Lotte Lehmann: Comparing Recordings

You may choose to hear the original comparison chapters found in the free Apple iBooks Lotte Lehmann & Her Legacy or those chapters that have been converted to web format in these pages: From Volume 1 or From Volume 2. On this page you can hear Lehmann and others of her time, as well as our own time. Sometimes it’s difficult to compare recordings when they use different recording techniques, but with a little experience you’ll be able to listen to more than just the sound. Notice the color of the voice the artists choose. Are they able to tell the story? Do they set the mood? It’s a lot more than just the voice’s basic sound. I’m trying to assemble text/translations at the bottom of the page.

The first comparison is Viorica Ursuleac singing Mein Elemer! from a 1942 Salzburg performance of Arabella by Richard Strauss. Clemens Krauss conducted the Wiener Staatsoper Orchestra. Though Lehmann didn’t sing the world premier, she did sing the first performance in Vienna a few days later. Ursuleac competed with Lehmann for roles and had a good reputation. She may have suffered from not recording well. See what you think. You can find the text and translation at the bottom of the page. Ursuleac 1942     Lehmann 1933

Now let’s hear a modern recording of Jessye Norman with Kurt Masur conducting the Gewandhaus Orchestra of Leipzig in a 1983 stereo recording of Zueignung by Strauss. This will be followed by Lehmann’s 1930s radio broadcast of the same song. In this era only one microphone was used for both orchestra and singer. Lehmann’s is obviously monaural. See the text/translation below. Norman           Lehmann

Here’s a chance to hear a contemporary recording by the under-rated Gundula Janowitz with Irwin Gage in Schubert’s Wiegenlied or Cradle Song. Lehmann’s performance is from a radio broadcast. I have included the text/translation below. Janowitz            Lehmann

One of the most respected sopranos of Lehmann’s era was Elisabeth Rethberg, who, like Lehmann, sang both opera and Lieder. Though these two performances of Wolf’s Wenn du mein Liebster are from the same period of time, Rethberg’s is from an HMV 1934 studio recording with Coenraad V. Bos, piano and Lehmann’s is a live 1938 Town Hall radio broadcast with Paul Ulanowsky, piano.  Rethberg    Lehmann

Let’s do Lehmann a service now and hear her in her prime in a 1935 studio recording of Schubert’s Im Abendrot or At Sunset with Ernö Balogh and compare that to her exact contemporary Elisabeth Schumann in a 1927 recording with Karl Alwin, piano. E. Schumann        Lehmann

One of the amazing outbursts in all of opera is O Sachs, mein Freund! from Wagner’s Die Meistersinger. Let’s hear the electric 1928 recording that Delia Reinhardt made with George Sébastian conducting and compare that with the acoustic 1925 session that Lehmann recorded with Hermann Weigert, the conductor. Reinhardt      Lehmann

Now let’s compare Lehmann live (1938) and Lehmann in a studio recording (1941). This is Wolf’s Verborgenheit with Paul Ulanowsky. Though the live sound is poor, listen to the spontaneity that results from an audience’s feedback.  Studio   Live  Let’s sample two more recordings of the same song recorded in the same period. First, the highly respected baritone Herbert Janssen with Michael Raucheisen in 1935: Janssen  Then you can hear the tenor Karl Erb with Bruno Seidler-Winkler. Erb

Lehmann was justly famous for her interpretation of Schubert’s Erlkönig, which you can hear with her own introductory remarks in a 1941 recording; the pianist is Paul Ulanowsky. It’s fascinating to hear what the bass Alexander Kipnis did with this same song recorded in 1936 with Gerald Moore, piano. Kipnis        Lehmann

The singers sampled above, such as Kipnis, E. Schumann, Janssen and others were able to sing opera and Lieder with equal effectiveness. During Lehmann’s time the baritone Heinrich Schlusnus also succeeded in both fields. Let’s compare the 1933 recording that Schlusnus and Franz Rupp performed of Morgen by R. Strauss. Lehmann’s recording with Ulanowsky is from 1941. Schlusnus      Lehmann

Lehmann sang mélodie as well as Lieder. In this case we’ll hear Duparc’s La vie antérieure to the words of Baudelaire. This comparison is more difficult because of the vast difference in recording techniques (1949 vs. 1971), two voice types (soprano & baritone), and at two extremes in their lives (Lehmann was 61 and Bernard Kruysen was 38). This is really a chance for you to put on your most sophisticated listening ears. Ulanowsky was Lehmann’s pianist and Noël Lee, Kruysen’s. Kruysen   Lehmann

