Description

JACQUES URLUS (HERGENRATH, BELGIUM, JANUARY 6, 1867 – NOORDWIJK, NETHERLANDS, JULY 6, 1935)

 

 

 

 

The son of Dutch parents, he spent his youth in Tilburg and Utrecht, and initially worked as a metalworker in a factory in Utrecht. After the discovery of his voice, he studied under Hugo Nolthenius, Antoon Averkamp, and Cornélie van Zanten in Amsterdam. In 1887, he made his first concert appearance in Utrecht. In 1894, he made his stage debut at the Dutch Opera in Amsterdam as Beppe in Pagliacci. His first major success in Amsterdam came in the title role of Méhul’s opera Joseph. In 1898, he went to study the Wagnerian style under Julius Kniese in Bayreuth.

In 1900, he was engaged as the first tenor by the opera house in Leipzig, where he remained until 1914. In Leipzig, he quickly gained recognition and was highly appreciated. He also performed in the premieres of several operas, including Franz Weingartner’s Orestes (1902), Ethel Smyth’s The Wreckers (German premiere on November 11, 1906), and the German premiere of C. V. Stanford’s Much Ado About Nothing. From 1910 to 1914, he sang annually at London’s Covent Garden as a heldentenor, debuting in 1910 as Tristan under Sir Thomas Beecham. From 1910, he also made guest appearances at the Dresden Hofoper.

During the 1901-1910 seasons, he performed at the Berlin Hofoper, and from 1908 to 1910, he was a soloist with the Munich Hofoper. He also sang at the Vienna Hofoper during the 1908-1909 season. In 1911-1912, he performed the role of Siegmund at the Bayreuth Festival. In 1912, he made his debut at the Boston Opera before being engaged by the Metropolitan Opera in New York, where he remained the first heldentenor until 1917 and achieved significant success.

Following his time in New York, he returned to his native country, but continued to make guest appearances in Germany, Austria, France, and Scandinavia (including Stockholm from 1918-1920). He also performed in Amsterdam, Antwerp, and Brussels, where he sang as a heldentenor during the 1925-1930 seasons. In the 1922-1923 season, he toured the USA with the German Opera, and from 1922 to 1925, he performed at the Berlin Volksoper, later singing at the Berlin Staatsoper during the 1926-1927 season. In 1924, he returned to Covent Garden in London, and in 1925, he participated in the Zoppot Festival.

As a concert artist, he was highly regarded for his interpretation of Gustav Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, which he performed at the Salzburg Festival in 1928. In 1930, he sang the role of Tristan at the Paris Grand Opéra, and reprised the role in Amsterdam in 1932 and in Hannover in 1933. His repertoire also included roles such as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, Raoul in Les Huguenots, Faust, Samson in Samson et Dalila, Don José in Carmen, and Otello.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1894 Amsterdam Dutch Opera

1900-1914 Leipzig Opernhaus

1901-1910 Berlin Hofoper

1908-1910 Munich Hofoper

1908-1909 Vienna Hofoper

1910-1914 London Covent Garden

1910 Dresden Hofoper

1911-1912 Bayreuth Festival

1912 Boston Opera

1912-1917 New York Metropolitan Opera

1922-1925 Berlin Volksoper

1924 London Covent Garden

1926-1927 Berlin Staatsoper

1928 Salzburg Festival

1930 Paris Grand Opéra

1932 Amsterdam Opera

1933 Hannover Opernhaus

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

1. Huguenots (Meyerbeer) Duo, act 2 (w. Cato Engelen-Sewing) 30235 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
2. Lohengrin (Wagner) Duo, act 2 (w. Cato Engelen-Sewing) 30232 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
3. Lohengrin (wagner) Ebtrée van Lohengrin (Ankunft) 30211 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
4. Lohengrin (Wagner) Gedeelte uit de 3e acte (Atmest du nicht) 30212 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
5. Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) Prijslied (Preislied) 30223 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
6. Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) Walter voor de Meesters 30221 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
7. Pagliacci (Leoncavallo) Smartlied (Vesti la giubba) 30226 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
8. Walküre (Wagner) Liefdeslied (Winterstürme) 30218 Pathé cylinders & discs, Amsterdam 1903
9. Götterdämmerung (Wagner) Siegfrieds Tod 15755 Pathé, Berlin 1910
10. Siegfried (Wagner) Brünnhildes Erwachen (w. Plaichinger) 15726 Pathé, Berlin 1910
11. Siegfried (Wagner) Ewig war ich Pathé 15739 Pathé, Berlin 1910
12. Siegfried (Wagner) Heiss ward mir Pathé 15757 Pathé, Berlin 1910
13. Siegfried (Wagner) Schmiedelied Pathé 15756 Pathé, Berlin 1910
14. Tristan und Isolde (Wagner) O sink hernieder (w. Plaichinger) 15727, Pathé Berlin 1909/1910
15. Tristan und Isolde (Wagner) Wohin nun Tristan scheidet 15758, Pathé, Berlin 1910
16. Walküre (Wagner) Ein Schwert verhiess mir der Vater 01282 Pathé, Berlin 1910
17. Walküre (Wagner) Siegmund heiss ich 01282 Pathé, Berlin 1910
18. Walküre (Wagner) Winterstürme Pathé 15754 Pathé, Berlin 1910