Theo Adam
Encyclopedia
Theo Adam is a distinguished German classical bass-baritone
who had an active international career in opera
s, concerts, and recitals from the 1940s through the 1990s. He particularly excelled in portraying roles from the operas of Richard Wagner
. On the concert stage, he was a much admired Bach
singer and also drew acclaim for his interpretation of the title character of Felix Mendelssohn
's Elijah
.
, Adam sang with the Dresdner Kreuzchor
as a boy. He studied singing with Rudolf Dietrich between 1946 and 1949. He made his professional opera debut in his native ctiy as the Hermit in Der Freischütz
at the Semperoper
in 1949. In 1952 he joined the roster of singers at the Berlin State Opera
. That same year he made his first appearance at the Bayreuth Festival
in a small role. He returned annually to Bayreuth for many years, taking on the role of Heinrich der Vogler in Lohengrin
in 1954, Titurel (and one of the Gralsritter) in Parsifal
in the same year, Fasolt in Das Rheingold
in 1958, and Wotan in Der Ring des Nibelungen
in 1963. He eventually added Amfortas in Parsifal
, Hans Sachs and Veit Pogner in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
, and the title role in The Flying Dutchman
to his Bayreuth performance credits.
Adam made his début at the Royal Opera, London
as Wotan in 1967. He made his first appearance at the Salzburg Festival as Ochs in Richard Strauss
's Der Rosenkavalier
in 1969, returning there three years later to sing the title role in Alban Berg
's Wozzeck
. At the Theater an der Wien
he portrayed Pizarro in Ludwig van Beethoven
's Fidelio
in a 1970 production celebrating the composer's 200th birthday. He also portrayed the title role in a new production of Don Giovanni
at the Vienna State Opera
in 1972.
At the Metropolitan Opera
, the bass-baritone debuted as Hans Sachs on 7 February 1969 with Pilar Lorengar
as Eva, John Alexander
as Walther von Stolzing, and Joseph Rosenstock
conducting. That same year he sang in performances of Der Ring des Nibelungen (as Wotan), opposite Birgit Nilsson
, Régine Crespin
, Lili Chookasian
, and Jon Vickers
, conducted and directed by Herbert von Karajan
. He returned to the Met in 1972 to sing Hans Sachs and Wotan again with a similar cast that now also included Gwyneth Jones
. After a sixteen year absence, Adam returned to the Met for the last time in March 1988 to portray Wotan in Die Walküre with Peter Hofmann
as Siegmund, Sabine Hass as Sieglinde, and conductor James Levine
.
Adam appeared in a number of world premieres during his career. He notably created the title roles in Paul Dessau
's Einstein (1974, Berlin) and Friedrich Cerha
's Baal (1981, Salzburg) and the role of Prospero in Luciano Berio
's Un re in ascolto
(1984, Salzburg). In 1979, the artist was named a Kammersänger.
Adam's discography includes Così fan tutte (1969), Fidelio (1969 and 1979), Der fliegende Holländer (with Anja Silja
, conducted by Otto Klemperer
, 1968), Der Freischütz (1973 and 1985), Hänsel und Gretel (1970), Leonore (with Edda Moser
and Richard Cassilly
, 1976), Die Meistersinger (conducted by von Karajan, 1970), Parsifal (as Amfortas, opposite René Kollo
, 1975), Der Ring des Nibelungen (conducted by Karl Böhm
, 1966–67; and by Marek Janowski
, 1980–1983), Tannhäuser (1968–69), Wozzeck (1974), and Die Zauberflöte (as Sarastro, 1968; elsewhere as the Sprecher). Also notable is the recording of the premiere of Berio's Un re in ascolto (with Karan Armstrong
, led by Lorin Maazel
, 1984). His non-operatic recordings include the Angel Raphel in Haydn's Die Schöpfung, Bach's Christmas Oratorio
, and the Mozart/Süssmayr Requiem.
On DVD is found Adam's 1968 Hamburg film of Fidelio, with Richard Cassilly
, Anja Silja
, and Lucia Popp
.
Adam has written two books about his life, career, and perspective on opera, Seht, hier ist Tinte, Feder, Papier …: Aus der Werkstatt eines Sängers (Berlin, 1980) and Die hundertste Rolle, oder, Ich mache einen neuen Adam (Munich, 1987).
Bass-baritone
A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing three Wagnerian roles: the Dutchman in Der fliegende...
who had an active international career in opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s, concerts, and recitals from the 1940s through the 1990s. He particularly excelled in portraying roles from the operas of 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...
. On the concert stage, he was a much admired Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
singer and also drew acclaim for his interpretation of the title character of Felix Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
's Elijah
Elijah (oratorio)
Elijah, in German: Elias, is an oratorio written by Felix Mendelssohn in 1846 for the Birmingham Festival. It depicts various events in the life of the Biblical prophet Elijah, taken from the books 1 Kings and 2 Kings in the Old Testament....
.
Biography
Born in DresdenDresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, Adam sang with the Dresdner Kreuzchor
Dresdner Kreuzchor
The Dresdner Kreuzchor is the boys' choir of the Kreuzkirche in Dresden. It has a seven century history. Today the choir has about 150 members from the age of 9-19 from Dresden and the surrounding region. Most of the boys live in a boarding school. The Choir Boys are also called "Kruzianer". The...
as a boy. He studied singing with Rudolf Dietrich between 1946 and 1949. He made his professional opera debut in his native ctiy as the Hermit in Der Freischütz
Der Freischütz
Der Freischütz is an opera in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind. It premiered on 18 June 1821 at the Schauspielhaus Berlin...
at the Semperoper
Semperoper
The Semperoper is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden and the concert hall of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden . It is located near the Elbe River in the historic center of Dresden, Germany.The opera house was originally built by the architect Gottfried Semper in 1841...
in 1949. In 1952 he joined the roster of singers 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:...
. That same year he made his first appearance 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...
in a small role. He returned annually to Bayreuth for many years, taking on the role of Heinrich der Vogler in Lohengrin
Lohengrin (opera)
Lohengrin is a romantic opera in three acts composed and written by Richard Wagner, first performed in 1850. The story of the eponymous character is taken from medieval German romance, notably the Parzival of Wolfram von Eschenbach and its sequel, Lohengrin, written by a different author, itself...
in 1954, Titurel (and one of the Gralsritter) in Parsifal
Parsifal
Parsifal is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner. It is loosely based on Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, the 13th century epic poem of the Arthurian knight Parzival and his quest for the Holy Grail, and on Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval, the Story of the Grail.Wagner first conceived the work...
in the same year, Fasolt 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...
in 1958, and Wotan in 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...
in 1963. He eventually added Amfortas in Parsifal
Parsifal
Parsifal is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner. It is loosely based on Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, the 13th century epic poem of the Arthurian knight Parzival and his quest for the Holy Grail, and on Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval, the Story of the Grail.Wagner first conceived the work...
, Hans Sachs and Veit Pogner 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,...
, and the title role in The Flying Dutchman
The Flying Dutchman (opera)
Der fliegende Holländer is an opera, with music and libretto by Richard Wagner.Wagner claimed in his 1870 autobiography Mein Leben that he had been inspired to write "The Flying Dutchman" following a stormy sea crossing he made from Riga to London in July and August 1839, but in his 1843...
to his Bayreuth performance credits.
Adam made his début at the Royal Opera, London
Royal Opera, London
The Royal Opera is an opera company based in central London, resident at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Along with the English National Opera, it is one of the two principal opera companies in London. Founded in 1946 as the Covent Garden Opera Company, it was known by that title until 1968...
as Wotan in 1967. He made his first appearance at the Salzburg Festival as Ochs in Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
's 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...
in 1969, returning there three years later to sing the title role in Alban Berg
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg was an Austrian composer. He was a member of the Second Viennese School with Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern, and produced compositions that combined Mahlerian Romanticism with a personal adaptation of Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique.-Early life:Berg was born in...
's Wozzeck
Wozzeck
Wozzeck is the first opera by the Austrian composer Alban Berg. It was composed between 1914 and 1922 and first performed in 1925. The opera is based on the drama Woyzeck left incomplete by the German playwright Georg Büchner at his death. Berg attended the first production in Vienna of Büchner's...
