Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
This great and legendary voice of the post-1945 period remains for many the incarnation of the world of German music, specifically for the operas of Richard Strauss, the performances of which remain a model of singing, of style, of perfect diction and emotion, qualities which are rarely found together in a single artist. She has also left us two recordings of Vier letzte Lieder (with Otto Ackermann, and later, with George Szell) which are absolute works of reference. 13 year separate these two versions which every music lover will want to get to know: the first, with a more ductile, supple voice, more enchanting than the second, darker and more sombre, with dulled mid-range notes. But one shouldn't pin her to a single composer, because Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was also a great recitalist, in particular with the famous English pianist Gerald Moore. Together, they recorded a number of albums dedicated to the German Lied, from Mozart to Hugo Wolf. An accomplished Mozartian, Schwarzkopf also sang Italian opera (a Turandot appears, with Maria Callas).
We must also not forget the field of the operetta, to which Elisabeth Schwarzkopf brought such a noble bearing. She sparkled with particular shine in Johan Strauss's Die Fledermaus or One Night in Venice. In a less typical register, we also find her performing Pelléas et Mélisande, Debussy's masterpiece, where she sang under Karajan's direction and in Stravinsky's Rake's Progress, in the role of Anne Trulove, which she performed at Venice's La Fenice, directed by the composer, in 1951.
With Christa Ludwig and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf gave us immortal recordings of the Lieder of Hugo Wolf, to whose fame she contributed immensely.
The singer was also known for her inflexible personality, and an ardour for her work which allowed her a long career that spanned over three decades. At her height, in full command of her abilities, she cut down her roles, choosing only to keep those that she could absolutely master: Fiordiligi (Cosi fan tutte), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), the Countess (The Marriage of Figaro), Countess Madeleine (Capriccio), and her signature role, the Marschallin (Der Rosenkavalier). Her art seduces or appals, depending on whether or not you like her finely-chiselled work, which is as multi-layered as a Viennese whirl. At the opera, her collaborations with Wilhelm Furtwängler or Herbert von Karajan were the perfect marriage of intelligence and the most heightened sensibility. It is perhaps in the Lieder, with dream partners such as Edwin Fischer, Furtwängler, Gieseking or Moore that Elisabeth Schwarzkopf reveals the most intimate, highest secrets of her art. Thanks to her husband and manager, Welter Legge, famous musical producer at the British firm EMI, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf has created a large number of recordings which today form an inimitable ensemble.
© FH / Qobuz
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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro (1950)
Erich Kunz, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, George London
Classical - Released by Classical Moments on Oct 29, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
12 Lieder - 6 Moments musicaux
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Edwin Fischer
Chamber Music - Released by Warner Classics on Nov 28, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Verdi: Requiem
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Orchestra of La Scala, Milan
Classical - Released by Past Classics on Jan 2, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf live in Strasbourg, Vienna and Hannover
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Jacqueline Bonneau, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Hermann Reutter, Bruno Walter
Classical - Released by Archipel on Jun 28, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: Cantatas
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Jan 1, 1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wolf: Songs from the Romantic Poets
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Gerald Moore
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Aug 30, 2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss: 4 Letzte Lieder (Live at Royal Festival Hall, 1956)
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Jul 12, 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Don Giovanni
Dame Joan Sutherland, Eberhard Wächter, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Luigi Alva, The Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by Past Classics on Jan 10, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Frauenliebe und Leben (2011 - Remaster) (2011 Remastered Version)
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Mar 16, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Recital Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Edwin Fischer)
Classical - Released by Tahra on Sep 2, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Salzburger Liederabende 1956-2010 (Live)
Classical - Released by Orfeo on Nov 11, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert, Brahms & Others: Art Songs (Live)
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Giorgio Favoretto, Edwin Fischer, Michael Raucheisen, Unknown Artist
Classical - Released by Archipel on Jan 30, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Missa solemnis in D major, Op. 123
Classical - Released by Archipel on Aug 21, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven, Strauss & Bartók: Orchestral Works (Live)
Berliner Philharmoniker, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, István Kertész
Classical - Released by Orfeo on Oct 28, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart, Schubert, Wolf: Lieder
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Edwin Fischer, Walter Gieseking
Classical - Released by Urania on Feb 3, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Strauss · Der Rosenkavalier
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Christa Ludwig, Herbert von Karajan, Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by G.O.P. on Sep 30, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert, Strauss & Others: Art Songs (Live)
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Gerald Moore
Classical - Released by Archipel on Jul 24, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Igor Markevitch (Igor Markevitch, Orchestre National de France, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Fedora barbieri, Amedeo Berdini, Otto von Rohr, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra)
Classical - Released by Tahra on May 19, 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Die Entführung Aus Dem Serail
Rudolf Moralt, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Emmy Loose
Opera - Released by Urania on Jul 31, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Opera Arias (Soprano): Schwarzkopf, Elisabeth - Mozart, W.A. / Beethoven, L. Van / Verdi, G. / Charpentier, G. / Puccini, G. (1946-1954) (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Pietro Metastasio - Christoph Friedrich Bretzner)
Classical - Released by IDIS on Jan 1, 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Song Recital (2011 - Remaster) (2011 Remastered Version)
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Jul 20, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo