Some further recordings: Birgit Nilsson Richard Strauss: Elektra/ Wiener Philharmoniker, Sir Georg Solti, Decca (2CD). Richard Strauss: Salome/ Wiener Philharmoniker, Sir Georg Solti, Decca (2CD). Richard Wagner: Die Walküre/ London Symphony Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf, Decca (3CD). Siv Wennberg Romances with Jan Eyron, piano (Mozart, Schubert, Stenhammar, Grieg, Alfvén, R. Strauss, Peterson-Berger). Sterling CDA 1689-2: Wagner, Tristan und Isolde. Spas Wenkoff, Anne Wilkens, Peter Meven, Björn Asker, Lennart Stregård, Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, Franz Welser-Möst (3CD). Sterling CDA 1690/1692-2 Siv Wennberg and Birgit Nilsson 2 31 Berislav Klobucar was born in Zagreb in 1924 and studied conducting with Clemens Krauss and Lovro von Matacic. Richard Strauss (1864-1949) Between 1943 and 1951 he worked at the Opera in Zagreb and between 1960 and 1971 he was music director in Graz. Die Frau ohne Schatten, op 65 From 1953 he conducted 1 133 performances of more than 50 operas at Staatsoper in Vienna. He was greatly admired Opera in three acts by Birgit Nilsson who sang under him in Vienna, and Birgit Nilsson writes about him in her memoires in Libretto: Hugo von Hoffmansthal appreciating terms as a “wonderful singer conductor with an Composed 1911-1915 or 1917. Premiered 10 October 1919, Vienna State Opera, conductor: enormous repertoire and a solid knowledge”. Klobucar was Franz Schalk also guest conductor at the Festspiele in Salzburg and Bayreuth (The Ring of Nibelungen 1964, Tannhäuser 1967, Lohengrin 1967, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg 1968-69). In 1968 he conducted the Fliegende Holländer and the CD 1 Act 1 Duration 1’03’34 Valkyrie at the Metropolitan. Between 1973 an 1977 Klobucar was engaged as first conductor at the Royal Opera track 1 Licht über‘m See (Die Amme) 5’25 in Stockholm where he performed the Ring of Nibelungen track 2 Bleib und Wache (Der Kaiser) 5‘15 which the Stockholm Opera made on guest tours to Moscow and Copenhagen in 1975. Klobucars repertoire track 3 Ist mein Liebster dahin (Die Kaiserin) 3‘21 consisted of more than 115 operas and he did not least make track 4 Wie soll ich denn nicht weinen? (Des Falken Stimme) 2‘21 a name as a Beethoven, Wagner and Strauss conductor. track 5 Amme, um alles, wo find ich den Schatten? (Amme, Kaiserin) 5‘03 Berislav Klobucar died in June, 2014. track 6 Erdenflug 1‘51 track 7 Szene 2: Dieb! Da nimm! / Reiß ihn nach hinten! / Zu Hilfe, Bruder! (Die Frau, Der Verwachsende, Der Einäugige, Der Einarmige) 2‘01 track 8 Sie aus dem Hause, und das für immer (Die Frau, Barak) 8‘05 30 3 track 9 Dritthalb Jahr bin ich dein Weib (Die Frau, Barak) 4‘37 track 10 Was wollt ihr hier?(Die Frau, Amme) 5‘56 track 11 Ach, Herrin, süße Herrin! (Dienerinnen) 3‘19 track 12 Hat es dich blutige Tränen gekostet (Amme, Kaiserin) 5‘38 track 13 Mutter, Mutter, laß uns nach Hause! (Kinderstimmen, Die Frau) 1‘20 track 14 Trag ich die Ware selber zu Markt - Ihr Gatten in den Häusern dieser Stadt (Barak, Die Frau) 3‘19 track 15 Ihr Gatten in den Häusern dieser Stadt (Die Wächter, Barak) 5‘53 CD 2 Act 2 Duration 57’06 Track 1 Komm bald wieder nach Haus, mein Gebieter (Die Amme, Die Frau) 3‘57 Track 2 Was ist nun deine Rede, du Prinzessin - O Tag des Glücks, o Abend der Gnade! (Barak, Die Brüder, Die Frau) 4‘37 Track 3 Verwandlung 3‘24 Track 4 Falke, Falke, du wiedergefundener (Der Kaiser) 10‘14 Track 5 Es gibt derer, die haben immer Zeit (Die Frau, Barak, Amme, Kaiserin) 3‘42 Track 6 Wer tut mir das, daß ich jäh muß stehn (Der Jüngling, Die Frau, Die Amme, Barak) 3‘28 Track 7 Ein Handwerk verstehst du sicher nicht / Um Nahrung für Matti Kastu. Photo: Enar Merkel Rydberg mich gräme dich nicht (Die Frau, Barak) 5‘16 4 29 Matti Kastu, tenor, was born 1943 in Turku (Åbo) in Finland. He started his professional Track 8 Wer da? / Verwandlung (Barak, Die Kaiserin) 2‘39 carrier as a baker in his father´s bakery. After his voice was discovered, he was employed Track 9 Sieh, Amme, sieh (Die Kaiserin) 4‘53 after a short singing education at the opera in Stockholm where he made his debut as Track 10 Wehe, mein Mann! (Die Kaiserin) 4’15 Laca in Janáceks Jenufa, In 1975 he sang Kaiser in Strauss Die Frau ohne Schatten (This recording) ha made the role also in Vienna 1977 and in Cardiff in 1981. Kastu has had a Track 11 Verwandlung / Es dunkelt, daß ich nicht sehe zur Arbeit lot of success as Walther in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Bacchus in Ariadne auf (Barak, Die Brüder, Amme, Die Frau, Kaiserin) 5‘23 Naxos. In 1979 he made a large tour in the US. (Detroit, New York, Washington) where Track 12 Sie wirft keinen Schatten he successfully sang the role as Menela in another Strauss opera, Die ägyptische Helena. (Die