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Born: November 13, 1875 - Hoboken, New Jersey, USA
Died: September 13, 1952 - Berlin, Germany (or Vienna, Austria) |
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The American tenor, pedagogue and composer, Georg A. Walter, was the son of German parents. He received his training with Melchiorre Vidal in Milan, Karl Scheidemantel in Dresden, Kurt von Zawilowski in Berlin and Raimund von zur Mühlen in London. He also studied composition with Wilhelm Berger in Berlin.
Georg A. Walter began his activity as a concert singer around 1900 in Berlin. Since 1905 he appeared in numerous appearances as a concert singer. He was particularly admired as a great J.S. Bach and George Frideric Handel interpreter. Many Cantatas of J.S. Bach became widely admitted only by the organisation of George A. Walter. His performance of the Evangelist in the Passions of J.S. Bach was considered as classical. In addition he was a master of the Lieder singing and could inspire the public in his Lieder recitals in Germany and abroad. At the Händel Festival of Göttingen he performed since 1920 some opera roles in works of this master, such as Grimwald in Rodelinda (1920), the title roles in Radamisto (1927) and Giulio Cesare (1928). He gave glossful concerts among other things in Vienna (1907, 1914), Copenhagen (1921, 1932), Holland (1921, 1924), Sweden (1920), Rome (1931), Barcelona (1921), Amsterdam (1931) and Paris (1938). In 1938 he undertook a big Italy tour.
Georg A. Walter worked from 1925 (0r) 1926 to 1934 as a teacher at Musikhochschule Stuttgart; later he was a noticed Professor at the Berlin's Musikhochschule. His most celebrated student was the famous baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. After 1940 he still gave concerts in Berlin. He composed also even songs and other vocal works and rendered great services by publication of solo cantatas by forgotten Baroque masters, and bringing out new editions of works by the sons of J.S. Bach, Heinrich Schütz at al.
Georg A. Walter's son Hans Jürgen Walter appeared at the beginning of the 1930's as a concert singer. His daughter Lisa Walter became admitted as a concert soloist at about the same time, noticed then also as a stage singer with engagements in Cottbus, Essen, Oberhausen, Basel, Mainz und Münster. In 1939 she participated at the Berlin's State Opera in the premiere of Rudolf Wagner-Régeny's opera Die Bürger von Calais. Since 1959 she was active as a teacher at the Musikhochschule of Berlin.
George A. Walter sang in some few records on Vox (Schubert Lieder, recorded acoustically) and on HMV (an early electrical recording); on Die Cantorei appeared Bach Cantatas, all of great beauty. |
