Benno Kusche

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Benno Paul Kusche (born January 30, 1916 in Freiburg im Breisgau ; † May 14, 2010 ) was a German opera singer ( baritone ). At the time, he was celebrated as one of the best Mozart and Wagner singers, especially in the character and buffet fields.

Life

Kusche was born the son of the painter Paul Kusche and a concert singer. From 1935 to 1937 he attended the theater academy of the Baden State Theater in Karlsruhe. There he discovered his talent as a singer. He made his debut at the Heidelberg Opera Festival in 1938. Kusche received his first engagement in 1938 at the Koblenz Theater . From there he was appointed to Augsburg in 1939 . He worked here until he was called up for military service in 1941 and, after being wounded and released, from 1943 until the Augsburg stage was closed in the bombing war in 1944.

Soon after the collapse of the Nazi dictatorship, he played in poorly staged operettas in the Kurhaus in Göggingen , then near Augsburg , now a district of the Fuggerstadt. Since 1946, Kusche has been a member of the Bavarian State Opera as a bass baritone known beyond Germany and since 1958 a member of the Deutsche Oper am Rhein.

In the summer of 1951 he sang Beckmesser in the Meistersinger von Nürnberg staged by Heinz Tietjen at the Covent Garden Opera in London under the musical direction of Sir Thomas Beecham . The singer has made guest appearances at the major opera stages in Vienna, Berlin and Stuttgart, at La Scala in Milan, in London, Florence, Zurich, Buenos Aires, Bregenz and Brussels, etc. 1971/1972 he sang at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

The Beckmesser was always Kush's star role. His dramatic comedy tendency predestined him for La Roche, the obsessed theater director in Capriccio . Other important roles are Alberich ( Ring des Nibelungen ), Falstaff , Leporello ( Don Giovanni ), Herr von Faninal ( Der Rosenkavalier ), Papageno ( The Magic Flute ), Waldner ( Arabella ) and Alfonso ( Così fan tutte ). Kusche especially fondly designed parts in operettas, especially Zsupan ( The Gypsy Baron ), Ollendorff ( The Begging Student ) and Frank ( The Bat ) became his star roles. In the 1950s and 1960s he was part of the ensemble led by the conductor Franz Marszalek at WDR Cologne . Under his leadership, Kusche not only recorded well-known operettas such as Schwarzwaldmädel , Gasparone or Countess Mariza , but also outspoken rarities such as the Johann Strauss operettas Jabuka and Paroli by Leo Fall . Kusche also appeared in works of modern music theater, for example as a tamer in Lulu and in Buffo characters in Orff's stage works, etc. Most recently (until 1998) he was regularly on stage in Augsburg as Tevje in Anatevka .

The artist liked to make excursions into lighter entertainment. For example, he played in the film Nackt wie Gott she created (with Birgit Bergen and Ellen Schwiers ), or took on small roles in the homeland films A Summer That One Never Forgets (with Claus Biederstaedt , Karin Dor , Fita Benkhoff ), Mein Mädchen is a postilion (with his wife Christine Görner and the Kessler twins) or appeared as a guest star on May 5, 1976 in the cult series Klimbim . In 1975 he played for ZDF at the side of Julia Migenes , Bruce Low and others the mayor in the operetta Viktoria and her Husar and also worked in Noch 'ne Oper. Musical fun at the side of Margit Schramm , Rudolf Schock and Ilse Werner .

Kusche was a Bavarian chamber singer and holder of the Federal Cross of Merit 1st class and the Bavarian Order of Merit .

Kusche has a daughter Eveline from his first marriage. In 1960 he was married to the actress and Soubrette Christine Görner . The marriage ended in divorce in 1986. The couple's son Christian Kusche-Tomasini works as a film composer in Italy.

Discography (selection)

Records

Recordings for radio and television

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://anzeigen-suchen.sueddeutsche.de/gelanz/servlet/AnzeigenWMServlet?marktId=156&loadFile=viewSde&anzId=187357&rubrik=all&et=&freitext=&itempos=2&thisrubrik=private%20Traueranzeigen&thiset=22.05.10&thismax=10&pagepos=1&reloaded=1
personal data
SURNAME Kusche, Benno
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kusche, Benno Paul (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German opera singer (baritone)
DATE OF BIRTH January 30, 1916
PLACE OF BIRTH Freiburg in Breisgau
DATE OF DEATH May 14, 2010