Bernd Weikl (born 29 July 1942) is an Austrian

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

tic

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

, particularly known for his performances in the stage works by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

. He also has written books and directed operas.

Career

Born in Vienna, he moved with his family to

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

when he was ten years old. Weikl studied first in Mainz, national economics, and from 1962 to 1965 at the conservatory. He then studied voice at the Musikhochschule Hannover with Naan Pöld und William Reimer). He made his stage debut as Ottokar in Weber's ''

Der Freischütz ' ( J. 277, Op. 77 ''The Marksman'' or ''The Freeshooter'') is a German opera with spoken dialogue in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind, based on a story by Johann August Apel and Friedrich Laun from their 181 ...

'' and the

Staatsoper Hannover Hanover State Opera (german: Staatsoper Hannover) is an opera company in Hanover, the state capital of Lower Saxony, Germany. The company is resident in the Hanover Opera House (), and is part of a publicly-funded umbrella performing arts organ ...

. From 1970 to 1973 he was a member of the company at the Düsseldorf Opera. Weikl made his debut at the

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival (german: Salzburger Festspiele) is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer (for five weeks starting in late July) in the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amad ...

in 1971 as Melot in Wagner's ''

Tristan und Isolde ''Tristan und Isolde'' (''Tristan and Isolde''), WWV 90, is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the 12th-century romance Tristan and Iseult by Gottfried von Strassburg. It was compose ...

'', at the

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...

in 1972 as Wolfram in ''

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; gmh, Tanhûser), often stylized, "The Tannhäuser," was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and ...

'', at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

in London in 1975 as Figaro in Rossini's ''

The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an ''opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was base ...

'', at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

in 1977 as Wolfram, and at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

in Milan in 1980 as Ford in Verdi's ''

Falstaff Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...

''.

Roles

Weikl has performed around 120 roles during his career, in five languages. He is known for Hans Sachs in Wagner's ''

Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (; "The Master-Singers of Nuremberg"), WWV 96, is a music drama, or opera, in three acts, by Richard Wagner. It is the longest opera commonly performed, taking nearly four and a half hours, not counting two breaks between acts, and is traditio ...

'', which he has sung in major opera houses of the world. Other roles include: * The title roles in Mozart's ''

Don Giovanni ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanis ...

'', Verdi's ''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play ''Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had cont ...

'', Tchaikovsky's ''

Eugene Onegin ''Eugene Onegin, A Novel in Verse'' (Reforms of Russian orthography, pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform rus, Евгений Оне́гин, ромáн в стихáх, p=jɪvˈɡʲenʲɪj ɐˈnʲeɡʲɪn, r=Yevgeniy Onegin, roman v stikhakh) is ...

'' and Wagner's ''

Der fliegende Holländer ' (''The Flying Dutchman''), WWV 63, is a German-language opera, with libretto and music by Richard Wagner. The central theme is redemption through love. Wagner conducted the premiere at the Königliches Hoftheater Dresden in 1843. Wagner cla ...

'' * Count Almaviva in Mozart's '' Il nozze di Figaro'' * Amfortas in Wagner's ''

Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival ...

'' * Belcore in Donizetti's '' L'elisir d'amore'' * Luna in Verdi' s''

Il trovatore ''Il trovatore'' ('The Troubadour') is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto largely written by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play ''El trovador'' (1836) by Antonio García Gutiérrez. It was García Gutiérrez's mos ...

'' * Eisenstein in ''

Die Fledermaus ' (, ''The Flittermouse'' or ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874. Background The original ...

'' by Johann Strauss * Ford in Verdi's ''

'' * Golaud in Debussy's '' Pelléas et Mélisande'' * Guglielmo in Mozart's '' Così fan tutte'' * Jochanaan in '' Salome'' by Richard Strauss * Mandryka in '' Arabella'' by Richard Strauss * Cardinal Morone in Pfitzner's ''

Palestrina Palestrina (ancient ''Praeneste''; grc, Πραίνεστος, ''Prainestos'') is a modern Italian city and ''comune'' (municipality) with a population of about 22,000, in Lazio, about east of Rome. It is connected to the latter by the Via Pre ...

'' * Rodrigo in Verdi's ''

Don Carlos ''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Fried ...

