Alexander Kipnis

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Alexander Kipnis (Ukrainian: Александр Кипнис) (February 13,(February 1 Julian calendar) 1891 in Zhitomir, Russian Empire, now Ukraine – May 14, 1978 in Westport, Connecticut), was a Jewish-Ukrainian operatic bass who became an American citizen in 1931?, though he did not sing at Metropolitan Opera until 1940.

His impoverished family of seven were housed in a Jewish ghetto. After his father died when he was 12 he helped support the family as a carpenter's apprentice,and by singing soprano in local synagogues and in Bessarabia (now Moldavia) until his voice changed. As a teenager he took part in a Yiddish theatrical group, until he left for employment at a synagogue in Siedice, Poland. About this time he entered the Warsaw Conservatory at 19. The conservatory did not require a high-school diploma. His education included the study of the trombone, double bass and conducting all the while he continued to sing in synagogues. On the recommendation of the Choirmaster he traveled to Berlin and studied voice with Ernst Grenzebach who was also the teacher of Lauritz Melchior, Meta Sienemyer, and Max Lorenz, at the same time he sang second bass in Monti's Operetta Theater.

When World War one started he was interned as an alien in a German holding camp. While singing to himself he was overheard by a Captain whose brother was general manager of the Wiesbaden Opera. Upon his reccommendation he was released and hired by the Hamburg Opera where in two years he was to gain enough experience to be hired by Wiesbaden. It was in Hamburg he made his 1915 debut singing three Strauss songs as a "guest" in the party scene of Die Fledermaus. Two years later in 1917 he moved to the Wiesbaden Opera where sang in over 300 prformances until 1922 when he joined the Deutsches Operhaus in Berlin. The next year he toured the United States with the Wagner Opera Festival. For 9 seasons between 1923 and 1932 he was on the roster of the Chicago Civic Opera. In 1927 at the Bayreuth Festival he sang Parsifal under Karl Muck and recorded the Good Friday music under Siegfried Wagner also a performance in 1933 under Richard Strauss. He was under contract with the Berlin Opera from 1930 to 1935 until he was able to break his contract and get out of Germany. He appeared for three seasons as a guest performer with the Vienna State Opera 1936-1938. Just after the Anschluss he left Europe and settled permanently in the United States.

By the time he was finally signed by the Metropolitan in 1940 he had sung in virtually ever major opera house in the world and was considered the world's greatest bass. He sang with almost all of the great conductors, Ansermet, Barbiolli, Beecham, Blech, Busch, Coates, Elemdorff, Furtwangler, Heger, Karajan, Krips, Kleiber, Klemperer, Knapperstbuch, Koussevitsky, Leinsdorf, Mengelberg, Mitropoulos, Monteux, Muck, Nikisch, Ormandy, Pfitzner, reiner, Rodzinski, Rosbaud, Scherchen, Strauss, Szell, Toscanini, Walter, and Weingartner. Between 1915 and 1951 he sang at least 108 roles often in more than one language and his performances in oratorio and opera numbered more than 1600. He retired from the Met in 1946 and his last concert appearance was in 1951.

No one has even come close to the excitement of his Victor recording of Boris. His many recordings of Lieder, Brahms, Wolf and Schubert are still prized today.

His most famous roles were the bass parts of Mozart, Wagner, and the title role of Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. He was also a distinguished interpreter of German lieder (songs).

His son Igor Kipnis (1930-2002), was a celebrated harpsichordist and much of this biographical material was from a biography by him.

[edit] Recordings

The Best of Alexander Kipnis - Wagner, Mozart, Verdi, Gounod, Brahms, Meyerbeer, Wolf and Halevy recordings presented his Igor Kipnis, CD (compact disc) published by Pearl (Pavilion Records Ltd.) GEMM CD 9451