Wilhelm Schüchter
Wilhelm Schuchter was one of those prodigiously talented German conductors who had the misfortune to live in a time filled with geniuses at the podium: Furtwangler, Walter, Abendroth, Karajan, Krauss, Bohm, Knappertsbusch, Kempe, Schmidt-Isserstedt, and Klemperer. In such company, he never had a chance to move into the forefront of his profession outside of Germany. Despite his lack of international success, however, Schuchter managed to leave behind one major recording of Lohengrin that deserves to be a part of any serious Wagner collection.
Born in Bonn, Germany and educated at the Hochschule for Music, where he studied with Hermann Abendroth. He made his debut at the podium in Coburg, in 1937, conducting Cavelleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci. His first major appointment came that same year, as conductor in the opera house in Wurzburg, where he stayed for three years. In 1940, he took an appointed conductor at the opera house in Aachen, a post he held for two years, working under Herbert Von Karajan. Two years later, he joined the Berlin State Opera.
Following the Allied victory and the reorganization of German cultural life, in 1947 Schuchter joined the North German Radio Orchestra as a conductor and deputy to Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt. His major recording career began soon after, principally for EMI during the late 78 r.p.m. and early LP era. With the Berlin State Opera Orchestra, he recorded highlights--in an era when complete opera recordings were rare--from Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, and The Abduction From The Seraglio, Rossini's The Barber of Seville, Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann, Puccini's La Boheme, and Bizet's Carmen, among other operas. With the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, he recorded excerpts from Richard Strauss's Rosenkavalier and Johann Strauss's Fledermaus. These were all polished recordings, well representing key portions of the operas involved. As an orchestral conductor, Schuchter recorded Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5, Dvorak's Symphony No. 9, Smetana's The Moldau, and Grieg's Peer Gynt.
His major activities, and his most significant legacy, however, were in the operatic field. In 1953, Schuchter conducted EMI's first recording of a complete version of Wagner's Lohengrin, with his Northwest German Radio Orchestra, with Rudolf Schock in the title role, Gottlob Frick as King Henry, Maud Cunitz as Elsa, and Josef Metternich as Friedrich. This performance, reissued on compact disc in 1995 by EMI on its References historical line, remains one of the most finely crafted recordings of the opera ever down, and competitive with all subsequent stereo and digital recordings. The singing has a warmth and power that resounds more than 40 years later, and the playing is extraordinary, a match for any orchestra in the world. Moreover, the sound--despite being limited to mono--is extraordinary for its era, being both rich and close.
Unfortunately, Schuchter never got to record another complete opera, eclipsed at he was outside of Germany by figures such as Karajan and Klemperer. His career in the concert hall was more successful--in 1958, he took a three year appointment as the chief conductor of the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo, and after his return to Germany in 1962 he was made music director of Dortmund. It was in this post, in just three years, that Schuchter achieved fame in Germany, raising the musical standards in Dortmund so high that he was promoted in 1965 to artistic director and general manager of the Dortmund State Opera. He remained in this position for the rest of his life, and Schuchter was acclaimed for the excellence of the productions mounted by the company, and its overall rise to prominence within Germany. His Wagnerian performances, in particular, were singled out for praise by critics.
Schuchter was among the first generation of conductors in Germany who understood the use of the orchestra in the studio, and this is reflected in his recordings. In contrast to Wilhelm Furtwangler or Hans Knappertsbusch, he saw the intrinsic value of recording and he paid special attention to the spaciousness and opulence of the sound he achieved. When working with sympathatic producers and engineers, as on his Lohengrin, the results were extraordinary.
© Bruce Eder /TiVo
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Grieg: Suites de Peer Gynt (Mono Version)
Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Wilhelm Schüchter
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1955
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Saint-Saëns: Danse macabre - Debussy: Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (Mono Version)
NDR Sinfonieorchester, Wilhelm Schüchter
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Grieg: Suites de Peer Gynt, extraits (Mono Version)
Wilhelm Schüchter, Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Petite musique de nuit, K. 525 (Mono Version)
NDR Sinfonieorchester, Wilhelm Schüchter
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Concertos pour orgue, HWV 290 & HWV 292 (Mono Version)
Geraint Jones, Wilhelm Schüchter, Philharmonia Orchestra
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1955
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Six concertos brandebourgeois (Mono Version)
Kammerorchester des Nordwestdeutschen Rundfunks, Wilhelm Schüchter
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1900
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Six concertos brandebourgeois (Mono Version)
Hamburger Kammerorchester, Wilhelm Schüchter
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The Vienna Debut (Live)
Wolfgang Windgassen, Martha Modl, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Carla Martinis, Wiener Symphoniker, Wilhelm Schüchter
Opera - Released by Myto Historical on 29/07/2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Great Wagnerian Scenes
Classical - Released by Preiser Records on 23/08/2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Acht Opernszenen (Album of 1955 - 25. Todestag)
Grosses Opernorchester, Hermann Prey, Wilhelm Schüchter
Classical - Released by In Memoriam on 30/06/2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Erich Kaman: Die Csardasfürstin - Gräfin Mariza (Querschnitt) (EP of 1955)
Sari Barabas, Rudolf Schock, Herta Staal, Rupert Glawitsch, Großes Operettenorchester, Wilhelm Schüchter
Pop - Released by Frau Luna on 31/03/2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Grieg: Mélodies élégiaques, Op. 34 (Orchestral Version, Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1957
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Kreisler: Vieilles mélodies viennoises, extraits (Orchestral Version, Mono Version)
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on 1/01/1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Ferde Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite (Album of 1958)
101 Strings, Wilhelm Schüchter
Classical - Released by Strings on 30/09/2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Zwei Mädchenaugen (EP of 1957)
Rudolf Schock, Wilhelm Schüchter
Pop - Released by Frau Luna on 31/03/2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gottlob Frick sings arias from: Die Jüdin · Mignon · Fra Diavolo · Die Hugenotten · Rusalka
Gottlob Frick, Wilhelm Schüchter, Berliner Symphoniker
Opera - Released by G.O.P. on 28/05/2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Milestones of a Violin Legend: Igor Oistrach, Vol. 4
Igor Oistrach, Pro Arte Orchestra, Wilhelm Schüchter
Classical - Released by Intense Media GmbH on 7/06/2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo