Description

ADOLF KAKTINS (ĒRBERĢE, LATVIA, 1885 – LOS ANGELES, 1965)

He first worked as a bricklayer before becoming active as an actor. Later, he studied singing and made his debut in 1910 in Das Nachtlager von Granada by C. Kreutzer in Riga. He performed in Riga again in 1912 and 1914, before joining the Stadttheater in Nürnberg for the 1913–1915 seasons. From 1915 to 1918, he was engaged at the Theatre of Musical Drama in St. Petersburg.

From 1918 to 1944, he was one of the leading singers at the Latvian National Opera in Riga. In 1925, he made guest appearances at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo, performing in Demon by A. Rubinstein and Prince Igor by A. Borodin. He also sang the role of Scarpia in Tosca with Gilda dalla Rizza and Tonio in Pagliacci. In the same year, he appeared at the Grand Opéra in Paris as Amonasro in Aida.

He also performed as a guest at the opera houses of Kaunas, Libau, Tallinn, Helsinki, and at the Staatsoper in Munich, where he sang in Der fliegende Holländer and Otello. He appeared at the Grand Theatre in Warsaw as Mephistopheles in Faust by C. Gounod, and at the Bolschoi Theatre in Moscow as Rigoletto, Escamillo in Carmen, and Amonasro in Aida.

After 1944, he lived in West Germany, and from 1949, he resided in the United States, specifically in San José, California.

Chronology of some appearances

1913-1915 Nürnberg Stadttheater

1915-1918 St. Petersburg Theatre of Musical Drama

1925 Monte-Carlo Opéra

1918-1944 Riga National Opera

TRACKLIST

1. Demon (Rubinstein) The first Demon’s romance – Do not weep, child Metropol 111
2. Demon (Rubinstein) The second Demon’s romance – On the Ocean of the Air Metropol 112
3. Mazeppa (Tchaikovsky) Aria Parlophon 16510 87034
4. Tannhäuser (Wagner) O tu bell’astro incantator HMV EL1003 32-727
5. Don Juan (Napravnik) Serenade Gramophone 7-222008 EV19
6. Hamlet (Thomas) O vin, dissipe la tristesse Gramophone EK1031 30-1085
7. Otello (Verdi) Monologo Parlophon 51503 2-87302
8. Demon (Rubinstein) The first Demon’s romance – Do not weep, child Parlophon 16523 87039
9. Carmen (Bizet) Votre toast Metropol 115
10. Traviata (Verdi) Di Provenza (with orchestra) Gramophone 18-282591
11. Faust (Gounod) Air de Méphisto Gramophone 18-282592
12. Faust (Gounod) Rondo (with piano) Zonophone X-2-62811
13. Faust (Gounod) Rondo (with orchestra) Parlophon 16523 87041
14. The Queen of Spades (Tchaikovsky) Tomsky’s aria Parlophon 16510 87035
15. The Queen of Spades (Tchaikovsky) Tomsky’s aria Vox 3250 225D
16. Carmen (Bizet) Votre toast Gramophone 32-728 EL1003
17. Trovatore (Verdi) Il balen Gramophone 30-5341 EK1057
18. Traviata (Verdi) Di Provenza (with piano) Vox 3250 224D
19. Mazeppa (Tchaikovsky) Aria Gramophone 32-726 EL1002
20. Iolanta (Tchaikovsky) Aria Gramophone 7-222012 EV15
21. Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky) Love reigns over all ages Gramophone 32-725 EL1002
22. The Queen of Spades (Tchaikovsky) I love you Gramophone 7-222013 EV15