Hans Braun (14 May 1917 – 2 May 1992) was an Austrian operatic

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 ...

. He was a long-term member of the

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August S ...

and appeared in leading roles such as Mozart's Count Almaviva and Wagner's Wolfram, including in major European opera houses and festivals.

Life

Born in Vienna, Braun was a member of the Peterlini-Sängerknaben in his home town. He studied voice at the

Wiener Musikakademie The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university located in Vienna, established in 1817. With a student body of over three thousa ...

with

Hermann Gallos Hermann Gallos (21 January 1886 – 20 February 1957) was an Austrian operatic tenor and academic teacher. He was a long-standing ensemble member of the Vienna State Opera and performed regularly at the Salzburg Festival from 1922 to 1950, in role ...

and Hans Duhan. He made his debut in 1938. From 1943 to 1945 he had an engagement at the

Stadttheater Königsberg For over 200 years, the Stadttheater Königsberg (Königsberg municipal theatre) in Königsberg was one of the most respected theatres in Prussia and in the German Empire. History Forerunner The Königsberg theatre began with carnival games and sc ...

in today's

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad ( ; rus, Калининград, p=kəlʲɪnʲɪnˈɡrat, links=y), until 1946 known as Königsberg (; rus, Кёнигсберг, Kyonigsberg, ˈkʲɵnʲɪɡzbɛrk; rus, Короле́вец, Korolevets), is the largest city and ...

. From 1945, he was a member of the

, to which he belonged until 1979. After singing secondary roles in the beginning, he soon advanced to leading roles, performing 75 roles there. 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 ...

, he first appeared as a concert singer, then in 1949 and 1950 as the Minister in Beethoven's ''

Fidelio ''Fidelio'' (; ), originally titled ' (''Leonore, or The Triumph of Marital Love''), Op. 72, is Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera. The German libretto was originally prepared by Joseph Sonnleithner from the French of Jean-Nicolas Bouilly, with ...

'', in 1950 also as Olivier in '' Capriccio'' by Richard Strauss and Tarquinius in Benjamin Britten's ''

The Rape of Lucretia ''The Rape of Lucretia'' (Op. 37) is an opera in two acts by Benjamin Britten, written for Kathleen Ferrier, who performed the title role. Ronald Duncan based his English libretto on André Obey's play '. Performance history The opera was fi ...

''. Braun made guest appearances at many European opera houses. He appeared 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 as Count Almaviva in Mozart's ''

Le nozze di Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...

'' in 1949 and as Orest in '' Elektra'' by Richard Strauss in 1953, which he also sang at the

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (English: Florence Musical May) is an annual Italian arts festival in Florence, including a notable opera festival, under the auspices of the Opera di Firenze. The festival occurs between late April into June annuall ...

that year. In 1950, he performed as Wolfram in Wagner's '' Tannhaüser'' 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. He appeared also in Naples, Berlin, Munich and Hamburg, and 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 ...

, where he performed the role of the Heerrufer in ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in Germany, German Arthurian literature. The son of Percival, 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 fi ...

''. Braun was briefly married to his colleague . Braun died in Vienna at age 74.

Honours

* 1977: Honorary member of the Vienna State Opera

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Braun, Hans 1917 births 1992 deaths Musicians from Vienna Austrian operatic baritones Recipients of the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, 1st class 20th-century Austrian male opera singers

Life

Honours

Further reading

References

External links