Kieth Engen

Kieth Engen
Born	Keith Sheldon Engen (1925-04-05)5 April 1925 Frazee, Minnesota, U.S.
Died	2 September 2004(2004-09-02) (aged 79) Murnau am Staffelsee, Germany
Other names	Stan Oliver
Occupation	Opera singer (bass)

Kieth Engen (5 April 1925 – 2 September 2004) was an American operatic bass who was a member of Munich's Bavarian State Opera for decades. Although his career was based in Munich, he appeared internationally as a guest singer at major opera houses and festivals and performed and recorded many of Bach's Passion oratorios and cantatas, primarily with the conductor Karl Richter. He was born Keith Sheldon Engen in Frazee, Minnesota, and died in Murnau am Staffelsee, Germany at the age of 79. He was given the title of Kammersänger in 1962 and was a recipient of the Bavarian Order of Merit. In the mid-1950s he also had a brief parallel career as a pop singer under the pseudonym Stan Oliver.

Biography

Early life

Engen was born in

His first appearance at the Bavarian State Opera came in 1954 as Bluebeard in Bartok's Bluebeard's Castle. In a March 2000 interview, Engen said that his height had got him the role. According to Engen, Hertha Töpper, who was singing Judith in the opera, was a tall woman, and the director insisted on an equally tall Bluebeard.^[1] In 1955, he became a permanent member of company and went on to perform there until his retirement in 1996, appearing 2122 times in over 125 roles of the bass repertoire. His last appearance was as the Gemeindevorsteher in Reimann's opera Das Schloß. In recognition of his accomplishments he was given the title Kammersänger in 1962 and later the Bavarian Order of Merit.^[5][6]

In the course of his career, Engen sang most of the leading bass roles. In addition to the title role in Bluebeard's Castle and Zaccaria in Nabucco, these included: the Mozart roles of Count Almaviva in

Engen took part in several world premieres, singing Emperor Rudolf in Hindemith's Die Harmonie der Welt (1957), Alexandre Dumas in Norman Dello Joio's Blood Moon (1961), Oceanus in Carl Orff's Prometheus (1968), Senatspräsident in Volker David Kirchner's Belshazar (1986), and the Czar in Penderecki's Ubu Rex (1991).^[2][9]

From 1956, Engen performed and recorded many of

In his retirement years, Engen taught singing and served on the juries of singing competitions.[4] He died at the age of 79 in Murnau am Staffelsee, where he and his wife had lived since 1972.^[6] His obituary in Der Spiegel described him as inquisitive, secure in style and intelligent.^[7][a] Ronald Adler, former artistic director at the Bavarian State Opera and longtime friend of Engen, wrote that his personality was marked by unwavering benevolence, kindness, and serene wisdom with a focus that was always on the essential—love of music, life and people.^[5][b]

Discography

Engen's discography includes:

Opera

• Beethoven: Fidelio (as Don Fernando). Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Ferenc Fricsay (conductor). Recorded 1957. Label: Deutsche Grammophon^[18]
• Janáček: Die Ausflüge des Herrn Brouček (as Würfl). Bayerische Staatsorchester, Joseph Keilberth (conductor). Recorded 1959. Label: Orfeo^[19]
• Nicolai:
  EMI Electrola^[20]
• Orff: Prometheus (as Okeanos). Kölner Rundfunk Sinfonie Orchester, Herbert Schernus (conductor). Recorded 1972. Label: Philips^[21]
• Orff: Antigonae (as Chor-Führer). Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ferdinand Leitner (conductor). Recorded 1961. Label: Deutsche Grammophon^[22]
• Orff: Oedipus der Tyrann (as Kreon). Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra,
  Rafael Kubelik (conductor). Recorded 1966. Label: Deutsche Grammophon^[23]
• Wagner: Lohengrin (as König Heinrich). Orchester der Bayreuther Festspiele, André Cluytens (conductor). Recorded 1958. Label: Archipel^[24]