Helen Jepson
Encyclopedia
Helen Jepson was an American
lyric soprano
noted for being a "stunning blond beauty" as well as for her voice.
She was born in Titusville, Pennsylvania
on November 28, 1904 and raised in Akron, Ohio
, where she studied voice performed in high school operatic productions. She attended the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia on scholarship and there sang with the Philadelphia Civic Opera Company
and formed a four singer group called "The Mississippi Misses", traveling "6,000 miles in 12 weeks giving concerts in 87 towns".
Her professional success accelerated in Philadelphia leading to a move to New York City
with her husband, flautist
George Poselle. Her career in radio began in 1933 with a performance with the Hamburger Symphony Orchestra conducted by Philip James
. The broadcast was only local to New Jersey
. She would later perform on the radio with bandleaders Paul Whiteman
and Rudy Vallee
also. She was selected as Most Important New Air Personality of 1934".
Her radio broadcasts attracted the attention of the Metropolitan Opera
and her debut there was in John Laurence Seymour
's one-act opera In the Pasha's Garden. Her husband also found employment at the Met. She sang lead soprano with the Metropolitan Opera from 1935 to 1941. Some of her best known roles while at the Met include Desdemona (Othello) and Marguerite (Faust
). The Faust recording is still in print, as is her recording of Porgy and Bess
; she was the first soprano to record in that role, and the extant recording of her
was supervised by Gershwin
himself.
Jepson's attempt to move into Hollywood
was unsuccessful, although it did expose her to wider audiences. Her only film role was 1938's unsuccessful The Goldwyn Follies
, in which she sang "The Brindisi" from Verdi's La Traviata
, Enrico Toselli
's "La Serenata", the Gershwins' "Love Walked In", and "Sempre Libre". Paramount
offered her further work, but as filmed opera never proved successful, the deal never came to fruition.
Later on Helen Jepson and George Poselle were divorced and she married Walter Dellera, son of Ricardo Dellera, a conductor and voice coach for the Metropolitan Opera. Jepson then became a resident of Closter, New Jersey
. She and Walter had one son, Ricardo (Rick) Dellera who died in 2006.
In later life, Jepson attended Seton Hall University
and acquired a degree in speech therapy. She worked for the school district in Monmouth County, New Jersey
as a speech therapist for children. When she retired she and Walter Dellera moved to Bradenton, Florida where she was very active with the Bradenton Opera Guild.
She died in Bradenton, Florida
on September 16, 1997, aged 92.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lyric soprano
Lyric soprano
A lyric soprano is a type of operatic soprano that has a warm quality with a bright, full timbre which can be heard over an orchestra. The lyric soprano voice generally has a higher tessitura than a soubrette and usually plays ingenues and other sympathetic characters in opera. Lyric sopranos have...
noted for being a "stunning blond beauty" as well as for her voice.
She was born in Titusville, Pennsylvania
Titusville, Pennsylvania
Titusville is a city in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 6,146 at the 2000 census. In 1859, oil was successfully drilled in Titusville, resulting in the birth of the modern oil industry.-History:...
on November 28, 1904 and raised in Akron, Ohio
Akron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
, where she studied voice performed in high school operatic productions. She attended the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia on scholarship and there sang with the Philadelphia Civic Opera Company
Philadelphia Civic Opera Company
The Philadelphia Civic Opera Company was an American opera company located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that was actively performing between 1924 and 1930. Founded by Philadelphia socialite Mrs. Henry M. Tracy, the company was established partially through funds provided by the city of...
and formed a four singer group called "The Mississippi Misses", traveling "6,000 miles in 12 weeks giving concerts in 87 towns".
Her professional success accelerated in Philadelphia leading to a move to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
with her husband, flautist
Flautist
A flautist or flutist is a musician who plays an instrument in the flute family. See List of flautists.The choice of "flautist" versus "flutist" is the source of dispute among players of the instrument...
George Poselle. Her career in radio began in 1933 with a performance with the Hamburger Symphony Orchestra conducted by Philip James
Philip James
Philip James was an American composer, conductor and music educator.Note: Composer and shakuhachi player Phil James is listed as Phil Nyokai James.-Life:...
