Erich Wenk

Erich Wenk (12 August 1923 – 30 March 2012) was a German bass-baritone singer in opera and especially in concert. He was a professor of voice at the .

Career

Wenk was born in . In 1957 he performed the by Johannes Brahms on a tour through Germany with Erna Berger, Gertrude Pitzinger and Walther Ludwig. He recorded the part of Don Fernando in Beethoven's ''Fidelio'' for the NDR, conducted by , with Gladys Kuchta and Julius Patzak in leading roles. In 1960, he sang the part of nobleman from Genova in a recording of Franz Schreker's ''Die Gezeichneten'' of the NDR, with Thomas Stewart and Evelyn Lear in leading roles, conducted by Winfried Zillig. In 1967, he recorded Georg Philipp Telemann's '' Pimpinone'' with the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart, alongside Yvonne Ciannella.

Wenk appeared in oratorios such as Haydn's and ''Ein Deutsches Requiem'' by Brahms, performed by the and the in 1959, conducted by Mattias Büchel. In 1967 he sang in Frank Martin's , in 1968 in Bach's ''Christmas Oratorio''. In 1979, he performed the title role of Mendelssohn's with the and the , in the in Geisenheim and the , alongside soprano Klesie Kelly.

Wenk is regarded as a specialist for the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. He recorded Bach cantatas with Fritz Werner and Helmuth Rilling, among others. In a 1966 recording of the , he performed the rage aria . Wenk recorded Bach's Mass in B minor in 1956/59 with the ''Schwäbischer Singkreis Stuttgart'', conducted by Hans Grischkat. He sang the bass part in Bach's '' St Matthew Passion'' in a live recording conducted by at the Salle Pleyel, with Josef Traxel as the Evangelist and Helmut Fehn as the ''vox Christi''.

From 1969, Wenk was professor of voice at the . He died in Lohmar.

References

External links

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Erich Wenk
BAM (Bibliotheken, Archive, Museen)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wenk, Erich
1923 births
2012 deaths
German bass-baritones
Musicians from Königsberg
20th-century German musicians
20th-century German male musicians