Martin Egel (born 17 January 1944) is a German

bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing thre ...

in opera and concert, who made an international career. He appeared at the

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...

from 1975 to 1986. He is also a speaker for television and recordings.

Life

Egel was born in

Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

as son of the

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typical ...

singer

Marga Höffgen Marga Anna Johanna Höffgen (26 April 1921 – 7 July 1995) was a German contralto, known for singing oratorios, especially the Passions by Johann Sebastian Bach, and operatic parts such as Erda in Wagner's '' Der Ring des Nibelungen'', perform ...

and the choral conductor Theodor Egel. He studied voice in Frankfurt and Basel, and made his stage debut at the

Theater Basel Theater Basel is the municipal theatre of the city of Basel, Switzerland, which is home to the city's opera and ballet companies. The theatre also presents plays and musicals in addition to operas and operettas. Because the theatre does no ...

in Mozart's ''

Le nozze di Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It prem ...

'' in 1973, and remained a member of the ensemble to 1980. At the

, Egel appeared from 1975 to 1986, including as Donner in the ''

Jahrhundertring The ''Jahrhundertring'' (''Centenary Ring'') was the production of Richard Wagner's ''Ring Cycle'', '' Der Ring des Nibelungen'', at the Bayreuth Festival in 1976, celebrating the centenary of both the festival and the first performance of the com ...

'' from 1977 to 1980. He was a guest at major opera houses in Germany and Europe. He appeared as Melot in Wagner's ''

Tristan und Isolde ''Tristan und Isolde'' (''Tristan and Isolde''), WWV 90, is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the 12th-century romance Tristan and Iseult by Gottfried von Strassburg. It was compos ...

'' at the opera of Monte Carlo in 1983. The following year, he performed the title role of Mozart's ''Le nozze di Figaro'' at the

Liceu The Gran Teatre del Liceu (, English: Great Theatre of the Lyceum), known as ''El Liceu'', is an opera house in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Located in La Rambla, it is the oldest running theatre in Barcelona. Founded in 1837 at another loca ...

in Barcelona. He appeared in Dallapiccola's ''

Ulisse ''Ulisse'' is an opera in a prologue and two acts composed by Luigi Dallapiccola to his own libretto based on the legend of Ulysses. It premiered at the Deutsche Oper Berlin (in German translation by Karl-Heinrich Kreith as ''Odysseus'') on 29 ...

'' at the Teatro Regio in Turin in 1987, and the following year as Music Master in ''

Ariadne auf Naxos (''Ariadne on Naxos''), Opus number, Op. 60, is a 1912 opera by Richard Strauss with a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. The opera's unusual combination of elements of low commedia dell'arte with those of high opera seria points up one o ...

'' by Richard Strauss. In 1990, he performed the title role in Wagner's ''

Der fliegende Holländer ' (''The Flying Dutchman''), WWV 63, is a German-language opera, with libretto and music by Richard Wagner. The central theme is redemption through love. Wagner conducted the premiere at the Königliches Hoftheater Dresden in 1843. Wagner ...

'' at the

Staatstheater Mainz The Staatstheater Mainz (Mainz State Theatre) is a theatre in Mainz, Germany, which is owned and operated by the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. Situated on the Gutenbergplatz, the complex comprises two theatres which are connected by an under ...

, and as Telramund in Wagner's ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wolf ...

'' at the

Staatstheater Wiesbaden The Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden ('Hessian State Theatre Wiesbaden') is a German theatre located in Wiesbaden, in the German state Hesse. The company produces operas, plays, ballets, musicals and concerts on four stages. Known also a ...

. He appeared as Wotan in Wagner's ''

Das Rheingold ''Das Rheingold'' (; ''The Rhinegold''), WWV 86A, is the first of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's '' Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was performed, as a single opera, at the Nationa ...

'' at the

Théâtre Graslin Théâtre Graslin is a theatre and opera house in the city of Nantes, France, built in a new district of the city in the late 18th century by the local architect Mathurin Crucy, and named after the owner of the land, Jean-Louis Graslin. Constructe ...

in Nantes in 1992. In 1996, he performed in Cimarosa's at ''Il mercato del Malmantile''. Egel appeared in a number of television productions as a speaker, and also took part in recordings of classical music. He also worked as a narrator of modern children's literature, such as for the record ''Onkel Martin singt und erzählt zur guten Nacht'' ("Uncle Martin sings and tells stories for a good night").

References

External links

*
Martin Egel (Bass-Baritone)
Bach Cantatas Website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Egel, Martin German opera singers Bass-baritones 1944 births Living people Musicians from Freiburg im Breisgau

Life

References

Further reading

External links