'' * Tomsky in Tchaikovsky's '' Pique Dame'' * Zurga in Bizet's '' Les pêcheurs de perles'' * Wolfram in Wagner's ''

Recordings

* Orff's ''

Carmina burana ''Carmina Burana'' (, Latin for "Songs from Benediktbeuern" 'Buria'' in Latin is a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th century, although some are from the 13th century. The pieces are mostly bawdy, irreverent ...

'', with

James Levine James Lawrence Levine (; June 23, 1943 – March 9, 2021) was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016. He was terminated from all his positions and affiliations with the Met on March 1 ...

conducting the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

and

Chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

, with

June Anderson June Anderson (born December 30, 1952) is a Grammy Award-winning American coloratura soprano. She is known for ''bel canto'' performances of Rossini, Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini. Subsequently, she has extended her repertoire to include a wi ...

and Philip Creech (1984) ( DG) * ''Eugene Onegin'', title role with Georg Solti conducting the orchestra of the

, with Teresa Kubiak,

Stuart Burrows Stuart Burrows (born 7 February, 1933) is a Welsh operatic tenor. Biography The Cilfynydd-born singer was born on William Street, the same birthplace as fellow opera star Sir Geraint Evans, Welsh rugby international Glyn Davies, and polit ...

, Julia Hamari, and

Nicolai Ghiaurov Nicolai Ghiaurov (or ''Nikolai Gjaurov'', ''Nikolay Gyaurov'', bg, Николай Гяуров) (September 13, 1929 – June 2, 2004) was a Bulgarian opera singer and one of the most famous basses of the postwar period. He was admired for his ...

, also used as the score of

Petr Weigl Petr Weigl (16 March 1939 – 14 July 2018) was a Czech director and playwright. Biography In 1961 he graduated from the Prague Film School and the Academy of Performing Arts Television. He worked in the cinema, on television (1961-1976), at the ...

's filming of the opera * ''Die Fledermaus'', with

Carlos Kleiber Carlos Luis Bonifacio Kleiber (3 July 1930 – 13 July 2004) was an Austrian conductor who is widely regarded as among the greatest conductors of all time. Early life Kleiber was born as Karl Ludwig Bonifacius Kleiber in Berlin in 1930, the ...

conducting the Orchestra of the

Bavarian State Opera The Bayerische Staatsoper is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bayerische Staatsorchester. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under Ele ...

, with

Hermann Prey Hermann Prey ( Berlin, 11 July 1929 – Krailling, 22 July 1998) was a German lyric baritone, who was equally at home in the Lied, operatic and concert repertoires. His American debut was in November 1952, with the Philadelphia Orchestra an ...

Julia Varady Julia is usually a feminine given name. It is a Latinate feminine form of the name Julio (given name), Julio and Julius (name), Julius. (For further details on etymology, see the wikt:Iulius#Latin, Wiktionary entry "Julius".) The given name ''Ju ...

Lucia Popp Lucia Popp (born Lucia Poppová; 12 November 193916 November 1993) was a Slovak operatic soprano. She began her career as a soubrette, and later moved into the light-lyric and lyric coloratura soprano repertoire and then the lighter Richard S ...

René Kollo René Kollo (born 20 November 1937) is a German operatic tenor, especially known for his Wagnerian Heldentenor roles. He also performed a wide variety of operas and operettas, and made several recordings. Biography Born René Kollodzieyski in ...

, and

Ivan Rebroff Ivan Rebroff (31 July 193127 February 2008) was a German-born vocalist, allegedly of Russian ancestry, who rose to prominence for his distinct and extensive vocal range of four and a half octaves, ranging from the soprano to bass registers. ...

(1975) (DG) * ''Der fliegende Holländer'', with

Giuseppe Sinopoli Giuseppe Sinopoli (; 2 November 1946 – 21 April 2001) was an Italian conductor and composer. Biography Sinopoli was born in Venice, Italy, and later studied at the Benedetto Marcello Conservatory in Venice under Ernesto Rubin de Cervi ...

conducting the

Berlin State Opera The (), also known as the Berlin State Opera (german: Staatsoper Berlin), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Prussian king Frederick the Great from ...

Orchestra, with

Cheryl Studer Cheryl Studer (born October 24, 1955) is an American dramatic soprano who has sung at many of the world's foremost opera houses. Studer has performed more than eighty roles ranging from the dramatic repertoire to roles more commonly associated ...

