Reply To: Which Wotan?

[cocier]

Two Canadians I believe would have become the great Wotan voices of the 1960s and 70s had it not been for unfortunate circumstances surrounding their careers. George London was being groomed as the Wotan for the 1965 Bayreuth Ring, but then suffered from a paralyzed vocal cord that ended his singing prematurely. James Milligan, the wonderful Wanderer for the 1961 Kempe Ring, was only 33 when he died from a heart attack months after that performance. A tragic end to a promising career. Hermann Uhde, who was started to graduate to the heavy metal roles, also died of a heart attack in 1965.

I’m not sure who would have been THE Wotan of that period. Jerome Hines gave some fantastic performances at Bayreuth in the Kempe Ring, but I’m not sure that he would have survived Wanderer’s more difficult tessitura.

I suppose that basses ultimately could take a stab at Wotan (much like Tomlinson did). I know Greindl did Wanderer once (1965), but I imagine that Franz Crass would have been successful if he incorporated the role into his repertory.