Brüder, Amme, Kaiserin, Die Frau) 5‘17 He was also was guest at Covent Garden in London, Staatsoper in Münich, in Helsinki, Copenhagen and Oslo as well as in Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Berlin and at the CD 3 Act 3 Duration 55’30 opera festival at Savonlinna in his home country. He sang in Mahlers Das Klagende Lied in Milan, the title role in Parsifal in Rouen, and also Tristan in Aarhus and Edinburgh (a Track 1 Schweigt doch, ihr Stimmen! (Die Frau) 7’21 concertante performance). Kastu has also done the “Drum major” in Wozzek in Nice and Track 2 Mir anvertraut, daß ich sie hege (Barak, Die Frau) 3‘45 Marcello in Leoncavallos La Bohème. He also made a career as concert soloist. On record he can be heard in the Decca recording of Die ägyptische Helena, (together with Gwyneth Track 3 Auf, geh nach oben, Mann / Verwandlung (Die Frau) 4‘42 Jones) Track 4 Fort von hier! (Amme, Die Kaiserin, Der Bote) 8‘59 Track 5 Wehe, mein Kind / Verwandlung (Amme, Der Bote, Die Frau, Barak) 2‘43 Track 6 Sterben! Sterben! (Die Frau, Barak, Die Kaiserin, Der Hüter) 3‘20 Track 7 Vater, bist du‘s? (Die Kaiserin) 5‘27 Track 8 Doch weich ich nicht (Die Kaiserin, Der Hüter, Barak) 4‘54 Track 9 Wenn das Herz aus Kristall zerbricht in einem Schrei (Der Kaiser, Die Kaiserin) 5‘43 Track 10 Schatten, dein Schatten (Barack, Die Frau, Der Kaiser, Die Kaiserin, Amme) 8‘38 28 5 The Cast Der Kaiser Matti Kastu Die Kaiserin Siv Wennberg Barak, der Färber (Bassbariton) Walter Berry Die Färberin (dramatischer Sopran) Birgit Nilsson Die Amme Barbro Ericson Der Geisterbote Bo Lundborg Der Hüter der Schwelle des Tempels Hillevi Blyloods Die Stimme des Jünglings (Tenor) Tord Slättegård Falke (Sopran) Birgit Nordin Stimme von oben (Alt) Ileana Peterson Baraks Brüder (Tenor/Bariton/Bass) John-Erik Jacobsson, Carl-Johan Falkman, Rolf Cederlöf Stimmen der Wächter (Tenor/Bariton/Bass) Björn Asker, Gunnar Lundberg Håkan Hagegård Sechs nicht geborene Kinder Britt-Marie Aruhn Gunilla Slättegård Solweig Lindström Gunilla Söderström Siv Wennberg and Barbro Ericson. Ileana Peterson Drei Dienerinnen Britt-Marie Aruhn Busk Margit Jonsson Margot Rödin 6 27 Barbro Ericson, mezzo soprano and alt, was born in Halmstad in 1930 and had her SYNOPSIS singing education, among others, from Arne Sunnegårdh at the Stockholm Musical Academy from 1950 to 1956. The same year she made her debut as Eboli in Don Carlos. The opera's story is set in the mythical empire of the Southeastern Islands and involves From 1958 she was an regular member of the ensemble at the Stockholm Opera, where five principal characters: the Emperor (tenor), the Empress (soprano), her Nurse (mezzo- she quickly became one of the leading singers in her lines. Ericson participated in the first soprano), Barak, a lowly dyer (bass-baritone), and the Dyer's Wife, (dramatic soprano). performance in Hilding Rosenbergs The Portrait in 1956 and in Karl-Birger Blomdahls Mr A sixth character, Keikobad, King of the Spirit Realm and father to the Empress, sets the von Hancken in 1965. Through international appearances in Berlin, Hamburg, Helsinki, plot in motion, but never appears on stage. The Empress is half human: she was captured Copenhagen and Oslo, and on scenes in France, Italy and the Netherlands she also by the Emperor in the form of a gazelle. She assumed human shape and he married her, became internationally wellknown. In 1964 she sang Venus in Tannhäuser in Paris and but she has no shadow. This symbolizes her inability to bear children. Keikobad has from the same year Kundry in Parsifal in Bayreuth. In 1966 she sang Eboli in Athens and decreed that unless the Empress gains a shadow before the end of the twelfth moon, she in 1967 she participated in Walkyrie under Herbert von Karajan in Salzburg. She sang will be reclaimed by her father and the Emperor will turn to stone. Ulrica in the Masked Ball and Baba Turk in the Rakes Progress at the Word exhibition in Montreal in 1967. The same year she also sang in the first performance of the Mines of Act 1 Sulphur by Richard Rodney Bennett and in 1981 Klytämnästra in Elektra. She made her Scene 1 first performance as Fricka in the Walkyrie at the Metropolitan in 1968. Ericsons repertoire is as voluminous as her voice. Her singing was forceful and It is dawn, outside the bedchambers of the Emperor and Empress. The Messenger of dramatic and of her other significant roles one should include Orfeus in Orfeus and Keikobad arrives, and tells the Empress's nurse that the Empress must acquire a shadow Eurydike, Carmen, Amneris in Aida, Quickly in Falstaff, Marie in Wozzek, Brangäne in within three days, or will be forcibly returned to his realm, and the Emperor turned to Tristan and Isolde, Ortrud in Lohengrin, Madame de Croissy in Poulencs the Dialogue de stone.