, Hans Sotin,

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French ...

Peter Seiffert Peter Seiffert (born 4 January 1954) is a German tenor. Biography Born in Düsseldorf, Seiffert studied at the Musikhochschule in Düsseldorf and made his debut in 1978 at the Deutschen Oper am Rhein, Düsseldorf/Duisburg. In 1979, he was ...

, and Uta Priew (1991) * ''Der Freischütz'', with

conducting the Staatskapelle Dresden, with

Gundula Janowitz Gundula Janowitz (born 2 August 1937)"Janowitz, Gundula"
by Edith Mathis,

Peter Schreier Peter Schreier (29 July 1935 – 25 December 2019) was a German tenor in opera, concert and lied, and a conductor. He was regarded as one of the leading lyric tenors of the 20th century. Schreier was a member of the Dresdner Kreuzchor conduct ...

Theo Adam Theo Adam (1 August 1926 – 10 January 2019) was a German operatic bass-baritone and bass singer who had an international career in opera, concert and recital from 1949. He was a member of the Staatsoper Dresden for his entire career, and sang ...

Siegfried Vogel Siegfried Vogel (born 6 March 1937) is a German operatic Voice type, bass. Based at the Staatsoper Berlin, he performed internationally at major opera houses and festivals, including the Salzburg Festival and the Bayreuth Festival. He began in Wol ...

, Franz Crass, (1973) (DG) * Wagner's ''

Götterdämmerung ' (; ''Twilight of the Gods''), WWV 86D, is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four music dramas titled (''The Ring of the Nibelung'', or ''The Ring Cycle'' or ''The Ring'' for short). It received its premiere at the on 17 August 1876, as ...

'', with Levine conducting the

Orchestra, with

Hildegard Behrens Hildegard Behrens (9 February 1937 – 18 August 2009) was a German operatic soprano with a wide repertoire including Wagner, Weber, Mozart, Richard Strauss, and Alban Berg roles. She performed at major opera houses around the world, and received ...

Reiner Goldberg Reiner Goldberg (17 October 1939 in Crostau, Lusatia, Germany) is a German operatic heroic tenor. After his vocal studies at the conservatory of music "Carl Maria von Weber" in Dresden, Goldberg made his debut 1967 in the Saxon Theatre (Sächsi ...

Matti Salminen Matti Kalervo Salminen (born 7 July 1945) is a Finnish operatic bass, now retired, who has sung at the most important opera houses of the world, including the Metropolitan and Bayreuth Festival. He is distinguished by an imposing figure and ...

Hanna Schwarz Hanna Schwarz (born 15 August 1943) is a German mezzo-soprano and contralto singer in opera and concert. In 1976 she performed the roles of Fricka and Erda in the centenary '' Jahrhundertring'' production at the Bayreuth Festival, directed by Pat ...

, Cheryl Studer, Bernd Weikl,

Ekkehard Wlaschiha Ekkehard Wlaschiha (; 28 May 1938 – 20 February 2019) was a German operatic baritone who specialized in Wagnerian "villains", such as Alberich, Klingsor and Friedrich von Telramund. He performed at the Bayreuth Festival and at the Metropolita ...

(1991) (1992

Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by m ...

) * Wagner's ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wolf ...

'', with Woldemar Nelsson conducting the Bayreuth Festival, with

Peter Hofmann Peter Hofmann (22 August 1944 – 30 November 2010) was a German tenor who had a successful performance career within the fields of opera, rock, pop, and musical theatre. He first rose to prominence as a heldentenor at the Bayreuth festival's ' ...

Karan Armstrong Karan Armstrong (December 14, 1941 – September 28, 2021) was an American operatic soprano, who was celebrated as a singing actress. After winning the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions in 1966, she was given small roles at the Metr ...

(1982) (CBS) * ''Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg'', with

Horst Stein Horst Walter Stein (born 2 May 1928 in Elberfeld, Germany; died 27 July 2008 in Vandœuvres, Switzerland) was a German conductor. Biography Stein's father was a mechanic. At school in Frankfurt, he studied piano, oboe, and singing. Later, ...

conducting the Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele,

Siegfried Jerusalem Siegfried Jerusalem (born 17 April 1940) is a German operatic tenor. Closely identified with the heldentenor roles of Richard Wagner, he has performed Siegfried, Siegmund, Lohengrin, Parsifal, and Tristan to wide acclaim. Since the 1990s, he has ...

