Andreas Scholl
Andreas Scholl | |
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Born | |
Education | Schola Cantorum Basiliensis with René Jacobs |
Occupations |
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Spouse | Rheingau Musikpreis |
Andreas Scholl (born 10 November 1967) is a German countertenor, a male classical singer in the alto vocal range, specialising in Baroque music.
Born into a family of singers, Scholl was enrolled at the age of seven into the
Scholl's early operatic roles include his standing in for René Jacobs in 1993 at the Théâtre Grévin in Paris, where he caused a sensation. His major roles, such as his debut at Glyndebourne in 1998 as Bertarido in Handel's Rodelinda, a role he reprised at the Metropolitan Opera in 2006, were written for the 18th-century alto castrato Senesino.
The bulk of Scholl's recording career has been with Harmonia Mundi and Decca, and his CDs are among Harmonia Mundi's best sellers. He has worked with most contemporary Baroque specialists, including William Christie and Philippe Herreweghe, and is himself a songwriter and composer of ballet and theatre music, with his own professional sound studio.
Biography
Childhood
Scholl was born on 10 November 1967 in
Scholl lists his musical heroes as Howard Jones, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), New Order and the Pet Shop Boys.[5]
Musical education
Scholl was 17 when the extent of his ability was recognised by the voice coach of the Chorbuben from the Darmstadt Music Academy.[3] Scholl then sang for the tenor/countertenor Herbert Klein, who advised him that there were only two places he should study: in London or at the early music conservatoire in Basel, the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. Since an uncle had introduced Scholl to the voices of Paul Esswood and James Bowman, the leading European countertenors of the day, Scholl chose Bowman as a role model. Scholl sent a demo tape to René Jacobs to evaluate his talent. This resulted in Jacobs inviting Scholl to visit the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. Although the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis only offered post-graduate courses, and Scholl had no first degree, he was offered a place on the strength and quality of his voice after singing a Schubert song for the admissions board, which included René Jacobs.
At the Schola, Andreas Scholl's teacher was Richard Levitt, followed by Jacobs in his second year.[6] Violinist Chiara Banchini and soprano Emma Kirkby were major influences, as Scholl began to specialise in the music of the Baroque. Scholl additionally studied with soprano Evelyn Tubb and lutenist Anthony Rooley. In addition to the Diploma of Ancient Music, for which his external examiner was James Bowman, Andreas Scholl garnered prizes from the Council of Europe and the Claude Nicolas Ledoux Foundation, and awards from Switzerland's Association Migros and Ernst Göhner Foundation.
Andreas Scholl has been teaching interpretation in the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, succeeding his own teacher, Richard Levitt, and is in much demand for master classes.
Career
Early performances
In 1988 Scholl performed Bach's Christmas Oratorio in Rüdesheim. In 1991 he appeared in Bach's St John Passion, conducted by Philippe Herreweghe in Antwerp.[6] In January 1993 Scholl stood in for René Jacobs at Jacobs' request at the Théâtre Grévin in Paris, causing a sensation. Scholl's partner that night was the harpsichordist Markus Märkl , who became his constant musical counterpart in the following years. A later performance of Bach's St John Passion was broadcast on Good Friday to a radio audience which included William Christie. Shortly thereafter, Christie and Scholl met on a train. The 1994 recording of Handel's Messiah with Les Arts Florissants resulted directly from this meeting.
Scholl performed Bach's
Opera
Scholl's major operatic roles were written for the 18th-century
Scholl performed this role also at the
Concerts
In 1999, Scholl appeared with the
In 2011 Scholl made his debut at the
Collaborations
Andreas Scholl has worked with most contemporary Baroque specialists, including
The composer Marco Rosano has created a new Stabat Mater for Andreas Scholl; he sang the first complete performance of this work on 22 February 2008 at the City Recital Hall, Angel Place, Sydney, accompanied by the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra under Paul Dyer.
Popular music
Scholl has always composed songs, as well as music for ballet and theatre, and has his own professional sound studio in Basel, Switzerland. His song White as Lilies, based on ideas of John Dowland, is on the 1995 CD The Countertenors (with Dominique Visse and Pascal Bertin). It was a hit in Korea when used in a TV commercial and was later released there in an orchestrated version. In December 2003, he gave his first public performance in popular music, an eclectic programme of electronic and orchestral works which included his own compositions. Alongside Scholl was fellow Baroque countertenor, Roland Kunz, who specialises in setting Elizabethan English poems to his own electronic music. The two countertenors duetted in Scholl's and Kunz's songs, backed by Kunz's band die Unerlösten and the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Saarbrücken under Rick Stengårds. In 2013 he collaborated with Idan Raichel in his album Quarter to Six.
