Josef von Manowarda (1890-1942)
with Maria Müller, Margarete Klose, Franz Völker, Jaro Prohaska
Mein Herr und Gott
Tannhäuser
by Richard Wagner
Josef von Manowarda, Austrian bass of Polish birth, studied in Graz, where he sang from 1911 to 1915. Then, after three years at the Vienna Volksoper and a further period of study, he made his debut at the Staatsoper as the Spirit Messenger in the premiere of Die Frau ohne Schatten (1919). He continued to sing regularly in Vienna even after 1934, when he moved to Berlin. At Salzburg he was heard first in 1922 and at Bayreuth in 1931; he became closely associated with both festivals, his Mozart roles including Osmin in Die Entführung, while at Bayreuth he sang most of the Wagnerian bass parts. Elsewhere he also took the bass-baritone roles of Wotan and Hans Sachs. Recordings (some from actual performances) capture something of the authority and power of his stage performances but also expose unevenness in his voice production. (J. B. Steane)
Margarete Klose (1902-1968), mezzo-soprano, studied in Berlin with Marschalk and Bultemann, then made her debut at Ulm in 1927. She was a member of the Mannheim Opera (1928-31), then of the Berlin Staatsoper. In 1935 she sang Ortrud under Beecham at Covent Garden and in 1936 she began to appear at Bayreuth. She was heard in London again in 1937, as Fricka, Waltraute and Brangäne, and in 1939 in Rome. After the war she sang in North and South America, at the Salzburg Festival and in Italy, Spain, London and Vienna. In 1949 she moved from the Berlin Staatsoper to the Stadtische Oper, returning to her old company in 1958 and retiring in 1961. Klose’s clear, rich voice and dignified stage bearing fitted her admirably for the Wagnerian mezzo roles in which she was best known. She was also a distinguished Clytemnestra in Elektra and Iphigenie en Aulide, and she appeared with success as Carmen, the Kostelnicka (Jenufa), Dalila and Mrs Herring (Albert Herring), as well as in many Verdi roles. (Peter Branscombe)
After an early career as a church organist, baritone Jaro Prohaska (1891-1965) studied singing at the Vienna Music Academy (1919-23) and made his debut in 1922 at Lubeck. After an engagement at Nuremberg (1925-31) he joined the Berlin Staatsoper, of which he remained a member until 1952, taking part in the premiere of Graener’s Der Prinz von Homburg (1935). He sang regularly at Bayreuth (1933-44) as Hans Sachs, Wotan, Gunther, Telramund, Amfortas and the Dutchman. He appeared at the Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires (1935 and 1937), and at the Paris Opera (1936 and 1940). In addition to Wagner roles his repertory included Ochs, which he sang at the 1949 Salzburg Festival. He was appointed head of the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin in 1947 and director of its opera school in 1952; among his pupils was Hermann Prey. (Harold Rosenthal and Alany Blyth)
Biographical sketches of soprano Maria Müller and tenor Franz Völker appear on their duet page.
Recorded in Bayreuth, 1936, with the chorus and orchestra of the Festspielhaus, Heinz Tietjen conducting.
