Helmut Krebs
Helmut Krebs is one of the most important German tenors of the twentieth century. During his remarkably long career he retained a remarkably durable and unusually wide range and was a leader in the early music movement.
Authorities differ as to the place of his birth. His parents were from the German city of Dortmund, but it does appear he was born in Aachen, the name of Aix-la-Chapelle when Alsace was occupied by Germany, but which emerged from World War I back in French hands. It is likely that when he parents returned to their native city (80 miles northeast of Aachen) they registered him there to establish that Helmut was German by birth.
Helmut studied at the Dortmund Conservatory and when his family moved to Berlin while he was still a teenager he entered the Berlin Hochschule für Musik, where he was taught by Dr. Paul Lühmann. It was a Swiss tenor, Max Meili, who inspired Krebs to develop an unusual vocal technique that extended his range into the countertenor range without using the falsetto voice. (Later, when singing in this range as the early music movement developed, Krebs insisted that falsetto singing -- which was the established norm for countertenors -- was musicologically incorrect. This view is now the majority view among early music scholars.)
He made his operatic debut in 1937 at the Grosse Volksoper in Berlin as Monostatos in The Magic Flute. He made his debut at the Städtische Oper Berlin in 1938. His career was interrupted in 1939 when he was called up for military service.
He survived World War II and made a second debut on the stage of the Düsseldorf Spieloper, singing such roles as Fenton in Nicolai's Merry Wives of Windsor and Chateauneuf in Lortzing's Zar und Zimmermann. During the 1947 - 1948 season, he was given a test engagement at the Berlin Staatsoper (the city's leading company) as David in Die Meistersinger. Conductor Joseph Keilberth engaged him as a member of the company. If one dates Krebs' membership in the Staatsoper from 1947, he remained a member of the company for over 40 years, one of the longest careers any singer has had at any major opera house.
It is pointless to list the names of the great international opera houses where he appeared as a guest artist, nor many of the operas in which he appeared. He could sing leading roles, but his unusual vocal coloration and high voice made him especially suitable for non-heroic tenor roles. He had an adventurous repertory, and was one of the first to sing music of Benjamin Britten in Germany. (He created, for instance, the German version of the title role of Albert Herring.) He sang in the first German presentation of Arnold Schoenberg's Moses und Aron as Aron in 1954, and was particularly known for his portrayal of the comic role of Prof. von Mucker in Henze's The Young Lord.
Early in his career he formed an personal and artistic friendship with the great baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and the two often performed together, often memorably as in performances of Bach cantatas and Lieder programs.
Krebs was famous for his portrayal of Mozart's operatic roles and his performances of Mozart's concert arias. He had a particular interest in the music of Heinrich Schütz (whose birthday Krebs shared), and sang in virtually all the choral works of Johann Sebastian Bach with tenor solo parts. During his lifetime he recorded often for the Archiv early music label. He has also been an esteemed teacher and was made a Kammersänger of Vienna in 1963.
© TiVo
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Bach: Cantates, BWV 189, 89 & 174 (Mono Version)
Pro Arte Kammerorchester München, Kurt Redel, Helmut Krebs
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Les myrtes, Op. 25 (Mono Version)
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Wie schön singt uns der Engel Schar - Weihnachtslieder der Praetoriuszeit
Margot Guillaume, Helmut Krebs, Dresdner Kreuzchor, Knabenchor Hannover
Classique - Paru chez Archiv Produktion le 1 janv. 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Peter Cornelius: Der Barbier von Bagdad (1957), Volume 2
Opéra - Paru chez Classical Moments le 20 mars 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
J. Strauss II: Die Fledermaus
Classique - Paru chez Deutsche Grammophon (DG) le 1 janv. 1950
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Verdi: Messa da Requiem (Mono Version)
Maria Stader, Helmut Krebs, Ferenc Fricsay
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1954
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Westeuropa zwischen Barock und Rokoko: Serie B. Am Hofe Ludwigs XIV & Serie D. Kammer- und Cembalomusik bis zu Rameau (Stereo Version)
Helmut Krebs, Hans-Martin Linde, August Wenzinger
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Die schöne Müllerin (Mono Version)
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schütz: Historia der Auferstehung Jesu Christi (Stereo Version)
Norddeutscher Singkreis, Gottfried Wolters, Helmut Krebs
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Peter Cornelius: Der Barbier von Bagdad (1957), Volume 1
Helmut Krebs, Benno Kusche, Anneliese Rothenberger
Opéra - Paru chez Classical Moments le 20 mars 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Oratorio de Noël, extraits (Mono Version)
Sieglinde Wagner, Helmut Krebs, Berliner Philharmoniker, Fritz Lehmann
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Cantate, BWV 1 (Mono Version)
Helmut Krebs, Berliner Philharmoniker, Fritz Lehmann
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: 7 Arias de concert pour ténor et orchestre (Mono Version)
Helmut Krebs, Pro Arte Orchester München, Kurt Redel
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
In Dulci Jubilo - Weihnachtslieder der Praetorius-Zeit (Album of 1962)
Margot Guilleaume, Helmut Krebs, Stadtischer Chor Hamburg, Knabenchor Des Gymnasiums Eppendorf, Instrumental Ensemble der Archiv-Produktion, Adolf Detel
Musiques de Noël - Paru chez Christmas Album le 27 nov. 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Deutsche Barockmusik: Serie A. Heinrich Schütz (Mono Version)
Helmut Krebs, Norddeutscher Singkreis, Gottfried Wolters
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Das Schaffen Johann Sebastian Bachs: Serie A. Kantaten (Mono Version)
Helmut Krebs, Berliner Philharmoniker, Fritz Lehmann
Classique - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Les amours du poète, Op. 48 (Mono Version)
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mannheim und Wien: Serie E. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Mono Version)
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Cantates et motets allemands des XVII et XVIIIe siècles (Mono Version)
Helmut Krebs, Fritz Werner, Hubert Varon
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Westeuropa zwischen Barock und Rokoko: Serie B. Am Hofe Ludwigs XIV & Serie D. Kammer- und Cembalomusik bis zu Rameau (Mono Version)
Helmut Krebs, Hans-Martin Linde, August Wenzinger
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Johannes-Passion, BWV 245 (Mono Version)
Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim, Fritz Werner, Helmut Krebs
Divers - Paru chez BNF Collection le 1 janv. 2013
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo