Fritz Soot (1878-1965) was a German Heldentenor whose lengthy career was largely confined to Central Europe. Born in Neunkirchen, Soot made his stage debut at age 11 as Ludwig in a production of Liszt’s Die Legende von der Heiligen Elisabeth in Karlsruhe under Felix Mottl. Encouraged to pursue a theatrical career, he began working as an actor at the Court Theatre in Karlsruhe in 1901. During his years with the company, Soot studied voice, hoping to cultivate a singing career. His chance came in 1908 at the relatively late age of 30, when he made his debut with the Dresden Hofoper as Tonio in Donizetti’s Daughter of the Regiment. Soot’s star rose rather quickly and he appeared as the servant in the world premiere of Strauss’ Elektra in Dresden in 1909. Film: Metropolitan Opera New York: Die Zauberflöte (2017) - movies.ch: Filme, Kinos, Kinoprogramm, 3D, Charts, DVD, Video, Startdaten, Releases, Trailer und Bilder. Regionalisiert für die ganze Schweiz, deutsch. Contes d'Hoffmann (Offenbach): Puppen-Arie. 14586, B3574. Schelén) unpubl. C-2028-B d:o. BÄCKMAN, Edvin. Pathé, Helsinki? Gluntarne (Wennerberg): Hvad det är skönt ändå (w. Be in my heart (Warren); Some girls are prettier (Maury); To live again. Pathé Westside Metropolitan Opera New York: Les contes d'Hoffmann Ballet-, Theater- und Opernübertragungen: Aufgezeichnet oder Live aus den renommiertesten Kulturhäusern der Welt. Erleben Sie ausgelesene Höhepunkte aus den grossen Opern- und. Film: Metropolitan Opera New York: Norma (2017) - movies.ch: Filme, Kinos, Kinoprogramm, 3D, Charts, DVD, Video, Startdaten, Releases, Trailer und Bilder. Regionalisiert für die ganze Schweiz, deutsch. Erleben Sie Offenbachs populäre Opéra Fantastique 'Les contes d'Hoffmann' in Andrei Serbans umjubelter märchenhaft-phantastischer Inszenierung. Another Strauss premiereDer Rosenkavalieroccurred two years later, with Soot creating the role of the Italian Singer. Soot’s repertoire was rapidly expanding and it was around this time that the tenor was bestowed with the title of Kammersänger. Soot’s career was in full swing when war broke out in Europe. The tenor enlisted in the German army and served as an intelligence officer until the war’s end in 1918. Despite the interruption to his career, Soot picked up where he had left off, joining the company of the Stuttgart Landestheater. Now 40 years old, the tenor began to adopt heavier roles, including such Wagnerian parts as Walther in Die Meistersinger, Siegmund in Die Walküre, Loge in Das Rheingold, both Siegfrieds (Götterdämmerung and Siegfried), Erik in Der Fliegende Holländer, and the title roles in Lohengrin, Parsifal, Tannhäuser and Tristan und Isolde. In 1922, Soot left Stuttgart to accept a contract with the Berlin Staatsoper. The busy artist also made guest appearances with Vienna Staatsoper, London’s Covent Garden and the Waldoper in Sopot, Poland (a.k.a “The Bayreuth of the North”). Soot continued to expand his repertoire and counted such non-Wagner roles as the Duke in Rigoletto, Canio in Pagliacci, Lensky in Yevgeny Onegin, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Don José in Carmen, Pedro in Tiefland, Max in Der Freischütz, Faust in Mefistofele, (as well as Mephistofeles in Busoni’s Doktor Faust!), Laca in Jenůfa, Aegisth in Elektra, Herod in Salome, and the title roles in Otello and Les Contes d’Hoffmann. Soot continued his association with the Berlin Staatsoper, becoming artistic director in 1935. Apart from a brief wartime interruption, his singing career remained constant, although he gradually drifted into character roles during the mid-1940s. Soot bid farewell to the operatic stage after a final Herod in Salome in Berlin in 1952. He was 73 at the time and in remarkable vocal shape. The elderly tenor continued to give recitals and made a series of lieder recordings to celebrate his 80th birthday. Eventually, his singing days came to a close and he retired to Berlin. It was there that Fritz Soot died, ten weeks shy of his 87th birthday, on June 9, 1965. Fritz Soot was a versatile artist, who was not averse to adding contemporary works to his repertoire, such as Janáček’s From the House of the Dead, Schmidt’s Fredigundis, Graener’s Der Prinz von Homburg, Weinberger’s Schwanda the Bagpiper and the world premieres of Milhaud’s Christophe Colomb, Rangström’s Die Kronenbraut, Künneke’s Coeur As, Pfitzner’s Das Herz, Berg’s Wozzeck, Krenek’s Die Zwingburg and Dessau’s Das Verhör des Lukullus. Unfortunately, Soot chose to confine his career largely to Germany and Austria and never received the worldwide acclaim he probably deserved. His recordings, made for Pathé, Odeon and H.M.V. Between 1911 and about 1930, showcase a robust yet lyrical voice with solid lows. Offenbach Hoffmanns ErzählungenSoot’s records also reveal that he was a fine vocal actor with an effective sense of drama. Here, Soot sings 'In Leid zu den Wipfeln' from Wagner's Götterdämmerung. This recording was made in Berlin for Odeon in 1922.
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