Lehmann passed on in 1976 while I was in Germany. When I returned to California I visited her companion Frances Holden in Santa Barbara. She allowed me to look through the piles of neglected 78rpm records where, among many other treasures, I discovered a test pressing of Schubert’s Nacht und Träume made in 1947 when Lehmann was already 59 years old. This is a demanding song in many ways: the need for lots of breath control, a feeling for line and phrase, a sustained mood and of course, accurate pitch. When RCA determined to release a new Lehmann CD, I was asked what it should contain. Among other songs I definitely wanted this Nacht und Träume. Hear how Hermann Prey and Elisabeth Schumann have interpreted it too. Lehmann   Hermann Prey    Elisabeth Schumann

One of the other great singers of the 20th Century was Kirsten Flagstad, who was really a helden-soprano (heroic soprano), whereas Lehmann was a lyric soprano. But they did sing each other’s roles. Let’s hear Du bist der Lenz from Die Walküre from a 1937 recording that Flagstad made with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy. Lehmann’s famous recording of the same opera with Bruno Walter and the Vienna Philharmonic was made in 1935. Flagstad     Lehmann

When I asked Lehmann about the rehearsal needed for this historic recording with Melchior, List etc., she replied casually, “Ach, we already knew it.”

If Flagstad deserved her lofty Wagnerian reputation, then Frida Leider was very close to that same pinnacle. Let’s hear Leider sing Wagner’s Schmerzen with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir John Barbirolli in 1931. Lehmann recorded the same song in 1929 with the Berlin State Opera Orchestra conducted by Frieder Weissmann. Leider     Lehmann (not yet the best sound available).

The intense rivalry between Lehmann and Maria Jeritza in the Vienna Opera went far beyond what we can imagine today. It was such deeply held opinions and convictions by fans of each diva, that the sopranos exited the opera house by separate doors to prevent clashes. And there was no love lost between the two women. Jeritza was beautiful, and obvious in her stage work. Lehmann was plain, and more subtle. They had their admirers: both Puccini and Strauss found elements in each singer to praise and appreciate. You can judge for yourself, from Marietta’s song from Korngold’s Die tote Stadt with Jeritza singing the solo version in 1922 and Lehmann singing the duet (with Richard Tauber) in 1924. In both cases, these were acoustic recordings (no microphone); this accounts for the fact that the “s” sound didn’t record, as well as other troublesome consonants. Note that since all three of these artists knew the young composer personally, they felt completely at ease in altering the words.  Jeritza      Lehmann

In every case it’s best to hear a recording on your hi-fi equipment; CDs sound a lot better than MP3s when making comparisons. These are just suggestions to get you going. Judith Sutcliffe reminded me of a radio program of Liebestod (also called Mild und Leise) comparisons that Jim Svejda did some years ago and I’ll do what I can to bring together those wonderful singers and add one of our own time. Go to the bottom of the page for the text/translation. Nina Stemme – Liebestod    Maria Callas 1949 Mild und Leise     Birgit Nilsson – Liebestod     Kirsten Flagstad 1939 Liebestod     Lotte Lehmann 1930 Mild und Leise

Mein Elemer! – Das hat so einen sonderbaren Klang…
Er mein – ich sein. Was ist denn das,
mir ist ja, wie wenn eine Angst mich überfiele –
und eine Sehnsucht ja, nach was denn auf der Welt?
Nach dem Matteo?
Weil er immer sagt, er kann nicht leben ohne mich, und mich so anschaut
mit Augen wie ein Kind?
Nach dem Matteo sehnt sich nichts in mir!
Ich möchte meinen fremden Mann noch einmal sehn!
Ich möchte einmal seine Stimme hören! –
Dann wäre er wie die Anderen für mich. –
Wie sagt die Zdenka: dass wir warten müssen bis uns einer wählt,
und sonst sind wir verloren.

Es ist Zeit dass sie in Mädelkleider kommt, die Kleine,
sie hat so sonderbare Blicke. Wenn ich dann verheirat’t bin
muss sie zu mir. Verheirat’t mit dem Elemer?
Was rührt mich denn so an, als trät ich einem übers Grab?
Ist das der fremde Mann mit dem ich nie ein Wort geredet hab
zieht der im Dunkel so an mir?
Herr Gott, er ist ja sicher ein verheiratheter Mann
und ich soll und ich werd ihn nicht mehr wiedersehn!
Und heut ist Faschingdienstag und am Abend ist mein Ball
– Von dem bin ich die Königin – und dann…

My Elemer! – That has such a strange sound…
He “mine” – I “his”. What is this then,
to me it’s just, as when a fear has fallen over me-
and a longing, after what then in all the world?
Longing for Matteo?
Because he always says,
he can’t live without me, and looks at me
with the eyes of a child?
For Matteo there is no feeling in me!
I’d like to see my strange man again!
I’d like to hear his voice! –
Then he’d be like the others for me. –
What does Zdenka say: that we must
wait until one chooses us,
and otherwise we’re lost.

It’s time that she dressed as a girl, the young one [Zdenka],
she has such a wonderful look.
When I am married
she must stay with me.
Will I marry Elemer?
What upsets me so, as though I
stepped on someone’s grave?
Is that the strange man with whom I
haven’t even spoken a word
that pulls at me in the darkness?
Dear God, he is probably a married man
whom I shouldn’t and won’t ever see again!
And today is Mardi Gras and tonight is my ball
– In that I am the queen – and then…

Though Zueignung or Dedication is well known, perhaps too well known, the orchestra version has an attraction.

Ja, du weißt es, teure Seele,
Daß ich fern von dir mich quäle,
Liebe macht die Herzen krank,
Habe Dank.

Einst hielt ich, der Freiheit Zecher,
Hoch den Amethysten-Becher,
Und du segnetest den Trank,
Habe Dank.

Und beschworst darin die Bösen,
Bis ich, was ich nie gewesen,
Heilig, heilig an’s Herz dir sank,
Habe Dank

Yes, you know it, dear soul,
That I suffer far from you,
Love makes the heart sick,
Have thanks.

Once I a freedom reveler,
Held high the amethyst beaker,
And you blessed the drink,
Have thanks.

And you exorcised the evils in it,
Until I, as I had never been before,
Blessed, blessed sank upon your heart,
Have thanks.

Wiegenlied or Cradle Song is so often associated with Brahms, it’s almost as if no other composer set such a song. Of course there are many and this one by Schubert uses the poetry of that famous name: anonymous.

Verborgenheit (Secrecy or Seclusion) is one of Wolf’s best loved songs. This was written during one of his intense compositional efforts to one poet or another. In this case the poet was Mörike.

Was ich traure, weiß ich nicht,
Es ist unbekanntes Wehe;
Immerdar durch Tränen sehe
Ich der Sonne liebes Licht.

Oft bin ich mir kaum bewußt,
Und die helle Freude zücket
Durch die Schwere,
so mich drücket,
Wonniglich in meiner Brust.

Laß, o Welt, o laß mich sein!
Locket nicht mit Liebesgaben,
Laßt dies Herz alleine haben
Seine Wonne, seine Pein

Oh, world, let me be!
Don’t entice with love’s-gifts,
Let this heart alone have
Its bliss, its pain!

What I mourn, I know not.
It is unknown misery;
Always through tears I see
The sun’s dear light.

Often, I am scarcely conscious
And the bright joy quivers
Through the heaviness
weighing me down,
Delightfully in my breast.

Oh, world, let me be!
Don’t entice not with gifts of love.
Let this heart in solitude have
Your bliss, your pain!

Erlkönig is often spoofed, but this spooky story by Goethe, has held its own fascination since the time the 17 year old Schubert wrote it in 1804.

Wer reitet so spät durch Nacht und Wind?
Es ist der Vater mit seinem Kind;
Er hat den Knaben wohl in dem Arm,
Er faßt ihn sicher, er hält ihn warm.

“Mein Sohn, was birgst du so bang dein Gesicht?” —
“Siehst, Vater, du den Erlkönig nicht?
Den Erlenkönig mit Kron und Schweif?” —
“Mein Sohn, es ist ein Nebelstreif.”

“Du liebes Kind, komm, geh mit mir!
Gar schöne Spiele spiel’ ich mit dir;
Manch’ bunte Blumen sind an dem Strand,
Meine Mutter hat manch gülden Gewand.

“Mein Vater, mein Vater, und hörest du nicht,
Was Erlenkönig mir leise verspricht?”
“Sei ruhig, bleibe ruhig, mein Kind;
In dürren Blättern säuselt der Wind.”

“Willst, feiner Knabe, du mit mir gehen?
Meine Töchter sollen dich warten schön;
Meine Töchter führen den nächtlichen Reihn,
Und wiegen und tanzen und singen dich ein.”

“Mein Vater, mein Vater, und siehst du nicht dort
Erlkönigs Töchter am düstern Ort?”
“Mein Sohn, mein Sohn, ich seh es genau:
Es scheinen die alten Weiden so grau.”

“Ich liebe dich, mich reizt deine schöne Gestalt;
Und bist du nicht willig, so brauch ich Gewalt.”
“Mein Vater, mein Vater, jetzt faßt er mich an!
Erlkönig hat mir ein Leids getan!”

Dem Vater grauset’s, er reitet geschwind,
Er hält in Armen das ächzende Kind,
Erreicht den Hof mit Müh’ und Not;
In seinen Armen das Kind war tot.

Who rides, so late, through night and wind?
It is the father with his child.
He has the boy well in his arm
He holds him safely, he keeps him warm.

“My son, why do you hide your face so anxiously?”
“Father, do you not see the Erl king?
The Erl king with crown and tail?”
“My son, it’s a wisp of fog.”

