Episode 101. Heinrich Rehkemper
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I continue my salute to Great Baritones with an examination of the recorded legacy of one of my favorite German baritones, the nearly-forgotten Heinrich Rehkemper (1894-1949) who left a small but important cache of discs, many of them devoted to the Lieder of Franz Schubert. He also made the first complete recording of Gustav Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder. I place Rehkemper in the context of the other significant German baritones of his era, Heinrich Schlusnus, Willi Domgraf-Fassbaender, Karl Schmitt-Walter, and Gerhard Hüschand examine the specter of Nazism that hangs over all German artists from this period. But it is first and foremost the unique legacy of Rehkemper’s art song recordings that concerns me here, and I discuss what makes his work so important, and what today’s singers can learn through close study of his recordings.
Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” Occasional guests from the “business” (singers, conductors, composers, coaches, and teachers) lend their distinctive insights. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please visit the Countermelody website (www.countermelodypodcast.com) for additional content including artist photos and episode setlists. And please head to my Patreon page at www.patreon.com/countermelody to pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available only to Patreon supporters are currently available.
RECORDINGS HEARD IN THIS EPISODE
Franz Schubert, Friedrich Rückert: Sei mir gegrüßt, D.741. Henrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt [1928]
Gioacchino Rossini, Cesare Sterbini: Ich bin das Faktotum [Largo al factotum] (Der Barbier von Sevilla). Henrich Rehkemper [1923]
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Lorenzo da Ponte: Will der Herr Graf [Se vuol ballare] (Figaros Hochzeit). Heinrich Rehkemper, Julius Prüwer, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin [1929]
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Emanuel Schikaneder: Papagena! Papagena! (Die Zaberflöte). Heinrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin [1928]
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Lorenzo da Ponte: Horch auf der Klang der Zither [Deh, vieni alla finestra] (Don Juan). Heinrich Rehkemper [1923]
Richard Wagner: Des eignes sündigen Blutes Gewell (Parsifal). Heinrich Rehkemper [1923]
Giuseppe Verdi, Salvatore Cammarano: Ihres Auges himmlisch Strahlen [Il balen del suo sorriso] (Der Troubadour). Five versions: (a) Heinrich Rehkemper [1923]
Heinrich Schlusnus, Julius Prüwer, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin [1928]
Willi Domgraf-Fassbaender, Fritz Zweig, Berliner Funk-Orchester [1931]
Karl Schmitt-Walter, Artur Rother, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin [1942]
Gerhard Hüsch, Staatskapelle Berlin [1935]
Felix Mendelssohn: Es ist genug! (Elias). Heinrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin [1928]
Gustav Mahler, Friedrich Rückert: Nun seh’ ich wohl; Wenn dein Mütterlein (Kindertotenlieder). Heinrich Rehkemper, Jascha Horenstein, Orchester der Staatsoper Berlin [1928]
Franz Schubert, Johann Georg Jacobi: Lied des Orpheus, als er in die Hölle ging, D.474. Heinrich Rehkemper. Waldemar Liachowsky [1925]
Franz Schubert, Franz von Schober: Am Bach im Frühling, D361. Heinrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt [1928]
A fascinating article on Manfred Gurlitt, his complicated history and his thwarted legacy can be found at https://forbiddenmusic.org/2013/08/06/manfred-gurlitt.
Franz Schubert, Wilhelm Müller: Eifersucht und Stolz (Die schöne Müllerin), D.795/15. Heinrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt [1928]
Hugo Wolf: Zwei Mörike-Lieder: Auftrag; Der Feuerreiter. Heinrich Rehkemper, Michael Raucheisen [1929]
Franz Schubert, Heinrich Heine: Der Doppelgänger, D.957/13. Heinrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt [1928]
Franz Schubert, Wilhelm Müller: Three Songs from Winterreise, D.911. Heinrich Rehkemper: I. Gute Nacht [with Manfred Gurlitt, 1928]; V. Der Lindenbaum [with Waldemar Liachowsky, 1926]; XXIV. Der Leiermann [with Manfred Gurlitt, 1928]
Robert Schumann, Nikolaus Lenau: Meine Rose, Op. 90/2. Heinrich Rehkemper [1924]
Franz Schubert, Friedrich Klopstock: Das Rosenband, D.280. Heinrich Rehkemper, Manfred Gurlitt [1928]
