Ludwig Suthaus
Encyclopedia
Ludwig Suthaus was a German
opera singer ("Heldentenor"
), who was born in Cologne
and died in West Berlin
.
's apprentice when his singing talents were first discovered. He subsequently started his voice studies at the age of 17 in his hometown of Cologne. His teacher, Julius Lenz, originally mistook him for a baritone
, but in 1928 Suthaus debuted as a tenor in Aachen
in the role of Walther von Stolzing in Richard Wagner
's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
. From 1932 to 1941, he was engaged in Stuttgart
, but was fired in 1942 because he would not join the Nazi party.
Suthaus subsequently got a new contract at the Berlin State Opera
, the management of which didn't seem to mind the missing party membership. After the war, in 1949, he switched from the State Opera - now based in East Berlin
- to the "Städtische Oper"
which was based in West Berlin, and remained a member of that company until the end of his career.
Since the end of the forties Suthaus appeared regularly at the Vienna State Opera
and as guest at the Royal Opera House
Covent Garden
, London
, La Scala
, Milan
, in Paris
, Stuttgart, the Bavarian State Opera
in Munich, in San Francisco
and at Hamburg State Opera
.
Beginning in 1943, he regularly appeared at the Bayreuth Festival
where he sang Loge in "Das Rheingold
", Siegmund in Die Walküre
and Walther von Stolzing in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
, which was recorded (1943), Hermann Abendroth
conducting.
Suthaus was one of Wilhelm Furtwängler
's favorite singers toward the end of his life. With Furtwängler, Suthaus recorded Tristan und Isolde
(1952); Der Ring des Nibelungen
as Siegfried (1953); and Die Walküre
as Siegmund (1954) (Furtwängler's last opera recording).
He had to quit his career suddenly after a car accident, and died at only 64 years.
, but sounded slightly coarse and melancholic. He was never a youthful hero, but gave his best performances when he sang broken characters. In his time he was not as widely appreciated as his contemporaries Günther Treptow
, Max Lorenz or Ramón Vinay
.
Today, his performance as Tristan in the Furtwängler recording is considered one of the best on record, next to those of Melchior, Windgassen and Jon Vickers
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
opera singer ("Heldentenor"
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
), who was born in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
and died in West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
.
Biography
Ludwig Suthaus was a stonemasonStonemasonry
The craft of stonemasonry has existed since the dawn of civilization - creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone from the earth. These materials have been used to construct many of the long-lasting, ancient monuments, artifacts, cathedrals, and cities in a wide variety of cultures...
's apprentice when his singing talents were first discovered. He subsequently started his voice studies at the age of 17 in his hometown of Cologne. His teacher, Julius Lenz, originally mistook him for a baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
, but in 1928 Suthaus debuted as a tenor in Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
in the role of Walther von Stolzing in Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg is an opera in three acts, written and composed by Richard Wagner. It is among the longest operas still commonly performed today, usually taking around four and a half hours. It was first performed at the Königliches Hof- und National-Theater in Munich, on June 21,...
. From 1932 to 1941, he was engaged in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, but was fired in 1942 because he would not join the Nazi party.
Suthaus subsequently got a new contract at the Berlin State Opera
Berlin State Opera
The Staatsoper Unter den Linden is a German opera company. Its permanent home is the opera house on the Unter den Linden boulevard in the Mitte district of Berlin, which also hosts the Staatskapelle Berlin orchestra.-Early years:...
, the management of which didn't seem to mind the missing party membership. After the war, in 1949, he switched from the State Opera - now based in East Berlin
East Berlin
East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city...
- to the "Städtische Oper"
Deutsche Oper Berlin
The Deutsche Oper Berlin is an opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, Germany. The resident building is also home to the Berlin State Ballet.-History:...
which was based in West Berlin, and remained a member of that company until the end of his career.
