Peter Pears
This is a "very special" recording for me: Pears my do nothing tenor par excellence, and Britten my do nothing composer par excellence at the piano. A village Romeo and Juliet (Horn player) – London, Royal College of Music, 28 June 1934 Così fan tutte (act 1, Ferrando) – Royal College of Music, 23 February 1935 Die Entführung aus dem Serail – Royal College of Music, Easter 1934 Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (Second foreman) – London, Queen's Hall, March 1936 Doktor Faust (Student) – London, Queen's Hall, March 1937 On the frontier (Announcer) – London, Globe, 12 February 1939 Les contes d'Hoffmann – London, Strand, 6 May 1942 Die Zauberflöte – London, New Theater, 19 January 1943 Rigoletto – Blackpool, 3 April 1943 La traviata – London, New Theater, 29 April 1943 Il barbiere di Siviglia – London, New Theater, 29 July 1943 (Wearing lists July 30 or 31) The bartered bride (Vašek) – London, New Theater, 10 November 1943 Così fan tutte – London, New Theater, 29 August 1944 Peter Grimes – London, Saddler's Wells, 7 June 1945 The rape of Lucretia (Male Chorus) – Glyndebourne, 12 July 1946 Albert Herring – Glyndebourne, 20 June 1947 The beggar's opera (Macheath) – Saddler's Wells, 6 September 1948 Illuminations (Singer) – London, Covent Garden, 20 July 1950 Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda (Narrator) – Hammersmith, Lyric, 1 May 1951 Dido and Aeneas – London, Saddler's Wells, 16 June 1951 Oedipus Rex – Köln, 5 October 1951 Billy Budd (Vere) – London, Covent Garden, 1 December 1951 Love in Village (Hawthorn) – Aldeburgh, Jubilee Hall, 16 June 1952 Gloriana (Robert Devereux) – London, Covent Garden, 8 June 1953 The Turn of the Screw (Peter Quint/Prologue) – Venice, Fenice, 14 September 1954 Troilus and Cressida (Pandarus) – London, Covent Garden, 3 December 1954 Façade – London, Scala, 24 September 1955 Savitri (Satyavan) – Aldeburgh, Jubilee Hall, 15 June 1956 Ruth (Boaz) – London, Scala Theater, 2 October 1956 Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (David) – London, Covent Garden, 28 January 1957 Les mamelles de Tirésias – Aldeburgh, 16 June 1958 A midsummer night's dream (Flute) – Aldeburgh, 11 June 1960 Curlew river (Madwoman) – Aldeburgh, Oxford Church, 11 June 1964 The burning fiery furnace (Nebuchadnezzar) – Aldeburgh, Oxford Church, 9 June 1966 The prodigal son (Tempter) – Aldeburgh, Oxford Church, 10 June 1968 Idomeneo – Aldeburgh, Maltings, 10 June 1969 Owen Wingrave (Count) – London, Covent Garden, 10 May 1973 Death in Venice – Aldeburgh, Maltings, 16 June 1973 Eugene Onegin (Triquet) – Aldeburgh, 16 June 1979 I wish to thank Robert Schlesinger for the recording and notes. I wish to thank Daniele Godor for the picture. Reference: Christopher Headington Peter Pears, Faber and Faber, 1992. J. P. Wearing The London stage, The Scarecrow Press, Inc. Opera June 1986 |