Russell Oberlin

Russell Keys Oberlin (October 11, 1928 – November 26, 2016) was an American singer who was a founding member of the New York Pro Musica Antiqua ensemble and became the first prominent countertenor in the United States. Active in the 1950s and 1960s, he brought a "full, warm, vibrato-rich tone"[1] to his recitals, recordings, and his performances in works ranging from the thirteenth-century liturgical drama with music The Play of Daniel to the twentieth-century opera A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Life and career

Russell Oberlin was born in 1928 in Akron, Ohio. He sang professionally as a child and studied at the Juilliard School of Music in New York from 1948 to 1951. In 1952, singing initially as a "high tenor,"[2] he was a founding member of the New York Pro Musica Antiqua ensemble, with which he appeared as soloist in works from the medieval and Renaissance periods.[3]

Oberlin became the first countertenor in the United States to achieve general recognition; as Peter G. Davis wrote, he was "for many years the lone practitioner of any note" of "a voice type that had never flourished in America before."[4] "At a time when the term 'countertenor' suggested a 'churchy' English sound," wrote Ira Siff in Opera News, "the rich, beautiful (and not vibrato-free) voice of Russell Oberlin created a welcome alternative for lovers of early and baroque music ... Oberlin altered public perceptions and expanded possibilities for today's countertenors."[2]

Oberlin was engaged by Leonard Bernstein for his 1955 recording of Handel's Messiah. He sang the role of Oberon in the Covent Garden premiere of Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1961[5] as well as the opera's North American premiere in Vancouver and its U.S. premiere at San Francisco Opera the same year.[1]

Bernstein wrote a part for him in his Chichester Psalms (1965). He recorded extensively, gave recitals and appeared as soloist with leading orchestras in the US and abroad. Oberlin described himself as a countertenor whose "naturally high tenor voice" allowed him to sing the countertenor repertoire without using falsetto.[6]

At the age of 36, he retired from active engagements to become a teacher, joining the faculty at Hunter College in New York as Professor of Music, where he served from 1966 to 1994. As a senior Fulbright research scholar, he lectured extensively in the USA and England. After the reissue of his Expériences Anonymes recordings of the Lyrichord Early Music series, Oberlin appeared on radio programs including Performance Today, Millennium of Music and similar programs in interviews about his life and work in music.[3]

Oberlin can be seen in a 1962 film performing Bach's Cantata No. 54, with Glenn Gould performing the harpsichord part on a harpsipiano. He can also be seen on Classic Arts Showcase on a 1962 Camera Three segment singing an aria from Handel's opera Rodelinda, and on another 1962 segment singing an aria from Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream. He died in New York City on November 26, 2016, aged 88.

References

  1. 1 2 Fox, Margalit. "Russell Oberlin, 88, Dies; Led Renaissance of Countertenor in U.S.", New York Times, November 29, 2016; retrieved December 4, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Siff, Ira. "Face to Face: Russell Oberlin and David Daniels", Opera News, April 1999.
  3. 1 2 "Russell Oberlin", Bach Cantatas Website, retrieved December 4, 2016.
  4. ↑ Davis, Peter G. The American Opera Singer. New York: Doubleday, 1997.
  5. ↑ "Royal Opera House Performance Database". Retrieved April 24, 2013.
  6. ↑ Ravens, Simon. The Supernatural Voice: A History of High Male Singing, Boydell & Brewer Ltd., 2014, pg. 209; retrieved January 28, 2015.

External links


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