Comments on: Leo Fall’s “Brüderlein fein”: The Problem With The Cologne Broadcasts

By: kevin

kevin — Thu, 08 Mar 2018 08:51:02 +0000

It’s kind of amazing to know that such a treasure exists, it could even be published without any copyright problems. But instead a new version is performed and released, just because it’s ‘new’? I would love (love!) to hear Fischer and Marischka. They are one (and two) generations older than Günther and Girardi, but the are from the same ‘tradition’ and same Theater an der Wien ensemble.

By: Christian Zwarg

Christian Zwarg — Thu, 08 Mar 2018 05:59:48 +0000

ORF holds a complete “live-in-the-studio” recording that likely has never seen the light of day after the original broadcast on New Year’s Day 1953. Under the baton of Hans Hagen, three true veterans (all in advanced age at the time) are heard: Betty Fischer as Tony, Pepi Kramer-Glöckner as Gertrud, and Hubert Marischka as Drechsler. I have no idea of course whether these three septuagenarians succeed even modestly to suggest the rejuvenation, but for authentic style this should be a reference version. The only bit from it I’ve ever heard (Betty Fischer’s Guglhupf song) certainly shows the old lady in very good voice. Maybe CPO would have done well to send ORF’s in my experience unfortunately very lethargic staff burrowing for it, rather than making such a generic recording with a cast that has no noticeable relation or special sympathy at all for Vienna operetta style of the early 1900s.

By: kevin

kevin — Wed, 07 Mar 2018 07:33:37 +0000

They don’t even have ‘big voices,’ just trained opera voices. And, yes, the chamber version would have been interesting too. But the orchestra sounds lovely here, since Leo Fall was a master orchestrator.

By: Kurt Gänzl

Kurt Gänzl — Wed, 07 Mar 2018 03:11:05 +0000

When will folk learn that Bigger isn’t Better ….