Willoughby Weiss
Encyclopedia
Willoughby Hunter Weiss (2 April 1820, Liverpool
- 24 October 1867, London) was an English oratorio and opera singer and composer. He became one of the most celebrated bass singers of the 19th century, and sang in the premieres of many English works.
He was born in Liverpool, the son of Willoughby Gaspard Weiss Esq., a professor of flute
and a music publisher. He studied under Sir George Thomas Smart
and Michael Balfe.
Weiss made his operatic debut in Dublin in 1842 as Oroveso
, and in London at the Prince's Theatre at that time as Count Rodolfo in La sonnambula
. H. F. Chorley
saw him as Oroveso in an English Norma
at the Princess's Theatre, London, opposite Adelaide Sartoris
, saying 'he sang well and looked like a giraffe.' In 1845 he married Georgina Ansell Barrett. Mme Georgina Weiss (1826–1880), a soprano, often sang with her husband, and made her stage debut at Drury Lane
in 1847.
In 1846 he appeared at Drury Lane
opposite Anna Bishop in the premiere of Lewis Henry Lavenu
's opera Loretta:A Tale of Seville, as Don Juanito. In 1847 he supported Sims Reeves
there, at his debut in a leading role (Edgardo) in Lucia di Lammermoor
(with Dorus Gras and Henry Whitworth), conducted by Hector Berlioz
, in Louis Antoine Jullien
's company: soon afterwards Reeves and Weiss sang together again in the premiere of Balfe's opera Maid of Honour.
In 1854 he set Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
's poem "The Village Blacksmith" to music, from which he made a considerable fortune. In that year Weiss was in Jarrett's company at Drury Lane, with Reeves, Agnes Büry, Mme Rudersdorff, Louisa Pyne
and others, in a season including Lucia, Fra Diavolo
, La sonnambula
, Il Seraglio
and Masaniello
. On New Year's Day 1856, with Reeves, Novello and Lewis Thomas
, he gave a performance of Méhul's 1807 opera Joseph
(with bowdlerized libretto) at Windsor Castle
. Reeves, Clara Novello
, Mme Sainton-Dolby
and Weiss gave the premiere of William Sterndale Bennett
's cantata The May Queen at the founding of the Leeds Festival, in 1858. In January 1861 he sang the Messiah
at St Paul's Cathedral
, the first oratorio to be heard there, with Reeves, Helen Lemmens-Sherrington
and Mrs Lockey.
The fellow-Liverpudlian Charles Santley
, who often sang with him (and refers to his 'well-merited position as the leading (English) basso of his time'), called him 'a fine, handsome fellow, about six foot two in height, slim in his youth.' Weiss was a leading baritone in the Pyne and Harrison
Opera Company at Covent Garden in the late 1850s-early 1860s.
Santley and Weiss gave famous performances of Handel
's duet 'The Lord is a Man of War' from Israel in Egypt, perhaps first at the opening of Leeds Town Hall
by Queen Victoria in 1858. In the centennial Handel Festival at the Crystal Palace
in 1859 he was the bass soloist, with Mmes Novello, Sainton-Dolby, Sims Reeves
and Giovanni Belletti, in the Messiah, Israel in Egypt and Judas Maccabaeus. Shortly before his early death, Weiss performed an extensive programme of sacred music, including a complete Elijah
, at Hereford
Festival, and again an Elijah and a St. Paul
at the Birmingham
Festival.
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
- 24 October 1867, London) was an English oratorio and opera singer and composer. He became one of the most celebrated bass singers of the 19th century, and sang in the premieres of many English works.
He was born in Liverpool, the son of Willoughby Gaspard Weiss Esq., a professor of flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
and a music publisher. He studied under Sir George Thomas Smart
George Thomas Smart
Sir George Thomas Smart was an English musician.Smart was born in London, his father being a music-seller. He was a choir-boy at the Chapel Royal, and was educated in music, becoming an expert violinist, organist, teacher of singing and conductor...
and Michael Balfe.
Weiss made his operatic debut in Dublin in 1842 as Oroveso
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
, and in London at the Prince's Theatre at that time as Count Rodolfo in La sonnambula
La sonnambula
La sonnambula is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the bel canto tradition by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ballet-pantomime by Eugène Scribe and Jean-Pierre Aumer called La somnambule, ou L'arrivée d'un nouveau seigneur.The first...
. H. F. Chorley
Henry Fothergill Chorley
Henry Fothergill Chorley was an English literary, art and music critic and editor. He was also an author of novels, drama, poetry and lyrics....
saw him as Oroveso in an English Norma
Norma (opera)
Norma is a tragedia lirica or opera in two acts by Vincenzo Bellini with libretto by Felice Romani after Norma, ossia L'infanticidio by Alexandre Soumet. First produced at La Scala on December 26, 1831, it is generally regarded as an example of the supreme height of the bel canto tradition...
at the Princess's Theatre, London, opposite Adelaide Sartoris
Adelaide Kemble
Adelaide Kemble was an English opera singer of the Victorian era, and a member of the Kemble family of actors. She was the younger sister of Fanny Kemble, the famous actress and anti-slavery activist...
, saying 'he sang well and looked like a giraffe.' In 1845 he married Georgina Ansell Barrett. Mme Georgina Weiss (1826–1880), a soprano, often sang with her husband, and made her stage debut at Drury Lane
Drury Lane
Drury Lane is a street on the eastern boundary of the Covent Garden area of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of Camden and the southern part in the City of Westminster....
in 1847.
In 1846 he appeared at Drury Lane
Drury Lane
Drury Lane is a street on the eastern boundary of the Covent Garden area of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of Camden and the southern part in the City of Westminster....
opposite Anna Bishop in the premiere of Lewis Henry Lavenu
Lewis Henry Lavenu
Lewis Henry Lavenu was an English composer, conductor, musician and impresario.-Life and career:Lavenu was born in London in 1818, the only son, by his second wife Eliza, of Lewis Lavenu, music publisher to the Prince Regent...
's opera Loretta:A Tale of Seville, as Don Juanito. In 1847 he supported Sims Reeves
Sims Reeves
John Sims Reeves , usually called simply Sims Reeves, was the foremost English operatic, oratorio and ballad tenor vocalist of the mid-Victorian era....
there, at his debut in a leading role (Edgardo) in Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor
Lucia di Lammermoor is a dramma tragico in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's historical novel The Bride of Lammermoor....
(with Dorus Gras and Henry Whitworth), conducted by Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation. He specified huge orchestral forces for some of his works; as a...
, in Louis Antoine Jullien
Louis Antoine Jullien
Louis Antoine Jullien was a French conductor and composer of light music.Jullien was born in Sisteron, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, and was baptised Louis George Maurice Adolphe Roche Albert Abel Antonio Alexandre Noë Jean Lucien Daniel Eugène Joseph-le-brun Joseph-Barême Thomas Thomas Thomas-Thomas...
's company: soon afterwards Reeves and Weiss sang together again in the premiere of Balfe's opera Maid of Honour.
In 1854 he set Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
's poem "The Village Blacksmith" to music, from which he made a considerable fortune. In that year Weiss was in Jarrett's company at Drury Lane, with Reeves, Agnes Büry, Mme Rudersdorff, Louisa Pyne
Louisa Pyne
Louisa Bodda-Pyne was an English soprano and opera company manager.She was born Louisa Fanny Pyne in 1832, the youngest daughter of the alto George Pyne...
and others, in a season including Lucia, Fra Diavolo
Fra Diavolo (opera)
Fra Diavolo, ou L'hôtellerie de Terracine is an opéra comique in three acts by the French composer Daniel Auber, from a libretto by Auber's regular collaborator Eugène Scribe...
, La sonnambula
La sonnambula
La sonnambula is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the bel canto tradition by Vincenzo Bellini to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ballet-pantomime by Eugène Scribe and Jean-Pierre Aumer called La somnambule, ou L'arrivée d'un nouveau seigneur.The first...
, Il Seraglio
Die Entführung aus dem Serail
Die Entführung aus dem Serail is an opera Singspiel in three acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The German libretto is by Christoph Friedrich Bretzner with adaptations by Gottlieb Stephanie...
and Masaniello
Masaniello
Masaniello was a Neapolitan fisherman, who became leader of the revolt against Spanish Habsburg rule in Naples in 1647.-Name and place of birth:...
. On New Year's Day 1856, with Reeves, Novello and Lewis Thomas
Lewis Thomas
Lewis Thomas was a physician, poet, etymologist, essayist, administrator, educator, policy advisor, and researcher.Thomas was born in Flushing, New York and attended Princeton University and Harvard Medical School...
, he gave a performance of Méhul's 1807 opera Joseph
Joseph (opera)
Joseph is an opera in three acts by the French composer Étienne Méhul. The libretto, by Alexandre Duval, is based on the Biblical story of Joseph and his brothers. The work was first performed by the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 17 February 1807 at the Théâtre Feydeau...
(with bowdlerized libretto) at Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
. Reeves, Clara Novello
Clara Novello
Clara Anastasia Novello was an acclaimed soprano, the fourth daughter of Vincent Novello, a musician and music publisher, and his wife, Mary Sabilla Hehl....
, Mme Sainton-Dolby
Charlotte Helen Sainton-Dolby
Charlotte Helen Sainton-Dolby , was an English contralto.She was born in London, studied at the Royal Academy of Music from 1832 to 1837, Crivelli being her principal singing-master. In 1837 she was elected to a King's scholarship, and first appeared at a Philharmonic concert in 1841...
and Weiss gave the premiere of William Sterndale Bennett
William Sterndale Bennett
Sir William Sterndale Bennett was an English composer. He ranks as the most distinguished English composer of the Romantic school-Biography:...
's cantata The May Queen at the founding of the Leeds Festival, in 1858. In January 1861 he sang the Messiah
Messiah (Handel)
Messiah is an English-language oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frideric Handel, with a scriptural text compiled by Charles Jennens from the King James Bible and the Book of Common Prayer. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742, and received its London premiere nearly a year later...
at St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
, the first oratorio to be heard there, with Reeves, Helen Lemmens-Sherrington
Helen Lemmens-Sherrington
Helen Lemmens-Sherrington was the leading English concert and operatic soprano of the 1860s.- Early life :Born in Preston, England, in 1834, Helen Sherrington studied singing at Rotterdam and Brussels...
and Mrs Lockey.
The fellow-Liverpudlian Charles Santley
Charles Santley
Sir Charles Santley was an English-born opera and oratorio star with a bravuraFrom the Italian verb bravare, to show off. A florid, ostentatious style or a passage of music requiring technical skill technique who became the most eminent English baritone and male concert singer of the Victorian era...
, who often sang with him (and refers to his 'well-merited position as the leading (English) basso of his time'), called him 'a fine, handsome fellow, about six foot two in height, slim in his youth.' Weiss was a leading baritone in the Pyne and Harrison
Louisa Pyne
Louisa Bodda-Pyne was an English soprano and opera company manager.She was born Louisa Fanny Pyne in 1832, the youngest daughter of the alto George Pyne...
Opera Company at Covent Garden in the late 1850s-early 1860s.
Santley and Weiss gave famous performances of Handel
HANDEL
HANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
's duet 'The Lord is a Man of War' from Israel in Egypt, perhaps first at the opening of Leeds Town Hall
Leeds Town Hall
Leeds Town Hall was built between 1853 and 1858 on Park Lane , Leeds, West Yorkshire, England to a design by architect Cuthbert Brodrick.-Background:...
by Queen Victoria in 1858. In the centennial Handel Festival at the Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
in 1859 he was the bass soloist, with Mmes Novello, Sainton-Dolby, Sims Reeves
Sims Reeves
John Sims Reeves , usually called simply Sims Reeves, was the foremost English operatic, oratorio and ballad tenor vocalist of the mid-Victorian era....
and Giovanni Belletti, in the Messiah, Israel in Egypt and Judas Maccabaeus. Shortly before his early death, Weiss performed an extensive programme of sacred music, including a complete 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....
, at Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
Festival, and again an Elijah and a St. Paul
St. Paul (oratorio)
St. Paul , Op. 36, is an oratorio by Felix Mendelssohn.The libretto was begun in 1832 by the composer with Pastor Julius Schubring, a childhood friend, pulling together passages from the New Testament and Old Testament...
at the Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
Festival.