Baritone Gerhard Hüsch studied with Hans Emge and made his debut at Osnabruck in Lortzing’s Der Waffenschmied in 1923. Engagements followed at Bremen, Cologne (1927-30) and Berlin (1930-42), first at the Stadtische Oper and then at the Staatsoper. He sang at Covent Garden in 1930 as Falke in Bruno Walter’s production of Die Fledermaus, then as Papageno the following year, and again in 1938 under Beecham, with whom he also recorded the role. His rendition of Papageno’s entrance song, “Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja” presented here is from that recording.
At Bayreuth in 1930 and 1931 Hüsch sang an outstanding Wolfram in Tannhäuser. His repertory included Count Almaviva, Germont, Sharpless and Storch (Intermezzo). Husch possessed a lyric baritone which could be soft and sweet in Italian opera, sonorously warm and resonant in German. He had a notable feeling for words, and his performances of Schubert’s song cycles, which he also recorded, remain models of style. His other recordings include Wolf lieder, and excerpts from his operatic roles. (Harold Rosenthal and Alan Blyth)