Since the end of the forties Suthaus appeared regularly at the Vienna State Opera
Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera is an opera house – and opera company – with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. It is located in the centre of Vienna, Austria. It was originally called the Vienna Court Opera . In 1920, with the replacement of the Habsburg Monarchy by the First Austrian...
and as guest at the Royal Opera House
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...
Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, in Paris
Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...
, Stuttgart, the Bavarian State Opera
Bavarian State Opera
The Bavarian State Opera is an opera company based in Munich, Germany.Its orchestra is the Bavarian State Orchestra.- History:The opera company which was founded under Princess Henriette Adelaide of Savoy has been in existence since 1653...
in Munich, in San Francisco
San Francisco Opera
San Francisco Opera is an American opera company, based in San Francisco, California.It was founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola and is the second largest opera company in North America...
and at Hamburg State Opera
Hamburg State Opera
The Hamburg State Opera is one of the leading opera companies in Germany.Opera in Hamburg dates back to 2 January 1678 when the "Opern-Theatrum" was inaugurated with a performance of a biblical Singspiel by Johann Theile...
.
Beginning in 1943, he regularly appeared 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...
where he sang Loge in "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...
", Siegmund 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 Walther von Stolzing in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg is an opera in three acts, written and composed by Richard Wagner. It is among the longest operas still commonly performed today, usually taking around four and a half hours. It was first performed at the Königliches Hof- und National-Theater in Munich, on June 21,...
, which was recorded (1943), Hermann Abendroth
Hermann Abendroth
Hermann Paul Maximilian Abendroth was a German conductor.-Early life:Abendroth was born on 19 January 1883, at Frankfurt, Germany, belonging to a family which had already produced other artistic figures of divers disciplines...
conducting.
Suthaus was one of Wilhelm Furtwängler
Wilhelm Furtwängler
Wilhelm Furtwängler was a German conductor and composer. He is widely considered to have been one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. By the 1930s he had built a reputation as one of the leading conductors in Europe, and he was the leading conductor who remained...
's favorite singers toward the end of his life. With Furtwängler, Suthaus recorded Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
(1952); 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...
as Siegfried (1953); 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...
as Siegmund (1954) (Furtwängler's last opera recording).
He had to quit his career suddenly after a car accident, and died at only 64 years.
Voice
Ludwig Suthaus's voice did not have the radiance and vocal energy of Lauritz MelchiorLauritz Melchior
Lauritz Melchior was a Danish and later American opera singer. He was the pre-eminent Wagnerian tenor of the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, and has since come to be considered the quintessence of his voice type.-Biography:...
, but sounded slightly coarse and melancholic. He was never a youthful hero, but gave his best performances when he sang broken characters. In his time he was not as widely appreciated as his contemporaries Günther Treptow
Günther Treptow
Günther Treptow was a German operatic tenor, best known for Wagner roles.Treptow began his vocal studies at the Berlin Musikhochschule, and later in Milan with Giovanni Scarmeo. Treptow was a member of the SA and Nazi Party until the discovery in 1934 of his mother's Jewish heritage...
, Max Lorenz or Ramón Vinay
Ramón Vinay
Ramón Vinay was a famous Chilean operatic tenor with a powerful, dramatic voice. He is probably best remembered for his appearances in the title role of Giuseppe Verdi's tragic opera Otello....
.
Today, his performance as Tristan in the Furtwängler recording is considered one of the best on record, next to those of Melchior, Windgassen and Jon Vickers
Jon Vickers
Jonathan Stewart Vickers, CC , known professionally as Jon Vickers, is a retired Canadian heldentenor.Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, he was the sixth in a family of eight children. In 1950, he was awarded a scholarship to study opera at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto...
.
Recordings
- WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
, Die Meistersinger von NürnbergDie Meistersinger von NürnbergDie Meistersinger von Nürnberg is an opera in three acts, written and composed by Richard Wagner. It is among the longest operas still commonly performed today, usually taking around four and a half hours. It was first performed at the Königliches Hof- und National-Theater in Munich, on June 21,...
