Josef von Witt
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Josef von Witt , actually Josef Filek Edler von Wittinghausen (born September 7, 1843 in Prague , † September 17, 1887 in Berlin ) was a Bohemian-German singer with a tenor voice .
Life
Josef von Witt was the son of an Imperial Austrian state official. He joined the imperial army at the age of eighteen and was stationed in Verona in 1865 . Here he discovered his talent for singing, quit army service in 1867 and studied singing with Otto Uffmann in Vienna. In 1868 he made his debut at the Ständisches Theater am Freiheitsplatz in Graz . In the following year he was engaged at the Dresden Court Theater . From 1878 to 1887 Josef von Witt took over the roles of hero tenor at the Schwerin court theater , where he was appointed Grand Ducal Mecklenburg Chamber Singer. He sang in Christoph Willibald Gluck's opera at the opening of the new theater in 1886Iphigenie in Aulis , the title roles in Offenbach's Hoffmanns Tales , in Wagner's Lohengrin and in Daniel-François-Esprit Auber's Fra Diavolo . In addition, Josef von Witt was also oratorio and lieder singer.
Von Witt achieved great fame through guest appearances at many German court stages. Critics praised him: "His repertoire included all the great tenor roles of the German, Italian and French opera, and with the melting of his voice he brought in elegiac batches produced a ravishing effect." He was with merit crosses and medals of the Ducal courtyards of Saxony-Weimar , Sachsen-Meiningen and Schwarzburg-Sondershausen honored and was a ducal-Saxon chamber singer .
In 1885 he traveled to the USA for a guest performance. He was a guest at a major song festival in Milwaukee in 1886 . On this trip he fell ill and after his return went to Berlin for treatment. He died here on September 17, 1887 as a result of an operation and was buried on September 21, 1887 in Dresden .
literature
- Grete Grewolls: Who was who in Mecklenburg and Western Pomerania. The dictionary of persons . Hinstorff Verlag, Rostock 2011, ISBN 978-3-356-01301-6 , p. 10952 .
- Hermann Arthur Lier : Witt, Johann von . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 43, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1898, p. 579.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Witt, Josef von |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Josef Filek Edler von Wittinghausen (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Bohemian-German singer (tenor) |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 7, 1843 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Prague |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 17, 1887 |
| Place of death | Berlin |