The German Fach system ( German pronunciation: [fax] ; literally "compartment" or "subject of study", here in the sense of "vocal specialization") is a method of classifying singers, primarily opera singers, according to the range , weight , and color of their voices. It is used worldwide, but primarily in Europe, especially in German-speaking countries and by repertory opera houses.
14-588: Bent Norup (7 November 1936 – 7 May 2007) was a Danish operatic heldenbaritone . He was a member of the Royal Danish Theatre and opera houses in Germany, and appeared internationally, especially in stage works by Richard Wagner, including his signature role Hans Sachs in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg . He also performed in contemporary opera and in concert. He was appointed a knight of
28-981: A dramatic baritone included Pizarro in Beethoven's Fidelio , Jago in Verdi's Otello , Mephisto in Gounod's Faust , Scarpia in Puccini's Tosca , the title role of Borodin's Prince Igor , Borromeo in Pfitzner's Palestrina and Boris in Shostakovitch's Katerina Izmailova . In 1984, he recorded the role of Orest in Elektra by Richard Strauss in a live recording with the Orchestre national de France , conducted by Christof Perick , alongside Ute Vinzing as Elektra and Leonie Rysanek as Chrysothemis. He
42-726: A dramatic tenor, whereas the Wagner Heldenbariton is in effect a bass singer with a high register and only occasionally stretches to the high notes of the dramatic Italian baritone. Other Heldenbaritone parts include Kaspar in Weber's " Der Freischütz ", Jochanaan in Strauss' " Salome " and the title role in Verdi's " Falstaff ". Fach The Fach system is a convenience for singers and opera houses. It prevents singers from being asked to sing roles which they are incapable of performing, or roles for which their vocal timbre
56-675: A voice other than the traditional Fach . For instance, the " Queen of the Night " and " Violetta " are more traditionally dramatic coloratura roles, but it is difficult to find a dramatic coloratura to sing it (particularly given the extreme range). Therefore, these roles are often sung by a lyric coloratura. One must not mistake the Mozartian dramatic coloratura soprano with the Italian dramatic coloratura soprano. A singer that sings Konstanze, Donna Anna or Fiordiligi can not necessarily sing
70-416: Is a fach (operatic voice type) that is usually associated with the operas of Richard Wagner . It is usually sung by bass-baritones such as Hans Hotter , Theo Adam or Bryn Terfel . Wagner himself calls this voice type "Hoher Bass" (high bass) rather than baritone. In his opera scores he distinguishes between the two so that Wolfram in " Tannhäuser " is labelled "Bariton", whereas Wotan in " Die Walküre "
84-509: Is called "Hoher Bass". Wolfram is a much more lyrical part than Wotan, and normally the same singer would not have both parts on his repertoire. Heldenbaritone parts are different from dramatic baritone parts in Italian operas (such as Scarpia in Puccini's " Tosca " or Iago in Verdi's " Otello ") in that the Italian parts have a much higher tessitura and the vocal line is much more like that of
98-436: Is dramatically unsuited. Opera companies keep lists of available singers by Fach so that when they are casting roles for an upcoming production, they do not inadvertently contact performers who would be inappropriate for the part. Below is a list of Fächer ( German pronunciation: [ˈfɛçɐ] ), their ranges as written on sheet music , and roles generally considered appropriate to each. When two names for
112-575: The Fach are given, the first is in more common use today. Where possible, an English and/or Italian equivalent of each Fach is listed; however, not all Fächer have ready English or Italian equivalents. Note that some roles can be sung by more than one Fach and that many singers do not easily fit into a Fach : for instance some sopranos may sing both Koloratursopran and Dramatischer Koloratursopran roles. In addition, roles traditionally more difficult to cast may be given to
126-824: The Order of the Dannebrog . Norup was born in Hobro , Denmark. During his bank apprenticeship in Copenhagen, Norup took private singing lessons. He then trained his voice with Karl Schmitt-Walter in Munich and Herta Sperber in New York City. After singing in the choir at the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen, he made his debut as a soloist there in 1969, as Shchelkalov in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov . He remained at
140-438: The Italian dramatic coloratura parts, due to other vocal demands. Imogene, Leonora and Violetta require a dramatic soprano voice and are most often sung by dramatic sopranos with an agile voice that can easily produce coloratura and high notes. Roles like Norma, Lady Macbeth, Odabella or Abigaille are good examples of Italian roles that are not necessarily a coloratura soprano (even though the score calls for coloratura singing), but
154-696: The house until 1975, appearing in major roles such as Kurwenal in Wagner's Tristan und Isolde and in the title role of his Der fliegende Holländer , as the Doctor in Alban Berg's Wozzeck , as Stig in Peter Arnold Heise's Drot og marsk , and as Jochanaan in Salome by Richard Strauss. He participated in the world premiere of Herman D. Koppel 's Macbeth as Banquo on 1 February 1970. Norup
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#1732802534430168-981: Was Der fliegende Holländer at the Vienna State Opera in 1985 and Telramund in Lohengrin at La Fenice in Venice in 1990 and the Liceu in Barcelona in 1992. In 1983, he stepped in at the Bayreuth Festival for the sick Siegmund Nimsgern in the role of the Wanderer in Siegfried , conducted by Georg Solti . The same year, he also appeared there as Gunther in Götterdämmerung , but received rather restrained reviews. Other roles as
182-688: Was a member of the German opera houses Staatstheater Braunschweig from 1972 and Staatstheater Nürnberg from 1977 to 1989, and was associated with the Staatsoper Hannover from 1981. As a guest, he appeared at many German opera houses, often in Wagner's stage works. He performed the role of Hans Sachs in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the Musiktheater im Revier in Gelsenkirchen in 1979, which became his signature role. Norup
196-476: Was also active as a concert singer. In 1994, he was appointed a knight of the Order of the Dannebrog for his accomplishments. Norup died in Udsholt Strand, Blistrup , on 7 May 2007 at age 70. Heldenbaritone A Heldenbaritone , also known as dramatic bass-baritone or hoher bass (high bass) , is an opera singer, a German dramatic baritone . "Heldenbaritone" (Ger. "Heroic baritone)
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