. At the Theater an der Wien
Theater an der Wien
The Theater an der Wien is a historic theatre on the Left Wienzeile in the Mariahilf district of Vienna. Completed in 1801, it has seen the premieres of many celebrated works of theatre, opera, and symphonic music...
he portrayed Pizarro in Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
's Fidelio
Fidelio
Fidelio is a German opera in two acts by Ludwig van Beethoven. It is Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto is by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly which had been used for the 1798 opera Léonore, ou L’amour conjugal by Pierre Gaveaux, and for the 1804 opera Leonora...
in a 1970 production celebrating the composer's 200th birthday. He also portrayed the title role in a new production of Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
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...
in 1972.
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...
, the bass-baritone debuted as Hans Sachs on 7 February 1969 with Pilar Lorengar
Pilar Lorengar
Lorenza Pilar García Seta was a Spanish soprano who used the professional name Pilar Lorengar. She was best known for her interpretations of opera and the Spanish genre Zarzuela, and as a soprano she was known for her full register, a youthful timbre as well as a distinctive vibrato.Pilar was...
as Eva, John Alexander
John Alexander (tenor)
John Alexander was an American operatic tenor who had a substantial career during the 1950s through the 1980s. He had a long standing relationship with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, singing with that company every year between 1961 and 1987 for a total of 379 performances...
as Walther von Stolzing, and Joseph Rosenstock
Joseph Rosenstock
Joseph Rosenstock was a Polish Jewish conductor.-Early years:He worked at the State Opera in Wiesbaden before being brought into the Metropolitan Opera in New York to replace Artur Bodanzky in 1928...
conducting. That same year he sang in performances of Der Ring des Nibelungen (as Wotan), opposite Birgit Nilsson
Birgit Nilsson
right|thumb|Nilsson in 1948.Birgit Nilsson was a celebrated Swedish dramatic soprano who specialized in operatic and symphonic works...
, Régine Crespin
Régine Crespin
Régine Crespin was a French singer who had a major international career in opera and on the concert stage between 1950 and 1989. She started her career singing roles in the dramatic soprano and spinto soprano repertoire, drawing particular acclaim singing Wagner and Strauss heroines...
, Lili Chookasian
Lili Chookasian
Lili Chookasian is an American contralto who has appeared with many of the world's major symphony orchestras and opera houses. She began her career in the 1940s as a concert singer but did not draw wider acclaim until she began singing opera in her late thirties...
, 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...
, conducted and directed 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...
. He returned to the Met in 1972 to sing Hans Sachs and Wotan again with a similar cast that now also included Gwyneth Jones
Gwyneth Jones
Gwyneth Jones may refer to:* Gwyneth Jones , Welsh soprano* Gwyneth Jones , British science fiction novelist...
. After a sixteen year absence, Adam returned to the Met for the last time in March 1988 to portray Wotan in Die Walküre with Peter Hofmann
Peter Hofmann
Peter Hofmann was a German tenor who had a successful performance career within the fields of opera, rock, pop, and musical theatre. He first rose to prominence in 1976 as a heldentenor at the Bayreuth festival where he drew critical acclaim for his performance of Siegmund in Richard Wagner's Die...
as Siegmund, Sabine Hass as Sieglinde, and conductor James Levine
James Levine
James Lawrence Levine is an American conductor and pianist. He is currently the music director of the Metropolitan Opera and former music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Levine's first performance conducting the Metropolitan Opera was on June 5, 1971, and as of May 2011 he has...
.
Adam appeared in a number of world premieres during his career. He notably created the title roles in Paul Dessau
Paul Dessau
Paul Dessau was a German composer and conductor.- Biography :Dessau was born in Hamburg into a musical family...
's Einstein (1974, Berlin) and Friedrich Cerha
Friedrich Cerha
Friedrich Cerha is an Austrian composer and conductor.-Biography:Cerha was born in Vienna.He received his education at the Viennese Music Academy and at the University of Vienna...
's Baal (1981, Salzburg) and the role of Prospero in Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian composer. He is noted for his experimental work and also for his pioneering work in electronic music.-Biography:Berio was born at Oneglia Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (October 24, 1925 – May 27, 2003) was an Italian...
