontius
The Dream of Gerontius, popularly called just Gerontius, is a work for voices and orchestra in two parts composed by Edward Elgar in 1900, to text from the poem by John Henry Newman. It relates the journey of a pious man's soul from his deathbed to his judgment before God and settling into Purgatory...
in London, conducted by Sir John Barbirolli
John Barbirolli
Sir John Barbirolli, CH was an English conductor and cellist. Born in London, of Italian and French parentage, he grew up in a family of professional musicians. His father and grandfather were violinists...
. Her first appearance at Covent Garden
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
in London was in 1967, Adelaide in Richard Strauss's Arabella, and returned in 1975 for Andromache in Michael Tippett's King Priam
King Priam
King Priam is an opera by Michael Tippett, to his own libretto. The story is based on Homer's Iliad, except the birth and childhood of Paris, which are taken from the Fabulae of Hyginus.The premiere was on 29 May 1962, at Coventry...
.
Reynolds first sang at the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
in 1968-9, as Flosshilde in Wagner's Das Rheingold
Das Rheingold
is the first of the four operas that constitute Richard Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen . It was originally written as an introduction to the tripartite Ring, but the cycle is now generally regarded as consisting of four individual operas.Das Rheingold received its premiere at the National Theatre...
, and she returned in the 1975 Ring cycle
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
as Fricka in Das Rheingold and Die Walküre
Die Walküre
Die Walküre , WWV 86B, is the second of the four operas that form the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen , by Richard Wagner...
, and Waltraute and the Second Norn in Götterdämmerung
Götterdämmerung
is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four operas titled Der Ring des Nibelungen...
. At the Bayreuth Festival
Bayreuth Festival
The Bayreuth Festival is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th century German composer Richard Wagner are presented...
, she first appeared in 1970 as Fricka in Die Walküre
Die Walküre
Die Walküre , WWV 86B, is the second of the four operas that form the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen , by Richard Wagner...
and sang regularly through 1976. Also in 1970 she first performed at the Salzburg Festival
Salzburg Festival
The Salzburg Festival is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer within the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart...
in the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
, conducted by Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan was an Austrian orchestra and opera conductor. To the wider world he was perhaps most famously associated with the Berlin Philharmonic, of which he was principal conductor for 35 years...
.
Reynolds recorded in 1958 Bach's Magnificat
Magnificat (Bach)
The Magnificat in D major, BWV 243, is a major vocal work of Johann Sebastian Bach. It was composed for orchestra, a five-part choir and four or five soloists. The text is the canticle of Mary, mother of Jesus, as told by Luke the Evangelist .Bach composed an initial version in E flat major in 1723...
and Actus Tragicus
Actus Tragicus
Actus Tragicus, sometimes credited as Actus Comics or simply Actus, is a group of five Israeli comics artists founded in 1995 by Rutu Modan and Yirmi Pinkus...
with Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen was a German conductor.-Life:Scherchen was originally a violist and played among the violas of the Bluthner Orchestra of Berlin while still in his teens...
conducting Orchestra Sinfonica e Coro di Milano della RAI
RAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...
. With Lorin Maazel
Lorin Maazel
Lorin Varencove Maazel is an American conductor, violinist and composer.- Early life :Maazel was born to Jewish-American parents in Neuilly-sur-Seine in France and brought up in the United States, primarily at his parents' home in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood. His father, Lincoln Maazel , was...
conducting the RIAS-Kammerchor and the Berlin Radio-Symphonie Orchester, she recorded in 1965 Bach's Mass in B minor with Teresa Stich-Randall
Teresa Stich-Randall
Teresa Stich-Randall was a European-based American soprano opera singer.-Biography:Teresa Stich-Randall was born in New Hartford, Connecticut in 1927 and studied at The Hartt School in West Hartford....
