This recording from the Wiener Konzerthaus is Jonas Kaufmann’s Tribute to the immortal melodies of one of the world’s most beautiful cities.

Jonas Kaufmann has always had a special rapport with Austria and Vienna. His grandmother had a fondness for the light classics and was happy to sing the evergreens of Johann Strauss, Franz Lehár and Robert Stolz – a nice contrast to his grandfather’s passion for Wagner. As a child, Jonas spent much of his free time on his grandparents’ farm in Tyrol. Austrian television was almost more familiar to him than its German counterpart. In this way he absorbed the full breadth of Vienna’s entertainment scene, from Peter Alexander to Georg Kreisler. He loved to imitate Hans Moser’s Viennese twang and to slip into the role of “Herr Karl” (aka Helmut Qualtinger). Mastering Viennese dialect was child’s play.

Since then he has had a deep love for Viennese songs and operetta. “The music always put me in a good mood”, he recalls. “When I had unlikeable things to do as a student, like cleaning or vacuuming, all I had to do was play Carlos Kleiber’s Fledermaus recording, and in no time at all I had a grin on my face.”

In many ways “Wien” takes Jonas Kaufmann back to his roots. His very first professional stage production, while still a student, was A Night in Venice. That was in Regensburg back in 1993-94, when he sang Caramello more than 30 times. All the more reason to feature the tenor highlights of this Johann Strauss operetta on “Wien”, along with duets from Die Fledermaus, Wiener Blut and Lehár’s Merry Widow. His superb partner in the duets is Rachel Willis-Sørensen.

In addition to the Johann Strauss favourites, the concert program contains a wide selection of Viennese songs, ranging from Robert Stolz to Peter Kreuder and Hermann Leopoldi.

Johann Strauss II
DRAUSSEN IN SIEVERING BLÜHT SCHON DER FLIEDER
From the operetta ‘Die Tänzerin Fanny Elssler’

DIESER ANSTAND SO MANIERLICH
Clock-duet from the operetta ‘Die Fledermaus’

TIK-TAK POLKA, OP. 365

OPERETTA OVERTURE
‘Eine Nacht in Venedig’

SEI MIR GEGRÜSST, DU HOLDES VENEZIA
From the operetta ‘Eine Nacht in Venedig’

ACH, WIE SO HERRLICH ZU SCHAUEN
From the operetta ‘Eine Nacht in Venedig’

WIENER BLUT
From the operetta ‘Wiener Blut’

Emmerich Kálmán
ZWEI MÄRCHENAUGEN
From the operetta ‘Die Zirkusprinzessin’

Robert Stolz
IM PRATER BLÜH’N WIEDER DIE BÄUME

GRUSS AUS WIEN
March, Op. 898

WIEN WIRD SCHÖN ERST BEI NACHT

Hermann Leopoldi
IN EINEM KLEINEN CAFÉ IN HERNALS

Hans May
HEUT‘ IST DER SCHÖNSTE TAG IN MEINEM LEBEN

Rudolf Sieczynski
WIEN, DU STADT MEINER TRÄUME

Franz Léhar
ES LEBT' EINE VILJA, EIN WALDMÄGDELEIN
From the operetta ‘Die lustige Witwe’

LIPPEN SCHWEIGEN
From the operetta ‘Die lustige Witwe’

Carl Zeller
SCHENKT MAN SICH ROSEN IN TIROL
From the operetta ‘Der Vogelhändler’

Peter Kreuder
SAG BEIM ABSCHIED LEISE SERVUS

Georg Kreisler
DER TOD, DAS MUSS EIN WIENER SEIN

 

Jonas Kaufmann, tenor
Rachel Willis-Sørensen, soprano

Prague Philharmonia

Jochen Rieder, conductor