, Paul SchöfflerPaul SchöfflerPaul Schöffler was a German operatic baritone, particularly associated with Mozart, Wagner, Strauss roles....
, Friedrich Dalberg, Erich KunzErich KunzErich Kunz was an Austrian operatic bass-baritone, particularly associated with the roles of Papageno and Beckmesser....
, Fritz Krenn, Ludwig Suthaus (Walther), Erich Witte, Hilde Scheppan, Camilla Kallab – Hermann AbendrothHermann AbendrothHermann Paul Maximilian Abendroth was a German conductor.-Early life:Abendroth was born on 19 January 1883, at Frankfurt, Germany, belonging to a family which had already produced other artistic figures of divers disciplines...
, conductor: Bayreuther Festspiele, 16 July 1943 (Preiser 90174 4CD mono)
- WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
, Tristan und IsoldeTristan und IsoldeTristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
, Ludwig Suthaus (Tristan), Gottlob FrickGottlob FrickGottlob Frick was a German bass who sang in opera. He was known for his wide repertory including Wagner and Mozart roles, as well as those of Nicolai and Lortzing.-Career:...
, Margarete Bäumer, Karl Wolfram, Erna Westenberger – Franz KonwitschnyFranz KonwitschnyFranz Konwitschny was a German conductor and violist.He started his career on the viola, playing in the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra under Wilhelm Furtwängler. In 1925, he moved to Vienna, where he played the viola with the Fitzner Quartet. He also began teaching at the Wiener Volkskonservatorium...
, conductor: Leipzig Gewandhaus OrchestraLeipzig Gewandhaus OrchestraThe Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra is one of the the oldest symphony orchestras in the world...
, 21–23 October 1950 (Walhall Eternity Series WLCD 0118 3CD mono)
- WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
, Tristan und IsoldeTristan und IsoldeTristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
, Ludwig Suthaus (Tristan), Kirsten FlagstadKirsten FlagstadKirsten Målfrid Flagstad was a Norwegian opera singer and a highly regarded Wagnerian soprano...
, Blanche ThebomBlanche ThebomBlanche Thebom was an American operatic mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, and opera director. She was part of the first wave of American opera singers that had highly successful international careers. In her own country she had a long association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City which...
, Josef GreindlJosef GreindlJosef Greindl was a German operatic bass.Josef Greindl was born in Munich and studied at the Munich Music Academy with Paul Bender. His opera debut was in 1936, as Hunding in Wagner's Die Walküre in the State Theatre in Krefeld. He is remembered mainly for his performances in Wagner at Bayreuth,...
, Dietrich Fischer-DieskauDietrich Fischer-DieskauDietrich Fischer-Dieskau is a retired German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous lieder performers of the post-war period and "one of the supreme vocal artists of the 20th century"...
, Rudolf SchockRudolf SchockRudolf Johann Schock was a German tenor.He sang a wide repertory from operetta to Lohengrin, recording among others opera and lieder, doing television, radio and film work. Slim and handsome, he made many films.His voice fell almost into the heldentenor fach but was smaller and more...
– Wilhelm FurtwänglerWilhelm FurtwänglerWilhelm Furtwängler was a German conductor and composer. He is widely considered to have been one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. By the 1930s he had built a reputation as one of the leading conductors in Europe, and he was the leading conductor who remained...
, conductor: Philharmonia OrchestraPhilharmonia OrchestraThe Philharmonia Orchestra is one of the leading orchestras in Great Britain, based in London. Since 1995, it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke...
, LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, 10-21 & 23 June 1952 (EMI Classics 58587326 4CD mono)
- Richard Wagner, Der Ring de Nibelungen, as Siegfried, RAi, 1953, Wilhelm Furtwängler.
Literature
- Kesting, Jürgen: Die großen Sänger des 20. Jahrhunderts, Cormoran, Munich 1993, ISBN 3-517-07987-1