Chester Simon Kallman (January 7, 1921 – January 18, 1975) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

poet, librettist, and translator, best known for collaborating with W. H. Auden on opera librettos for

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

and other composers.

Life

Kallman was born in Brooklyn of

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

Jewish ancestry. He received his B.A. at

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls about 15,000 undergraduate and 2,800 graduate students on a 35-acre campus. Being New York City's first publ ...

and his M.A. at the University of Michigan. He published three collections of poems, ''Storm at Castelfranco'' (1956), ''Absent and Present'' (1963), and ''The Sense of Occasion'' (1971). He lived most of his adult life in New York, spending his summers in Italy from 1948 through 1957 and in Austria from 1958 through 1974. In 1963 he moved his winter home from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

to Athens, Greece. He died there of a heart attack on January 18, 1975, eleven days after his 54th birthday. Kallman had been the beneficiary of the entirety of Auden's estate, but himself died intestate, with the result that the estate was inherited by his next-of-kin, his father, Edward Kallman (1892–1986), a New York dentist in his eighties.

Career

Together with his lifelong friend (and sometime lover) W. H. Auden, Kallman wrote the libretto for

Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

's '' The Rake's Progress'' (1951). They also collaborated on two librettos for Hans Werner Henze, '' Elegy for Young Lovers'' (1961) and '' The Bassarids'' (1966), and on the libretto of ''

Love's Labour's Lost ''Love's Labour's Lost'' is one of William Shakespeare's early comedies, believed to have been written in the mid-1590s for a performance at the Inns of Court before Elizabeth I of England, Queen Elizabeth I. It follows the King of Navarre and ...

'' (based on Shakespeare's play) for Nicolas Nabokov (1973). Additionally, they wrote the libretto "Delia, or, A Masque of Night" (1953), intended for

but never set to music. They were commissioned to write the lyrics for ''

Man of La Mancha ''Man of La Mancha'' is a 1965 musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, music by Mitch Leigh, and lyrics by Joe Darion. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay ''I, Don Quixote'', which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes ...

'', but Kallman did no work on the project, and the producers decided against using Auden's contributions. Kallman was the sole author of the libretto of '' The Tuscan Players'' for Carlos Chávez (1953, first performed in 1957 as ''Panfilo and Lauretta''). He and Auden collaborated on a number of libretto translations, notably ''The Magic Flute'' (1956) and ''Don Giovanni'' (1961). Kallman also translated Verdi's '' Falstaff'' (1954), Monteverdi's ''

The Coronation of Poppea ''L'incoronazione di Poppea'' ( SV 308, ''The Coronation of Poppaea'') is an Italian opera by Claudio Monteverdi. It was Monteverdi's last opera, with a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Busenello, and was first performed at the Teatro Santi Giovanni ...

'' (1954) and many other operas.

Bibliography

;Poems *''An Elegy'' (1951). New York: Tibor de Nagy Gallery. (pamphlet poem) *''Storm at Castelfranco'' (1956). New York: Grove Press. *''Absent and Present: poems'' (1963). Middletown: Wesleyan University Press. *''The Sense of Occasion: poems'' (1971). New York: George Braziller. ;Libretti *'' The Rake's Progress'' (1951, with W. H. Auden, for music by

) New York: Boosey & Hawkes. *''Delia, or A masque of Night'' (1953, with W. H. Auden; published in ''Botteghe Oscure'' XII; never set to music) *'' Elegy for Young Lovers'' (1961, with W. H. Auden, for music by Hans Werner Henze). Mainz: B. Schott's Söhne. *''Love Propitiated'' (pbd. 1963, for music by

Carlos Chavez Carlos may refer to: Places ;Canada * Carlos, Alberta, a locality ;United States * Carlos, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Carlos, Maryland, a place in Allegany County * Carlos, Minnesota, a small city * Carlos, West Virginia ;Elsewhere ...

; first performed as ''Panfilo and Lauretta'', 1957, then as ''Love Propitated'', 1961). New York: Mills Music. *'' The Bassarids'' (1966, with W. H. Auden, for music by Hans Werner Henze). Mainz: B. Schott's Söhne. *''

'' (1973, with W. H. Auden, for music by Nicolas Nabokov). Berlin: Bote & Bock. ;Translations (published) *'' Bluebeard's Castle'' (1952; translation of the libretto by Béla Balázs for the opera by

Béla Bartók Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as H ...

). New York: Boosey & Hawkes *'' Falstaff'' (1954; translation of the libretto of the opera by Arrigo Boito). New York: G. Ricordi. *'' The Magic Flute'' (1956, with W. H. Auden, translation of the libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder for an NBC Opera Theatre production of the opera by

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

). New York: Random House. *'' Anne Boleyn'' (1959; translation of the libretto by Felice Romani for the opera by Donizetti). New York: G. Ricordi. *''The Prize Fight'' (1959; translation of the libretto by Luciano Conosciani for Vieri Tosatti's opera ''Partita a Pugni''). Milan: Ricordi. *''

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 ...

'' (1961, with W. H. Auden, translation of the libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte for an NBC Opera Theatre production of the opera by

). New York: Schirmer. *'' The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny'', translation of the libretto by

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

for the opera by Kurt Weill. (pbd. 1976, with W. H. Auden). Boston: David Godine. *''Arcifanfano, King of Fools'' (pbd. with a recording, 1992, with W. H. Auden, translation of the libretto by Carlo Goldoni for the opera by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf). ;Editions *''An Elizabethan Song Book'' (1955, with W. H. Auden and

Noah Greenberg Noah Greenberg (April 9, 1919 – January 9, 1966) was an American choral conductor. Greenberg was born in the Bronx. In 1937, aged 18, he joined the Socialist Workers Party of Max Shachtman, and worked as a lathe operator and party activist. He ...

). New York: Anchor Books.

References

Sources

* Humphrey Carpenter, ''W. H. Auden: A Biography'' (1981). * W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, ''Libretti and Other Dramatic Writings by W. H. Auden'' (1988), ed. by Edward Mendelson. * Dorothy J. Farnan, ''Auden in Love'' (1984) * Thekla Clark, ''Wystan and Chester'' (1995). * Richard Davenport-Hines, ''Auden'' (1996)

External links

*
W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman letters to Irving and Anne Weiss, 1940s-2000
held by the Henry W. and Albert A. Berg Collection of English and American Literature
New York Public Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kallman, Chester 1921 births 1975 deaths 20th-century American poets American opera librettists Brooklyn College alumni American gay writers Jewish American writers LGBT Jews American LGBT poets Writers from Brooklyn University of Michigan alumni 20th-century dramatists and playwrights American male poets 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American Jews 20th-century LGBT people