German dramatic soprano Dorothea Herbert joins Glyndebourne Touring Opera as Leonore in
Frederic Wake-Walker’s new production of Fidelio, scheduled to open on Friday 8 October. The chance
to perform at the Sussex opera house is sure to stir strong emotions in a singer who auditioned for the
Glyndebourne Festival Chorus without success during her student days.
“It’s a dream come true to sing a role that is so precious to me at Glyndebourne,” she said. “I’ve
wanted to sing at this wonderful place for so many years. There really are no words for it, other than to
say that I’m over the moon! Unfortunately the tour has been cancelled because of Covid. But that means
our Fidelio bubble will have the great joy of performing nine times at Glyndebourne. I have always been happy to wait and allow the voice to develop in its own time,” she observes. “Now is the perfect moment for me to sing this role at Glyndebourne.”
Floristan will be sung by Adam Smith.
Herbert sang Leonore for the first time last year in Chemnitz having studied the role with
Christa Ludwig. “She was my mentor for many years and was so incredibly supportive until her death
just a few months ago. She invited me to sing Leonore’s aria to her in June but sadly she passed away before we could meet again. But she had already taught me so much about its interpretation, feeling
and colours and how to get its emotions across. I’m performing the role Christa taught me to sing in the
year she died and in a place that is so dear to me. I will give all my heart!”
Herbert’s debut recording, set for international release on 10 September 2021 on the Dutch independent label 7 Mountain Records, Die stille Stadt… presents Herbert’s personal choice of songs by Alma Mahler and Franz Schreker together with Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s five Op.27 songs, three Op.22 songs and the aria ‘Glück, das mir verblieb’ from his opera Die tote Stadt.
The album opens with Alma Mahler’s Richard Dehmel’s poem Die stille Stadt and includes her sublime ‘Licht in der Nacht’. Herbert reflects on the nature of stillness with songs as diverse as Schreker’s ‘Wohl fühl ich, wie das Leben rinnt’ and ‘Die Dunkelheit sinkt schwer’ before exploring Korngold’s Unvergnglichkeit Op.27, with its themes of love’s eternal power to heal and renew. The recording, made in company with American pianist Peter Nilsson, was conceived in response to last year’s Covid-enforced closure of theatres and concert halls.
https://www.dorotheaherbert.eu/
Die stille Stadt…
Release on 10 September 2021 on 7 Mountain Records
Dorothea Herbert soprano | Peter Nilsson piano
A.Mahler ‘Die stille Stadt’; ‘Meine N chte’; ‘Ansturm’; ‘Ekstase’; ‘Der Erkennende’; ‘Licht in der Nacht’
Schreker ‘Wohl fühl ich, wie das Leben rinnt’; ‘Unendliche Liebe’; ‘Vernichtet ist mein Lebensglück’;
‘Die Dunkelheit sinkt schwer’; ‘Traum’; ‘Spuk’; ‘Stimmen des Tages’
Korngold Op.27; Op.22; ‘Glück, das mir verblieb’ from Die Tote stadt
8, 11, 13, 16, 21, 24, 26, 29, 31 October 2021
Glyndebourne, Lewes
Ben Glassberg conductor | Frederic Wake-Walker director | Dorothea Herbert Leonore | Callum
Thorpe Rocco | Carrie-Ann Williams Marzelline | Gavan Ring Jaquino | Dingle Yandell Don Pizarro
| Jonathan Lemalu Don Fernando | Glyndebourne Tour Orchestra | The Glyndebourne Chorus
Beethoven Fidelio