. The broadcast was only local to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. She would later perform on the radio with bandleaders Paul Whiteman
Paul Whiteman
Paul Samuel Whiteman was an American bandleader and orchestral director.Leader of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s, Whiteman's recordings were immensely successful, and press notices often referred to him as the "King of Jazz"...
and Rudy Vallee
Rudy Vallée
Rudy Vallée was an American singer, actor, bandleader, and entertainer.-Early life:Born Hubert Prior Vallée in Island Pond, Vermont, the son of Charles Alphonse and Catherine Lynch Vallée...
also. She was selected as Most Important New Air Personality of 1934".
Her radio broadcasts attracted the attention of 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...
and her debut there was in John Laurence Seymour
John Laurence Seymour
John Laurence Seymour was an American composer and playwright. He studied composition with Ildebrando Pizzetti and Felice Boghen in Italy between 1923 and 1928. He also studied with Vincent d'Indy in France...
's one-act opera In the Pasha's Garden. Her husband also found employment at the Met. She sang lead soprano with the Metropolitan Opera from 1935 to 1941. Some of her best known roles while at the Met include Desdemona (Othello) and Marguerite (Faust
Faust (disambiguation)
Faust is the protagonist of a popular German tale who makes a pact with the Devil; the tale is the basis of many works.- Works based on the tale of Faust :The name may may refer to one of these notable works of art based on the tale:- Literature :...
). The Faust recording is still in print, as is her recording of Porgy and Bess
Porgy and Bess
Porgy and Bess is an opera, first performed in 1935, with music by George Gershwin, libretto by DuBose Heyward, and lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward. It was based on DuBose Heyward's novel Porgy and subsequent play of the same title, which he co-wrote with his wife Dorothy Heyward...
; she was the first soprano to record in that role, and the extant recording of her
Highlights from Porgy and Bess
Highlights from Porgy and Bess, the 1935 album of George Gershwin's opera, was recorded just days after Porgy and Bess opened on Broadway on October 10, 1935. While the opera was performed by an all-African American singing cast, the 1935 album featured mostly white opera singers attempting...
was supervised by Gershwin
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
himself.
Jepson's attempt to move into Hollywood
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
was unsuccessful, although it did expose her to wider audiences. Her only film role was 1938's unsuccessful The Goldwyn Follies
The Goldwyn Follies
The Goldwyn Follies is a 1938 Technicolor film written by Ben Hecht, Sid Kuller, Sam Perrin and Arthur Phillips, with music by George Gershwin, Vernon Duke, and Ray Golden, and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. Some sources credit Kurt Weill as one of the composers, but this is apparently incorrect...
, in which she sang "The Brindisi" from Verdi's La Traviata
La traviata
La traviata is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La dame aux Camélias , a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The title La traviata means literally The Fallen Woman, or perhaps more figuratively, The Woman...
, Enrico Toselli
Enrico Toselli
Enrico Toselli was an Italian pianist and composer. He studied the piano with Giovanni Sgambati and composition with Giuseppe Martucci and Reginaldo Grazzini. At a very early age he started on a brilliant career as a concert pianist in Italy, the principal European capitals and also in Alexandria...
's "La Serenata", the Gershwins' "Love Walked In", and "Sempre Libre". Paramount
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
offered her further work, but as filmed opera never proved successful, the deal never came to fruition.
Later on Helen Jepson and George Poselle were divorced and she married Walter Dellera, son of Ricardo Dellera, a conductor and voice coach for the Metropolitan Opera. Jepson then became a resident of Closter, New Jersey
Closter, New Jersey
Closter is a Borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 8,373. After the turn of the century, Closter changed from being sprawling estates and farms into a middle and upper middle class suburban town...
. She and Walter had one son, Ricardo (Rick) Dellera who died in 2006.
In later life, Jepson attended Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University is a private Roman Catholic university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan university in the United States. Seton Hall is also the oldest and largest Catholic university in the...
and acquired a degree in speech therapy. She worked for the school district in Monmouth County, New Jersey
Monmouth County, New Jersey
Monmouth County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, within the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 630,380, up from 615,301 at the 2000 census. Its county seat is Freehold Borough. The most populous municipality is Middletown Township with...
as a speech therapist for children. When she retired she and Walter Dellera moved to Bradenton, Florida where she was very active with the Bradenton Opera Guild.
She died in Bradenton, Florida
Bradenton, Florida
Bradenton is a city in Manatee County, Florida, United States. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's 2007 population to be 53,471. Bradenton is the largest Principal City of the Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2007 estimated population of 682,833...
on September 16, 1997, aged 92.