Wilhelm Gombert

Wilhelm Gombert (born September 2, 1886 in Berlin , † April 16, 1964 in Chicago , Illinois ) was a German opera singer ( tenor ).

Life

Gombert first completed an apprenticeship as a pharmacist and worked as a painter before he began training as a singer and finally got an engagement at the Belle Alliance Theater in Berlin in 1909 . In the following years he sang as a lyric tenor at various opera houses, including the Berlin Volksoper (1910/1911), the Stadttheater in Mainz (1913–1921), the Opera House in Cologne (1921–1926) and the Städtische Oper Berlin (1926-1934). International engagements crowned his career around 1930. From 1927 to 1928 he sang his brilliant roles at the Covent Garden Opera in London, such as Alfredo in Giuseppe Verdi's La traviata , Pedrillo in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail , Jacquino in Ludwig van Beethoven's Fidelio and David in Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nuremberg .

In addition to other classical roles such as the helmsman in Richard Wagner's The Flying Dutchman , Gombert also sang in several world premieres of modern operas, for example in pieces by Franz Schreker ( Irrelohe , 1924 and Der Schmied von Gent , 1932), Julius Bittner ( Die Mondnacht, 1932) and Kurt Weill ( The Guarantee , 1932).

In addition, Gombert played a gondolier in the short film Paganini in Venice in 1929 . And he worked more than diligently for the record . The directory of the music label Tri-Ergon lists well over a hundred shellac recordings with Wilhelm Gombert's singing for the years 1929/1930 , whereby in almost half of the cases he sang under the name Willy Munny. The repertoire ranged from Every day is not a Sunday to My Dearest Must Be a Trumpeter (still present in various oldie collections today) or Why is it so beautiful on the Rhine to La Paloma and Sonny Boy .

Although Gombert joined the right-wing steel helmet as a highly decorated former soldier from the front after the First World War and, as a member of the same, even briefly belonged to the SA reserve from November 1933 , the rule of the National Socialists meant the end of his career. Gombert had been married to Alice Lion, a Jew, since 1915, with whom he had two sons and a daughter. As he was “ Jewish misplaced ”, he was denied an extension of the contract at the Städtische Oper Berlin. He was able to perform at the Volksoper for one more season (1934/1935). Then there was only involvement in events organized by the Jewish Cultural Association .

The attempt to at least continue to work in the film business failed after a few roles due to the exclusion from the Reichstheaterkammer on February 8, 1937 and from the Reichsfilmkammer on March 25, 1937. From then on he had to stay afloat as a casual worker (among other things as a decorator ) . The plan to emigrate to the USA could not be carried out due to the lack of a visa.

After the end of the war, Gombert followed his wife, who was evacuated to Sweden shortly before the end of the war and had found a job there at the post office. Gombert built model ships for the Maritime Museum, copied Vincent van Gogh's pictures and gave singing lessons . From Sweden he finally moved to the USA, where he worked as a singing teacher for a while.

Discography (selection)

• 1929: A hiker returns tired (edited by Hermann Krome ), Tri-Ergon 5512
• 1929: I was lying at the Waldessaume (B. Bradenberg - A. Heinerici), Tri-Ergon 5512
• 1929: Mariechen sat crying in the garden , Tri-Ergon 5536
• 1929: Beautiful Giogolo (M: L. Casucci / T: J. Brammer ), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5713
• 1929: There is a woman who never forgets you (M: Jim Cowler / T: Kurt Schwabach), Tri-Ergon 5550
• 1929: La Paloma (M: Sebastién de Yradier), Tri-Ergon 5562
• 1929: Dark red roses (E. Plessow - E. Walter), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5671
• 1929: Stolzenfels am Rhein (M: J. Meissler / T: Forgeel), Tri-Ergon 5624
• 1929: Lovely, golden Moselle wine (M: Karl Werding), Tri-Ergon 5625
• 1929: Sonny Boy (M: Jolsen - de Sylva - Brown - Henderson / T: Roxy), Tri-Ergon 5627
• 1930: Girl, I'm so good for you (M: Georg Enders / T: H. Felsing), Tri-Ergon 5716
• 1930: Why is it so beautiful on the Rhine? (M: A. von Bergsattel), Tri-Ergon 5716
• 1930: Good night, you my hearty child (M: Franz Abt / T: Seyffardt), Tri-Ergon 5535
• 1930: Lust'ge Jungs von der Waterkant (M: Hermann Krome / T: Willy Weiss), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5628
• 1930: Once you say goodbye (M: Willy Schmidt-Gentner / T: Fritz Rotter), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5656
• 1930: There is no love without tears (M: Austin Egen - Nico Dostal / T: Fritz Rotter), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5656
• 1930: My love, your love (M: Franz Lehár / T: Herzer and Fritz Löhner-Beda), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5730
• 1930: At Lied und Wein (march and dance potpourri) with male quartet and tenor solo (= Wilhelm Gombert), Tri-Ergon 5870
• 1930: Warning! Attention! We send dance music (Schlager-Potpourri), as Willy Munny, Tri-Ergon 5653
• 1930: On the Saale hellem Strande (M: FE Fesca), Tri-Ergon 5880
• 1930: Between Heringsdorf and Swinemünde (M: Rolf Marbot and Fritz German / T: Armin Robinson) Tri-Ergon 5892

Filmography

• 1929: Paganini in Venice (short film)
• 1935: The clever women
• 1936: What do you think of that? (Short film)
• 1936: Knigge and Us (short film)
• 1936: Small, but mine (short film)
• 1936: The innkeeper
• 1936: Till Eulenspiegel: How Eulenspiegel once offered to fly (short film)

Web links

• Wilhelm Gombert in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Wilhelm Gombert in the dictionary of persecuted musicians from the Nazi era

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Karl-Josef Kutsch , Leo Riemens : Large singer lexicon . 3rd, extended edition, KG Saur, Munich 1997-200
2. ^ Article by Sophie Fetthauer on Wilhelm Gombert in the Lexicon of Persecuted Musicians of the Nazi Era, edited by Claudia Maurer Zenk and Peter Petersen.
3. ^ Birgit Lotz Verlag, Bonn, discography Tri-Ergon Colorit
4. ^ Article by Sophie Fetthauer on Wilhelm Gombert in the Lexicon of Persecuted Musicians of the Nazi Era, edited by Claudia Maurer Zenk and Peter Petersen.