Fritz Wunderlich
Fritz Wunderlich could be considered the James Dean of the singing world -- a young, charismatic performer who suffered a tragic death at the height of his career and abilities, and whose posthumous reputation has grown beyond that which he was able to enjoy during his short life. Considered among the finest Mozartean tenors of his day, Wunderlich embraced a wide repertory that expanded to included the works of Strauss, Schubert, Bach, and Mahler, and he left behind many excellent recordings that have been the primary source of his legacy.
Wunderlich (Friedrich Karl Otto) was born in Kusel, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. His life included music from the very beginning, since his father was the director of a local choir and his mother was a violinist. The young tenor gained mild local celebrity for his singing in Kusel, and in 1950 he departed for the Freiburg Musikhochschule with partial financing from the town; he met the remainder of his study-related expenses by directing a small dance band in Breisgau. Wunderlich's first operatic appearance was, appropriately enough, as Tamino in a student production of Mozart's Die Zauberflöte -- a role with which he would remain associated for the rest of his career. In fact, he made his professional debut with the very same piece just a year later (1955) at the Stuttgart Opera. He remained with Stuttgart until he was hired by the Frankfurt Opera company, staying there from 1958 to 1960. He first appeared in the Salzburg Festival in 1959, where he sang the part of Henry in Richard Strauss's Die schweigsame Frau. He became a member of the Munich Opera in 1960 and from 1962 also was a regular at the Vienna State Opera.
Wunderlich quickly earned a reputation as the leading lyric tenor in Germany. His clear, strong voice easily filled an operatic hall, but he always retained a purity of sound and line that was equally well suited to more intimate settings. In international appearances he essayed mostly Mozart roles, for which he was especially celebrated and which did not tax the dramatic limits of his voice; however in the smaller houses of his native Germany he explored slightly more adventurous repertory, including Alfredo in La Traviata and Lensky in Eugene Onegin. All of his performances were marked by an unflappable lyricism and an associated control of phrasing and breath -- both of which have remained his most lauded qualities. Wunderlich created the role of Tiresias in the first performance of Carl Orff's Oedipus der Tyrann in Stuttgart in 1959, and sang the part of Christoph in Werner Egk's Die Verlobung in San Domingo in Munich in 1962. He contemplated expanding further, into the lyrical Wagnerian roles. This was not to be, as he died in an accidental fall at a friend's home.
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Fritz Wunderlich - A Portrait
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on 20 Sep 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Magnificat BWV 243 & Kantate BWV 31
Classical - Released by Decca on 1 Jan 1958
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ach Ich Habe Sie Ja Nur Auf Die Schulter Geküsst
Musical Theatre - Released by Bearsong on 10 Jul 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 19
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Judas Maccabaeus, HWV 63 (Excerpts) [Sung in German]
Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Classical - Released by Orfeo on 12 Nov 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MOZART: Symphonies Nos. 25, 28, and 40 and Arias (1956 / 1959 / 1961)
Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR, Fritz Wunderlich, Ruth-Margret Putz, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Carl Schuricht
Classical - Released by SWR Classic on 1 Jan 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Und es blitzten die Sterne
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich, Vol. 8
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The World's Most Famous Voices in Opera & Song, Vol. 8
Opera - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 26
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 20
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 1
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 18
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Egk: Furchtlosigkeit und Wohlwollen
István Kertész, Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Fritz Wunderlich
Classical - Released by Orfeo on 1 Jan 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 40
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 39
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 1 Nov 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich - Große Erfolge & Raritäten, Vol. 12
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Egk: Columbus (Orfeo d'Or)
Opera - Released by Orfeo on 26 Jun 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich, Vol. 8
Classical - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich, Vol. 3
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fritz Wunderlich, Vol. 2
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by Documents 2 on 13 Dec 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo