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. Africaine (Meyerbeer) O Paradies 83033 3603-A Edison, New York 1915-02-24
2. Die Allmacht (Schubert) 4665-A Edison, New York 1916-04-18
3. Fidelio (Beethoven) Gott! welch Dunkel hier! 83030 3616 Edison, New York 1915-03-01
4. Fliegende Holländer (Wagner) Willst jenes Tages 57017 5528-B Edison, New York 1917-04-30
5. Freischütz (Weber) Durch die Wälder 83028 3589-B Edison, New York 1915-02-18
6. Joseph (Méhul) Ach mir lächelt umsonst unpubl 4617 Edison, New York 1916-03-30
7. Juive (Halévy) Recha, als Gott 82260 3598-B Edison, New York 1915-02-23
8. Lohengrin (Wagner) Das süsse Lied verhallt (w. Rappold) 83054 4683-A Edison, New York 1916-04-24
9. Lohengrin (Wagner) In fernem Land (Gralserzählung) 82277 3621 Edison, New York 1915-03-03
10. Lohengrin (Wagner) Mein lieber Schwan 83017 3236 Edison, New York 1914
11. Martha (Flotow) Ach, so fromm 82278 5496 Edison, New York 1917-04-09
12. Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) Preislied 82276 3622-B Edison, New York 1915-03-03
13. Missa Solennis (Franck) Panis Angelicus 83083 5392-B Edison, New York 1917-02-21
14. Muette de Portici (Auber) Des armen Trost unpubl 4666 Edison, New York 1916-04-18
15. O schöne Zeit (Götze) 73008 4623 Edison, New York 1916-03-31
16. Rienzi (Wagner) Allmächt’ger Vater 82269 3596-B Edison, New York 1915-02-23
17. Rienzi (Wagner) Erstehe hohe Roma 82275 5485 Edison, New York 1917-04-02
18. Sehnsucht (Rubinstein, TRC Riis) 83020 1420 Edison, London 1913-07
19. Siegfried (Wagner) Schmiedelied 83040 3681-B Edison, New York 1915-04
20. Stabat Mater (Rossini) Cujus animam 83082 5434-C Edison, New York 1917-03-07
21. Still wie die Nacht (Böhm) BA 28254 4664 Edison, New York 1916-04-18
22. Tannhäuser (Wagner) Gepriesen sei die Stunde (w. Rappold) 82279 5529-C Edison, New York 1917-05-01
23. Walküre (Wagner) Ein Schwert verhieß mir der Vater 82246 5425-A Edison, New York 1917-03-02
24. Walküre (Wagner) Siegmund heiss’ ich (w. Rappold) 82277 5533 Edison, New York 1917-05
25. Walküre (Wagner) Winterstürme wichen dem Wonnemond (Liebeslied) 82246 3615-B Edison, New York 1915-03-01
26. Weiss ich dich in meiner Nähe (Abt) (w. Rappold) BA 28251 4682 Edison, New York 1916-04-24
27. Wenn die Schwalben heimwärts zieh’n (Abt) (w. Rappold) BA 28242 4687 Edison, New York 1916-04-25
28. Zauberflöte (Mozart) Dies Bildnis ist bezaubernd schön 82260 3597-B Edison, New York 1915-02-23
29. Zauberflöte (Mozart) Wie stark ist nicht dein Zauberton 57017 5356-B Edison, New York 1917-02-09
30. Zauberlied (Meyer-Helmund) 83022 1424 Edison, London 1913-07