“You dear child, come, go with me!
Very lovely games I’ll play with you;
Many colourful flowers are on the shore,
My mother has many golden robes.”

“My father, my father, and don’t you hear
What Erl king quietly promises me?”
“Be calm, stay calm, my child;
The wind is rustling through withered leaves.”

“Do you want to come with me, pretty boy?
My daughters shall wait on you finely;
My daughters will lead the nightly dance,
And rock and dance and sing you to sleep.”

“My father, my father, and don’t you see there
Erl king’s daughters in the gloomy place?”
“My son, my son, I see it clearly:
There shimmer the old willows so grey.”

“I love you, your beautiful form entices me;
And if you’re not willing, then I need force.”
“My father, my father, he’s grabbing me now!
Erl king has done me some harm!”

It horrifies the father; he swiftly rides on,
He holds the moaning child in his arms,
Reaches the farm with trouble and hardship;
In his arms, the child was dead.

Morgen! (Tomorrow) is one of the most often performed songs of Richard Strauss. Whether because of the words of John Henry Mackay, or the effect of the slow melody with a long introduction, is up to you to decide.

Und morgen wird die Sonne wieder scheinen,
und auf dem Wege, den ich gehen werde,
wird uns, die Glücklichen, sie wieder einen
inmitten dieser sonnenatmenden Erde…

Und zu dem Strand, dem weiten, wogenblauen,
werden wir still und langsam niedersteigen,
stumm werden wir uns in die Augen schauen,
und auf uns sinkt des Glückes stummes Schweigen…

And tomorrow the sun will shine again,
and on the path, I will take,
it will unite us again, we happy ones,
upon this sun-breathing earth…

And to the shore, the wide shore with blue waves,
we will descend quietly and slowly;
we will look mutely into each other’s eyes
and the silence of happiness will settle upon us.

If I may quote Graham Johnson from his French Song Companion, “La vie antérieure…a perfect complicity between composer and poem…we find epic grandeur totally without bombast, and a sense of perfect truth in the response to the poet’s images.” There is much more on this song and many others in his book, that makes for fascinating reading.

J’ai longtemps habité sous de vastes portiques
Que les soleils marins teignaient de mille feux,
Et que leurs grands piliers, droits et majestueux,
Rendaient pareils, le soir, aux grottes basaltiques.

Les houles, en roulant les images des cieux,
Mêlaient d’une façon solennelle et mystique
Les tout puissants accords de leur riche musique
Aux couleurs du couchant reflété par mes yeux…

C’est là, c’est là que j’ai vécu dans les voluptés calmes
Au milieu de l’azur, des vagues, des splendeurs,
Et des esclaves nus tout imprégnés d’odeurs

Qui me rafraîchissaient le front avec des palmes,
Et dont l’unique soin était d’approfondir
Le secret douloureux qui me faisait languir.

Long I had lived beneath immense colonnades
Dyed with a thousand fires by ocean suns,
And whose great columns, erect and majestic,
Seemed, at night, just like basalt grottoes.

The rolling waves tossing the mirrored skies
Blended in a solemn and mystic way
The all-powerful chords of their rich music
Colored like the sunset reflected in my eyes

It is there, there that I lived in tranquil luxury
In the midst of the blue, the waves and the wonders,
And the nude slaves drenched with fragrance

Who refreshed my brow with palm leaves,
And whose sole care was to fathom
the painful secret that made me languish.

You are the Spring for which I longed
in the frosty winter season.
My heart greeted you with holy terror
when your first glance set me on fire.
I had only ever seen strangers;
my surroundings were friendless.
As if I had never known, that was everything that came my way.
But I recognized you plain and clear; when my eyes saw you,
you were mine;
what I hid in my heart, what I am,
bright as day it came to me,
like a resounding echo it fell upon my ear,
when cold, lonely and estranged I first saw my friend.

Here’s what James Leonard has to say about Schmerzen, or Pains. “[In 1848] Wagner fled to Zurich where…he met Otto Wesendonck in 1852…Wesendonck had more to offer than merely his wallet: he had a guest house and a beautiful wife. It was just what Wagner needed. He [Wagner] and his wife moved in in 1856 and he started writing the libretto for…Tristan und Isolde….Wagner began composing what became the Fünf Gedichte von Mathilde Wesendonck in November 1857. The third song he wrote was Schmerzen… A morbidly erotic song that joins love and death in passionate embrace, Wagner sets Mathilde’s poem with highly charged chromatic music that starts with a cry of pain and ends with the bliss of ecstasy…”

Softly and gently
how he smiles,
how his eyes
charmingly open
–do you see, friends?
do you not see?
how he shines
ever brighter.
Star-haloed
rising higher
Do you not see?
to drown,
to founder –
unconscious –
utmost rapture!