Hans Rössling (17 December 1927 – 6 July 2013) was a German operatic

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

Life

Rössling grew up in Mannheim- Sandhofen, trained as a municipal civil servant and took singing lessons with Heinrich Hölzlin. In 1950, he appeared for the first time in a small role in the ''

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 ...

'' as a guest at the

Mannheim National Theatre The Mannheim National Theatre () is a theatre and opera company in Mannheim, Germany, with a variety of performance spaces. It was founded in 1779 and is one of the oldest theatres in Germany. History In the 18th century Mannheim was the cap ...

. After participating in the Nuremberg singing competition "Meistersinger-Wettstreit" in 1952, he was engaged at the

Staatsoper Stuttgart The Staatsoper Stuttgart (Stuttgart State Opera) is a German opera company based in Stuttgart, the capital of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The Staatsorchester Stuttgart serves as its resident orchestra. History Performances of operas, ballet an ...

.Waltraud Brunst
"Von Anfang an ein Meistersinger"
', 9 July 2013 In 1953, he moved to the Mannheim National Theatre. The then artistic director had noted at the audition: "Nice guy with a sense of humour, tall, slim, even bigger voice as he matured".Waltraud Brunst
"Netter Kerl mit großer Stimme"
', 17 December 2012 He was a member of the ensemble of the National Theatre for almost four decades until his retirement in 1990. In 1979, Herbert Meyer described him as "always a reliable support in the second row of basses, occasionally in leading roles". After 1990, numerous guest appearances in Mannheim followed, but in 1995 he made his final stage farewell. Rössling last lived in Heddesheim. At his death in

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (), is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, second-largest city in Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, the States of Ger ...

aged 85, he left behind his wife and two children."Obituary"
July 2013, '

Honours

In 1988, Rössling was appointed a Baden-Württemberg

Kammersänger Kammersänger (male; ) or Kammersängerin (female; ), abbreviated Ks. or KS, is a German Title of honor, honorific title for distinguished singers of opera and classical music. It literally means "chamber singer". Historically, the title was besto ...

in recognition of his artistic merits and his services as a staff representative. In 1991, he became honorary member of the Mannheim National Theatre.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rossling, Hans German operatic basses 1927 births 2013 deaths Place of birth unknown 20th-century German male opera singers Musicians from Mannheim