Description

HANS BECHSTEIN (MÜNCHEN 1872, 17/7 – MÜNCHEN 1943, 20/2)

 

 

 

 

He first received his education as a pianist and actor at the Academy of Music in Munich and began his stage career in 1893 at the Municipal Theater of Lucerne as an actor. He then appeared in Meiningen, Nuremberg, and at the Gärtnerplatztheater in Munich (1899–1900), where he also began performing as a singer. He subsequently studied voice in Munich and made his operatic debut at the Stadttheater of Lübeck (1902–1903).

Following this, he sang at the Hoftheater of Altenburg in Thuringia, at the Stadttheater of Mülhausen (Alsace) during the 1907–1908 season, and at the Stadttheater of Bremen from 1908 to 1911. He became regarded as one of the most significant German tenors specializing in character roles. His most celebrated role was Mime in Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, which he performed more than 300 times at major international venues.

He sang Mime at London’s Covent Garden between 1907 and 1914. In 1922, he created the role of Mime in the first complete performance of the Ring Cycle at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He also appeared at the Hofoper in Dresden (1905) and Berlin (1909, as Mime), in Amsterdam (1908, as the Steersman in Der fliegende Holländer), and at the Hoftheater of Mannheim (1909) and Wiesbaden (1910). He performed at the Teatro Real in Madrid and, in 1922, in Rio de Janeiro.

In 1913, he took part at Covent Garden in the English premiere of Waltershausen’s opera Colonel Chabert. That same year, he also appeared in the Covent Garden premiere of Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, singing the role of Valzacchi.

During the 1920s, he toured the United States, performing in cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia, and was often heard at the Staatsoper in Munich. He also had success as an operetta singer and was active as a music educator in Munich.

Sadly, from 1933 onward, he was forced to give up his career in Germany due to his Jewish heritage.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1899-1900 Munich Gärtnerplatztheater

1902-1903 Lübeck Stadttheater

1907-1908 Mülhausen Stadttheater

1907-1914 London Covent Garden

1908-1911 Bremen Stadttheater

1912 Buenos Aires Teatro Colón

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) Lacht nur zu – Johannislied P693 Parlophon, Berlin 1911-05

Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) Weisen des David P692 Parlophon, Berlin 1911-05

Nozze di Figaro (Mozart) In den Jahren Beka 13590 Berlin 1911-05

Rheingold (Wagner) Immer ist Undank Loges Lohn! P691 Parlophon, Berlin 1911-05

Siegfried (Wagner) Nun tobst du wieder wie toll P694 Parlophon, Berlin 1911-05

Undine (Lortzing) Da lieg’, du altes Mondgewehr Beka 13589 Berlin 1911-05