Description

JOSEPH SCHWARZ (RIGA, LATVIA, 10 OCTOBER, 1880 † BERLIN, GERMANY, 10 NOVEMBER, 1926)

 

 

 

 

He was born into a Jewish family as the eldest of eight children and grew up in difficult circumstances. Like his father, he initially learned the tailoring craft. He first became a member of the Riga Choral Synagogue, and his musical education was later financed by a wealthy Russian nobleman. He studied under Alexander Heinemann in Berlin and subsequently at the Vienna Conservatory. His stage debut took place in 1900 at the Stadttheater of Linz (Danube) as Amonasro in Aida. He then sang with small opera troupes and made guest appearances in 1901 in his hometown of Riga. After a guest performance at the Court Opera in St. Petersburg, he became a member of the Volksoper in Vienna during the 1906-1909 seasons.

In 1909, he was engaged by the Vienna Hofoper, making his debut as Count di Luna in Il Trovatore. In 1915, he joined the Berlin Hofoper, where he appeared in the premieres of Leo Blech’s Rappelkopf (1917) and Franz Schmidt’s Notre Dame (1918). During World War I, he frequently performed as a guest artist in Scandinavian countries. He was engaged by the Chicago Opera for the 1920-1921 and 1924-1925 seasons, where he performed roles such as Rigoletto, Germont in La Traviata, Jago in Otello, and Tonio in Pagliacci. With the Chicago Opera ensemble, he also performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. In 1921, he gave successful concerts in New York.

In 1924, he performed at Covent Garden in London as Rigoletto. He also made appearances in Berlin, Vienna, Prague, Budapest, and at the Grand Opera in Paris, where he performed as Rigoletto. In 1924, he accepted an engagement with the Staatsoper in Berlin but fell ill shortly afterward. In 1925, he gave a song recital at the Salzburg Festival. He performed in “Hebrew Evenings” in Cologne, Frankfurt am Main, Berlin, and Wrocław. In 1926, he appeared in San Francisco in the premiere of the opera Fay-Yen-Fah by Joseph Redding, which had a libretto written by an American multimillionaire.

Shortly before his death, he appeared with great success in Berlin as Rigoletto. He died at the age of 46 following an operation.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1900 Linz Stadttheater

1901 Riga Opera

1906-1909 Vienna Volksoper

1909 Vienna Hofoper

1915 Berlin Hofoper

1917 Berlin Hofoper

1918 Berlin Hofoper

1920-1921 Chicago Opera

1921 New York Concert

1923 Paris Grand Opera

1924 London Covent Garden

1924-1925 Chicago Opera

1926 San Francisco Opera

1926 Berlin Hofoper

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

1. Africaine (Meyerbeer) Dir, o Königin 042501 1029m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
2. Africaine (Meyerbeer) Wie hat mein Herz 042502 1030m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
3. Ballo in maschera (Verdi) Für dein Glück 042505 1020m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
4. Ballo in maschera (Verdi) Ja, du warst’s 042496 955m Grammophon, Berlin 1916-03
5. Cantata con Stromenti (Händel) Dank sei Dir, Herr 042530, 1148m Grammophon, Berlin 1917
6. Contes d’Hoffmann (Offenbach) Spiegelarie 042495, 954m Grammophon, Berlin 1916-03
7. Ein Schwan (Grieg) 4-42638 19096L Grammophon, Berlin 1917
8. Eros (Grieg) 4-42650 19099L Grammophon, Berlin 1917
9. Freundliche Vision (R Strauss) 4-42649, 19098L Grammophon, Berlin 1917
10. Guillaume Tell (Rossini) Sohn, knie nieder 042508, 1022m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
11. Heimliche Aufforderung (R Strauss) 4-42660, 19097L Grammophon, Berlin 1917
12. Im Kahne (Grieg) 4-42637 19095L Grammophon, Berlin 1917
13. Kol nidre (Lewandowski-Rosenfeld) 042500 1031m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
14. O komm im Traum (Liszt) 042510 1032m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
15. Otello (Verdi) Ich glaube an einem Gott 042506 1028m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
16. Rigoletto (Verdi) Ach, Gott für mich (w. Dux) 044298, 1100m Grammophon, Berlin 1917
17. Rigoletto (Verdi) Feile Sklaven 042507 1021m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
18. Rigoletto (Verdi) Gleich sind wir beide 042494 953m Grammophon, Berlin 1916-03
19. Rigoletto (Verdi) Schon seit drei Monden (w. Dux) 044297 1099m Grammophon, Berlin 1917
20. Traviata (Verdi) Gott schenkte eine Tochter (w. van Endert) 044290 1017m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
21. Traviata (Verdi) Hat dein heimatliches Land 042509 1023m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
22. Traviata (Verdi) Wenn einst der Himmel (w. van Endert) 044291 1018½m Grammophon, Berlin 1916
23. Trovatore (Verdi) Befreit, o welche Seligkeit (w. Dux) 3-44157 19024L Grammophon, Berlin 1917
24. Trovatore (Verdi) Ihres Auges himmlisch Strahlen 042497 956m Grammophon, Berlin 1916-03
25. Xerxes (Händel) Largo 4-42631 19094L Grammophon, Berlin 1917