Recordings
The bulk of Scholl's recording career has been with Harmonia Mundi and Decca. By 1998 his CDs dominated Harmonia Mundi's hit list at numbers one, three, four, five and ten, and they are still among Harmonia Mundi's best sellers. His discography amounts to more than sixty CDs, all but two being music of the European Baroque or Renaissance.
Many recordings in which he has collaborated have won awards. His personal accolades include the Diapason d'Or, multiple
Scholl has often interpreted the works of Oswald von Wolkenstein.[17] This includes the 2010 album Wolkenstein - Songs of Myself, which Gramophone magazine characterized as "[m]agnificent music magically presented by one of the great singers of our time."[18]
Awards
In 2015 Scholl was the 22nd recipient of the
His recording of Vivaldi's
Personal life
In 2012 Scholl married pianist, harpsichordist and composer Tamar Halperin. They live in a small village in Germany.[12][20]
References
- ^ "Andreas Scholl — Teaching". andreasscholl.org. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
- ^ "Andreas Scholl (Counter-tenor)". Bach Cantatas Website. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
- ^ a b "Andreas Scholl / deutscher Opernsänger (Countertenor)" (in German). munzinger.de. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
- ^ "Chorstiftmuseum, Kiedrich" (in German). Rheingau-Taunus. 2022. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
- ^ "Explore the life and iconic recordings of countertenor Andreas Scholl". ABC Classic. 21 December 2021. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
- ^ a b c d "Andreas Scholl" (in German). klassikakzente.de. 7 October 2010. Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
- ^ "Andreas Scholl past concerts 1998". Andreas Scholl Society. 2010. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "When did Scholl sing at ...?". Andreas Scholl Society. 2010. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
- ^ Oestreich, James H. (15 November 2011). "Bringing Back the Baroque in a Revival Tailored to the Met". The New York Times.
- ^ Gross, Johanna (1 June 2003). "Das jährliche Ritual zum Abschluss des Bachfestes" (in German). leipzig-almanach.de. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ "Handel's Messiah". nyphil.org. 17 December 2008. Archived from the original on 14 August 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ a b Woolfe, Zachary (10 December 2012). "Trying to Give Voice to Unparalleled Purity: Andreas Scholl and Tamar Halperin at Lincoln Center". The New York Times.
- ^ Zibulski, Axel (19 July 2011). "Musikalischer Klang mit Idee" (in German). Wiesbadener Kurier. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ a b Kösterke, Doris (20 September 2011). "Erhabene innere Ruhe" (in German). Wiesbadener Kurier. Archived from the original on 27 March 2012. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
- ^ Heeren-Pradt, Beke (21 September 2011). "Mit Hingabe und Präzision". Wiesbadener Tagblatt (in German). Archived from the original on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 21 September 2011.
- ^ Wolff, Jan-Geert (12 August 2013). "Andreas Scholl singt Bach-Kantaten" (in German). Wiesbadener Kurier. Archived from the original on 12 August 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2013.
- ^ "Andreas Scholl on Oswald von Wolkenstein". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- ^ Fallows, David. "Wolkenstein - Songs of Myself Review". Gramophone. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
- ^ "Rheingau Musik Preis 2015 an Andreas Scholl" (in German). Musik Heute. 11 March 2015. Archived from the original on 17 May 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
- ^ "Tamar Halperin". America-Israel Cultural Foundation. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
External links
- Andreas Scholl Official website (in English)
- Andreas Scholl Official website (in German)
- Literature by and about Andreas Scholl in the German National Library catalogue
- Andreas Scholl at AllMusic
- The Andreas Scholl Society not-for-profit independent site with future concerts, past performances, extended biography, full discography, list of all recorded tracks indexed by composer, photo archive, early music links, index of world countertenors, audio samples, message board
- Andreas Scholl at Facebook
- Andreas Scholl HarrisonParrott artist management
- Andreas Scholl Decca 2011
- Andreas Scholl laphil.com 2011
- Scholl's MySpace page with audio clips from his own studio.
- Andreas Scholl sings from Mozart's Mitridate
- Germany special: The Rhine Valley Interview with Andreas Scholl by Kieran Falconer, The Independent, 9 April 2006
- Andreas Scholl' Dan Shorer, "on-line meetings at U-Sophia, where minds meet on-line"
- Andreas Scholl Oper Frankfurt