Herbert Handt
Tenor Herbert Handt turned to conducting later in life and specialized in the revival of neglected Italian repertory. He spent much of his career in Europe and settled permanently in Italy.
Handt was born in Philadelphia on May 26, 1926. Conductor Otto Ackermann was his cousin. Handt studied at the Juilliard School in New York (where he sang in the choir of NBC Radio) and later at the Vienna Academy of Music in Austria. There, his principal teacher was Hans Swarowsky. In 1949, Handt made his debut at the Staatsoper in Vienna. He enjoyed a successful career in Europe, appearing at houses in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and above all Italy where he took up residence in Rome. He later moved to Lucca. Handt originated roles in three important contemporary operas; he sang Don Giovanni Mediana in Gian Francesco Malipiero's Venere prigioniera (at the Teatro della Pergola in Florence in 1957), Zuckertanz in Gian Carlo Menotti's Maria Golovin (at the Brussels World's Fair in 1958), and Primo Omuncolo in Roberto Lupi's Persefone (at the Teatro Comunale in Florence in 1970). He also sang oratorio repertory frequently. Handt was featured on various recordings in the early LP era; some of these, such as a 1958 Italian-language recording of Mussorgsky's Khovanschina with Artur Rodzinski as conductor, have been reissued in digital media.
In 1960, Handt made his debut as a conductor in Rome. Leading a variety of orchestras, including his own Lucca Chamber Orchestra, he specialized in neglected Italian repertory such as Luigi Boccherini's opera Giuseppe Riconosciuto and the Te Deum of Domenico Puccini (grandfather of Giacomo Puccini), both of which he recorded. Handt returned to his native country to head the Opera School at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in the 1970s. Handt remained active as a tenor into the '80s, and as of the mid-2020s, more than 30 of his recordings remained in print, mostly in reissues. He also founded and administered a pair of music festivals in Lucca in his later years and founded the Associazione Musical Lucchese. Handt died in Lucca on October 2, 2023.
© James Manheim /TiVo
Discographie
7 album(s) • Trié par Meilleures ventes
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Boulez Conducts Stravinsky
Orchestre National de France, French Radio and Television Chorus, Johanna Peters, Pierre Boulez, Herbert Handt, Sebastian Shaw
Classique - Paru chez IDIS le 25 août 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Jules César (Mono Version)
Phil Curzon, Herbert Handt, Elisabeth Roon, Mira Kalin
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1954
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: L'anima del filosofo ossia Orfeo ed Euridice
Opéra - Paru chez Music and Arts Programs of America le 1 janv. 1950
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
REQUIEM - AVE VERUM CORPUS - rev. H. Handt
Classique - Paru chez Multipromo le 3 mai 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Omaggio A Giacomo Puccini
Classique - Paru chez Multipromo le 27 déc. 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Puccini, Sr.: La confederazione dei Sabini con Roma
Opéra - Paru chez Bongiovanni le 1 avr. 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Te Deum
Coro Polifonico Januensis, Orchestra Januensis, Luigi Porro, Herbert Handt
Classique - Paru chez Devega le 16 nov. 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo