Winkelmann, Hermann
Winkelmann, Hermann
Winkelmann, Hermann, notable German tenor; b. Braunschweig, March 8, 1849; d. Vienna, Jan. 18,1912. He started out as a piano maker, but became interested in singing. He studied voice in Paris and with Koch in Hannover, making his operatic debut in II Trovatore in Sondershausen (1875), and then sang in Altenburg, Darmstadt, and Leipzig. In 1878 he joined the Hamburg Opera, and appeared with the company during its visit to London in 1882 at Drury Lane; he worked in Wagnerian roles under Richter’s direction. His success induced Richter to recommend him to Wagner, who chose him to create the role of Parsifal at Bayreuth (July 26, 1882). From 1883 to 1906, when he retired on a pension, he was one of the brightest stars of the Vienna Court Opera, where one of his most brilliant achievements was the performance of the role of Tristan (with Materna as Isolde) in the Vienna premiere (Oct. 4, 1883). In 1884 he sang in the U.S. at the Wagner festivals given by Theodore Thomas in N.Y., Boston, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, and Chicago.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire