Marianne Schech - Centenary (January 18 1914 - July 22 1999)

Marianne Schech - Brunnhilde

Marianne Schech was in the cast of the first CD I bought back when they were really new technology.  It was in Karl Bohm's recording of R.Strauss' Elektra.  I was impressed by her great warmth of tone and expression, certainly one not afraid to take risks.  

Since then I've come to admire her other recorded performances and we are lucky there remain quite a few.  She was particularly noted for her Wagner and Strauss heroines, in particular Der Marschallin, Sieglinde, Brunnhilde, Senta, and the Dyer's Wife, she was also a popular singer of Puccini, Verdi and Giordano, mostly in her native German.

Currently I've been listening to her Marschallin, recorded with Karl Bohm, an early stereo recording which certainly lives up to it's contemporaries.  Her Senta with Dietriech Fischer-Dieskau is actually one of my favourites too.

It's a really tough call for me to choose the audio as a tribute to this highly underrated singer, so as a concession to her Centenary I've chosen two rare gems, both love duets, from R.Strauss' Arabella and the final scene from Giordano's Andrea Chenier.  

             
                                

In the Arabella sample she shows how she could so effortlessly project a near seemless Straussian vocal line but listen also to her breathe control and legato in the Chenier finale below.  Taken at such a slow tempo it's breathtaking.  A wonderful tribute to this remarkable singer.