- Rose Bampton
Rose Bampton (
November 28 1907 –August 21 2007 ) was an Americanopera singer .Bampton was a mezzo-soprano, later a soprano, who made her debut asSiebel in
Gounod 's "Faust " in 1929. She sang primarily at theMetropolitan Opera House inNew York City , but also at major opera houses worldwide.She made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Laura in "La Gioconda" in November 1932. She sang the role of the Wood Dove in
Arnold Schoenberg 's "Gurre-Lieder " in the first American performances byLeopold Stokowski the same year. She frequently performed Schoenberg's "Lied der Waldtaube" from "Gurre-Lieder" and his "Buch der hängenden Gärten", Op. 15.At the height of her popularity, Bampton, who was noted for her three-octave range, performed in one week in New York the contralto role of Laura in
Ponchielli 's "La Gioconda " at the Met, gave a recital at the Town Hall, and took the mezzo-soprano solo part inBach 'sB Minor Mass with theNew York Oratorio Society .In 1944, Ms. Bampton performed the role of Leonore in conductor
Arturo Toscanini 's radio broadcast ofBeethoven 's opera "Fidelio ". Toscanini conducted theNBC Symphony Orchestra , and others in the cast includedJan Peerce andEleanor Steber . The performance, originally broadcast in two parts, each on a separate week, was released years later on LP and still later on CD. It was Toscanini's first radio broadcast of a virtually complete opera - all of the music was included, but all of the dialogue (except for the spokenmelodrama in the prison scene) was omitted.In 1937, Bampton married the noted Canadian conductor and pianist
Wilfrid Pelletier , who died in 1982. They had no children.External links
* [http://www.mander-and-mitchenson.co.uk/singers.htm Profile on the Mander and Mitchenson Theatre Collection Web Site]
* [http://www.usc.edu/libraries/archives/schoenberg/sat-b.htm Listing on ASI Satellite Collections Web Site]
* [http://www.metoperafamily.org/guild/diva/question.aspx?id=599 Contact Information from the Metropolitan Opera Guild]
* [http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=U1ARTU0002759 Wilfrid Pelletier's Profile on the Canadian Encyclopedia]
* [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/23/arts/music/23bampton.html?ex=1345521600&en=e9380e42132d9219&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss New York Times obituary 8/23/07]
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