, Ernst Haefliger
Ernst Haefliger
Ernst Haefliger was a Swiss tenor.Haefliger was born in Davos, Switzerland and studied at the Zürich Conservatory. He studied with Fernando Capri in Geneva and Julius Patzak in Vienna....
and John Shirley-Quirk
John Shirley-Quirk
John Shirley-Quirk CBE is an English bass-baritone.He was born in Liverpool, England, and sang in his high school choir. He played the violin and was awarded a scholarship. While studying chemistry and physics at Liverpool University, he studied voice with Austen Carnegie...
, and in 1966 Bach's Easter Oratorio
Easter Oratorio
The Easter Oratorio , BWV 249, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, Kommt, eilet und laufet , first performed in Leipzig in 1725.- History :...
with Helen Donath
Helen Donath
Helen Jeanette Donath is an American soprano with a career spanning fifty years.- Biography :She was born in Corpus Christi, Texas and studied at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi and with Paola Novikova in New York....
, Haefliger and Martti Talvela
Martti Talvela
Martti Talvela was a Finnish operatic bass.Born in Hiitola, Finland , he studied in Lahti and Stockholm, and made his operatic debut in Helsinki in 1960 as Sparafucile. At , he was the tallest singer of his century. He trained as a boxer in his youth and developed the stamina necessary for the...
. She recorded several Bach cantata
Bach cantata
Bach cantata became a term for a cantata of the German Baroque composer Johann Sebastian Bach who was a prolific writer of the genre. Although many of his works are lost, around 200 cantatas survived....
s with Karl Richter, the Münchener Bach-Chor
Münchener Bach-Chor
Münchener Bach-Chor is a mixed choir for concert and oratorio in Munich. Performances, international tours and recordings with Karl Richter and the Münchener Bach-Orchester made the choir internationally known.- Heinrich-Schütz-Kreis :...
and the Münchener Bach-Orchester, including in 1972 Jesus schläft, was soll ich hoffen? BWV 81, with Peter Schreier
Peter Schreier
Peter Schreier is a German tenor and conductor.-Early life:Schreier was born in Meissen, Saxony, and spent his first years in the small village of Gauernitz, near Meissen, where his father was a teacher, cantor and organist...
and Theo Adam
Theo Adam
Theo Adam is a distinguished German classical bass-baritone who had an active international career in operas, concerts, and recitals from the 1940s through the 1990s. He particularly excelled in portraying roles from the operas of Richard Wagner...
She participated in Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
's renditions of Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler was a late-Romantic Austrian composer and one of the leading conductors of his generation. He was born in the village of Kalischt, Bohemia, in what was then Austria-Hungary, now Kaliště in the Czech Republic...
's symphonies, his Das Lied von der Erde
Das Lied von der Erde
Das Lied von der Erde is a large-scale work for two vocal soloists and orchestra by the Austrian composer Gustav Mahler...
and other Lied
Lied
is a German word literally meaning "song", usually used to describe romantic songs setting German poems of reasonably high literary aspirations, especially during the nineteenth century, beginning with Carl Loewe, Heinrich Marschner, and Franz Schubert and culminating with Hugo Wolf...
er. She premiered John Tavener's dramatic cantata The Whale at a Proms concert on 1 August 1969, conducted by David Atherton
David Atherton
David Atherton OBE, is an English conductor.-Background:Atherton was born in Blackpool, Lancashire in a musical family. He was educated at Blackpool Grammar School. His father, Robert Atherton, was the Music Master at St Joseph's College, Blackpool and was also a conductor...
, with soloists Raimund Herincx
Raimund Herincx
Raimund Frederick Herincx is a British operatic bass baritone. Throughout a varied international career, Herincx performed in most of the world's great opera houses and with many of the world's leading symphony orchestras, having been in demand in international opera and in the choral and...
and Alvar Liddell and the composer playing pipe
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
and hammond organ
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
s. She also participated in its recording.
External links
- Entries for recordings by Anna Reynolds on WorldCatWorldCatWorldCat is a union catalog which itemizes the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories which participate in the Online Computer Library Center global cooperative...