's Un re in ascolto
Un re in ascolto
Un re in ascolto is an opera by Luciano Berio, who also wrote the libretto. The libretto is based on an idea by Italo Calvino, incorporating excerpts from Friedrich Einsiedel and Friedrich Wilhelm Gotter's eighteenth century libretto on Shakespeare's The Tempest as well as W. H. Auden's The Sea...
(1984, Salzburg). In 1979, the artist was named a Kammersänger.
Adam's discography includes Così fan tutte (1969), Fidelio (1969 and 1979), Der fliegende Holländer (with Anja Silja
Anja Silja
Anja Silja Regina Langwagen, , born April 17, 1940, in Berlin, is a German soprano who is known for her great abilities as a singing-actress and for the vastness of her repertoire....
, conducted by Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the leading conductors of the 20th century.-Biography:Otto Klemperer was born in Breslau, Silesia Province, then in Germany...
, 1968), Der Freischütz (1973 and 1985), Hänsel und Gretel (1970), Leonore (with Edda Moser
Edda Moser
Edda Moser is a German soprano. She was particularly well-known for her interpretations of music by Mozart. Her 1973 recital LP "Virtuoso Arias by W. A...
and Richard Cassilly
Richard Cassilly
Richard Cassilly was an American operatic tenor who had a major international opera career between 1954 and 1990...
, 1976), Die Meistersinger (conducted by von Karajan, 1970), Parsifal (as Amfortas, opposite René Kollo
René Kollo
René Kollo is a German tenor.-Biography:He was born René Kollodzieyski in Berlin and grew up in Wyk auf Föhr. He attended a photography school in Hamburg, although he had always been interested in music, particularly conducting. He did not begin to perform until the mid-50s...
, 1975), Der Ring des Nibelungen (conducted by Karl Böhm
Karl Böhm
Karl August Leopold Böhm was an Austrian conductor. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century.- Education :...
, 1966–67; and by Marek Janowski
Marek Janowski
Marek Janowski is a Polish-born conductor.Janowski grew up in Wuppertal, Germany, near Cologne, after his mother traveled there at the start of World War II to be with her parents...
, 1980–1983), Tannhäuser (1968–69), Wozzeck (1974), and Die Zauberflöte (as Sarastro, 1968; elsewhere as the Sprecher). Also notable is the recording of the premiere of Berio's Un re in ascolto (with Karan Armstrong
Karan Armstrong
Karan Armstrong is an American operatic soprano who has had an active international career since the 1960s.-Biography:...
, led by 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...
, 1984). His non-operatic recordings include the Angel Raphel in Haydn's Die Schöpfung, Bach's Christmas Oratorio
Christmas Oratorio
The Christmas Oratorio BWV 248, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It was written for the Christmas season of 1734 incorporating music from earlier compositions, including three secular cantatas written during 1733 and 1734 and a...
, and the Mozart/Süssmayr Requiem.
On DVD is found Adam's 1968 Hamburg film of Fidelio, with Richard Cassilly
Richard Cassilly
Richard Cassilly was an American operatic tenor who had a major international opera career between 1954 and 1990...
, Anja Silja
Anja Silja
Anja Silja Regina Langwagen, , born April 17, 1940, in Berlin, is a German soprano who is known for her great abilities as a singing-actress and for the vastness of her repertoire....
, and Lucia Popp
Lucia Popp
Lucia Popp was a notable Slovak operatic soprano. She began her career as a soubrette soprano, and later moved into the light-lyric and lyric coloratura soprano repertoire and then the lighter Richard Strauss and Wagner operas. Her career included performances at Vienna State Opera, the...
.
Adam has written two books about his life, career, and perspective on opera, Seht, hier ist Tinte, Feder, Papier …: Aus der Werkstatt eines Sängers (Berlin, 1980) and Die hundertste Rolle, oder, Ich mache einen neuen Adam (Munich, 1987).
External links
- Biography (Bach Cantatas)
- Biography (Universal Music Classics Group (on-line music store))
- Discography (Capon's Lists of Opera Recordings)
- MetOpera database
- Theo Adam at the Bayreuth Festival