, Mari Anne Häggander, Graham Clark. Staged by

Wolfgang Wagner Wolfgang Wagner (30 August 191921 March 2010) was a German opera director. He is best known as the director (Festspielleiter) of the Bayreuth Festival, a position he initially assumed alongside his brother Wieland in 1951 until the latter's ...

, Video Director

Brian Large Brian Large (born 16 February 1939 in London, England) is a television director and author. He is among the world's foremost TV directors specializing in opera and classical music. Biography Studies Large studied at the Royal Academy of Music ...

, (1984) (Unitel), VHS * ''Parsifal'', with

Rafael Kubelík Rafael Jeroným Kubelík, KBE (29 June 1914 – 11 August 1996) was a Czech conductor and composer. Son of a well-known violinist, Jan Kubelík, he was trained in Prague, and made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of ...

conducting the

Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (german: Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, BRSO) is a German radio orchestra. Based in Munich, Germany, it is one of the city's four orchestras. The BRSO is one of two full-size symphony orchestr ...

, with James King,

Kurt Moll Kurt Moll (11 April 19385 March 2017) was a German operatic bass singer who enjoyed an international career and was widely recorded. His voice was notable for its range, a true basso profondo, including full, resonant low and very-low notes wit ...

and

Yvonne Minton Yvonne Fay Minton CBE (born 4 December 1938) is an Australian-born but mostly British-resident opera singer. She is variously billed as a soprano, mezzo-soprano or contralto. A native of Sydney, she originally studied voice while on a scholarshi ...

, (1980) (Arts Archives, stereo) * ''

'', with

Lamberto Gardelli Lamberto Gardelli (8 November 191517 July 1998) was a Swedish conductor of Italian birth,Lamberto Gardelli. ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera.'' Macmillan, London and New York, 1997. particularly associated with the Italian opera repertory, e ...

, conducting the Münchner Rundfunkorchester, with Giacomo Aragall and

(1984) (RCA) * Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari's '' Il segreto di Susanna'', with

, conducting the Orchestra of the

Covent Garden, with Maria Chiara and Omar Godknow (1977) (

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

) * Eugen d'Albert's '' Tiefland'',

Marek Janowski Marek Janowski (born 18 February 1939 in Warsaw) is a Polish-born German conductor. He is currently chief conductor of the Dresden Philharmonic. Childhood Janowski grew up in Wuppertal, near Cologne, after his mother traveled there at the st ...

, conducting the Münchner Rundfunkorchester, with Eva Marton and

(1983) (ARTS 47501-2) * Ruggero Leoncavallo's ''

La Bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions ''quadri'', ''tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe G ...

'', with

Heinz Wallberg Heinz Wallberg (16 March 192329 September 2004) was a German conductor. Wallberg was born in Herringen, Westphalia. He studied trumpet, violin and piano. He helped to support his family with his musical training after his father became unabl ...

conducting the Munich Symphony Orchestra, with

and

Franco Bonisolli Franco Bonisolli (May 25, 1938 – October 30, 2003) was an Italian operatic tenor, particularly associated with the Italian repertory, notably as Manrico and Calaf. Life and career Bonisolli was born in Rovereto, Italy. He studied with Alfr ...

. (1982) (Orfeo) * Johann Rudolf Zumsteeg (1760-1802) ''Balladen'' with Wolfgang Sawallisch on piano ''Die Entführung (The Abduction)'', ''Des Pfarrers Tochter von Taubenhain (The Pastor's Daughter of Taubenhain)'' (1983) (Orfeo)

Book publications

Weikl has published books about German music, including ''Swastikas on Stage'' and ''Freispruch für Richard Wagner?'' (Acquittal for Richard Wagner?).

References

External links

* *
Bernd Weikl (Baritone)
Bach Cantatas Website
Bernd Weikl
grammy.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Weikl, Bernd 1942 births Living people Grammy Award winners Austrian operatic baritones Musicians from Vienna Österreichischer Kammersänger 20th-century Austrian male opera singers 21st-century Austrian male opera singers Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany