PODCAST

Countermelody

DANIEL GUNDLACH

Countermelody devoted to the glories of the human voice raised in song.

music music commentary

All Episodes

1:47:30

Episode 394. Valletti Revisited (French Edition)

Countermelody ·

2025/09/15

More than two years and nearly two hundred episodes ago, I published an episode on the great Italian tenore di grazia Cesare Valletti. Today I revisit his recorded legacy, focusing on his prowess in the French repertoire, both in opera and, rather uncharacteristically for an Italian tenor of the era, mélodie. Not only do I present the complete 1965 LP entitled Cesare Valletti Sings French Art Songs, which was his final release on the RCA Victor label, but I supplement that with two fantabulous death

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1:22:56

Episode 393. George London in Song

Countermelody ·

2025/09/13

Even before the continuing acts of gun violence in the US this week, I had chosen a theme that necessitated a rather sombre setlist: the artistry of Canadian-born singer George London in recital. Though London was one of the premier operatic bass-baritones in the 1950s, he also reserved a significant corner of his artistic endeavors for the recital stage. This episode focuses on London’s live and studio recordings of this repertoire, which, in part simply by virtue of the dark color of his

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1:39:35

Episode 392. Ernst Kozub Revisited [Verdi Edition]

Countermelody ·

2025/09/08

Since posting a tribute to German heldentenor Ernst Kozub last year, I have continued combing through both his live and studio output and I have concluded that his work in Verdi is at least as good as his work in Wagner. And that’s saying something! I have a wonderful setlist here which features the great Heldentenor singing everything from the lyric tenor parts of Alfredo in La Traviata and the Duke (or should I say the Herzog?!) in Rigoletto to the dramatic roles of Manrico in Der Troubadour,

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1:40:56

Episode 391. Ben Bagley’s Three-Dollar Bills [Porter...

Countermelody ·

2025/09/06

Two months ago I posted an episode on Gay Eccentrics, which included a profile of Ben Bagley, the theatrical and record producer who most certainly fit that designation. I believe that Bagley’s most lasting contribution was the 60 or so albums he produced of Great Broadway Composers Revisited, which presented unknown gems from the deep inside the trunks of these figures. For today’s episode, I am putting a particularly queer spin on that series by featuring a cross-section of the songs offered on

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1:46:07

Episode 390. Donath Sings Strauss

Countermelody ·

2025/09/01

Beloved Countermelody favorite Helen Donath celebrated her 85th birthday on 10 July. In honor of that milestone, I once again celebrate her (which I’ve done so often, but I don’t think anyone is complaining!) This episode features the venerated soprano singing the music of Richard Strauss. In 1976 and 1981 she recorded two albums of Lieder for EMI, both accompanied by her husband, pianist and conductor Klaus Donath, each of which included a selection of songs by Strauss. In addition, I offer

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1:43:42

Episode 389. Rescue Mission (Operatic Duet Edition)

Countermelody ·

2025/08/29

I have spent the past week planning forthcoming episodes and last night I realized I had to “throw together” something for this weekend’s episode. When this happens, it can often result in a very eclectic program, indeed, and one which many of my listeners find to be among the most enjoyable Countermelody episodes. I have collected more than enough material for at least a dozen of my so-called “Rescue Mission” episodes, in which I feature artists to whom an entire episode has already been devoted,

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1:42:59

Episode 388. Sopranos en détresse, Part Deux

Countermelody ·

2025/08/24

A few months ago I published the first of a series of episodes honoring “Over the Top Sopranos,” which presented French repertoire performed by a batch of supremely distressed divas. And today is a follow-up, again featuring “sopranos en détresse” in which I spread the net even wider, featuring every type of soprano from perky coloratura to hefty dramatic and everything in between. The characters represented range from reformed Alexandrian courtesans to vampiric Hungarian murderers. And the

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1:08:58

Episode 387. Zauberwelt der Oper [Black Diva Edition]

Countermelody ·

2025/08/22

I’m on holiday this week, but it would be most unGundlachian of me not to provide an episode to sustain my listeners in my absence. I recently purchased a mammoth 13-LP set on the Concert Hall Society label. The release promises a variety of excerpts that illustrate the history of opera from Monteverdi through Puccini. As such it makes use of a number of complete operatic recordings made for the now-nearly-forgotten label, as well as some impressive individual performances recorded in the early

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1:32:08

Episode 386. David Rendall in Memoriam

Countermelody ·

2025/08/18

On 21 July, the opera world lost one of its finest tenors, David Rendall, at the age of 76. Rendall began his career in the mid-seventies as a lyric tenore di grazia specializing in bel canto and in the music of Mozart. His voice expanded and deepened over the years to encompass French roles (Des Grieux, Faust, Werther), 19th century Italian repertoire from Rodolfo to Otello, and finally Wagner roles from Lohengrin to Tristan. This episode explores his origins from his earliest recordings made

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1:34:27

Episode 385. Classical Singer-Songwriters

Countermelody ·

2025/08/16

You’re all going to laugh at me, but that’s okay, cuz I’m I’m the one laughing hardest! I had planned an easy-peasy episode for yesterday, one which focused on two great 20th century bass-baritones who were both valued recitalists as well as composers! I’m talking about the faboo basses, Finnish Kim Borg, and Dutch Robert Holl, who also happened to be fantastic recitalists. I had the recordings on my collection; I just had to put them into an episode. But of course I began meditating on the question

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1:49:45

Episode 384. Vera Little Revisited

Countermelody ·

2025/08/11

On June 3, 2024, the Berlin Senate's Department of Culture installed a memorial plaque in honor of African American contralto and Deutsche Oper star Vera Little at her former residence. Little, who lived from 1927 to 2012, and spent the majority of her adult life in Berlin, was a dazzlingly gifted singing actress who sang everything from bel canto to Carmen to creating two roles in operas by Hans Werner Henze. This episode makes use of newly-acquired recordings of Little singing Carmen and Dame

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1:20:00

Episode 383. Get to Know Carol Smith

Countermelody ·

2025/08/08

If the exceptional Illinois-born contralto Carol Smith (20 February 1926 – 06 June 2021) has previously escaped your notice, now is the perfect opportunity to get to know her better. She began her career singing the music of Bach with the legendary Bach Aria Group, founded in 1946 by philanthropist, scholar, and collector William H. Scheide. Smith then went on for further vocal training in Italy, making her operatic stage debut in 1961 in Napoli. There followed a glorious operatic career as one of

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1:32:59

Episode 382. Eine Janowitzische Geburtstagfeier

Countermelody ·

2025/08/04

If you “get” Gundula Janowitz, then you really get her, and this birthday tribute will be a delectable treat. If, however, you don’t get her, or don’t think that you get her, you might want to give this episode a try, anyway, for it focuses on her work as a Lieder singer. It is my contention that she was one of the very finest song recitatlists of the late 20th century. Like Grace Bumbry, Margaret Price, Helen Donath, and a number of others, she balanced her work in opera with superlative work on

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1:41:08

Episode 381. I Got a Name (Pride Edition)

Countermelody ·

2025/08/01

At first blush, this episode may look a bit slapdash, but it actually reflects very much where I am at this moment. It’s got a bit more of a narrative than most of my episodes do, and somehow in this story a number of different strands come together. The starting point was a Pride bonus episode I published in June 2024 exploring a rare and fascinating 1964 LP of a live recital by “female impersonator” (Mr.) Jean Fredericks that also somehow folded into the mix hidden family narratives, Gilbert

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1:40:01

Episode 380. Hermann Prey Sings Bach

Countermelody ·

2025/07/28

The esteemed, indeed beloved, German baritone Hermann Prey died seventeen years ago already on July 22, 1998. I want to remember him today by celebrating a cornerstone of his repertoire: the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. I’ve been playing a lot of Bach recently on the podcast, as his music is one of the few lifelines that I can rely upon in the chaos of today’s world. But I’ve been focusing in large part on contraltos performing his music which leaves an entire repertoire insufficiently explored

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1:37:37

Episode 379. Stuart Burrows In Duet

Countermelody ·

2025/07/25

So many great singing artists lost to the world of late! Almost a month ago now, the great Welsh tenor Stuart Burrows (07 February 1933 - 29 June 2025) left this mortal coil at the age of 92. Burrows was an artist of extraordinary technique, elegance, and sincerity and it has been an honor and a delight to put together this episode which celebrates his career. Because he was a favorite partner of so many exceptional divas, I decided to focus this episode on Burrows singing duets with some of the

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1:47:40

Episode 378. Rescue Mission III (Friends Edition)

Countermelody ·

2025/07/21

Even after I publish a Countermelody episode on a favorite singer, I continue to collect material on them, which I then occasionally fold into a potpourri episode of vocal and musical delights. I have dubbed such episodes part of my “Rescue Mission” series and I’m tempted to call today’s episode I’m tempted to call “Friend Edition” (even though there are several good friends I’ve made in recent years who are not represented today). Be that as it may, I do love putting out such episodes, especially

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1:25:40

Episode 377. Joan Caplan Memorial Tribute

Countermelody ·

2025/07/18

This past April, my former voice teacher and treasured friend Joan Caplan died at the age of 92. A few weeks ago, family and friends organized a memorial gathering for which I produced a short audio tribute, which is heard at the beginning of this episode. Before the event, we heard a number of recordings of Joan in her prime that absolutely knocked me on my ear. I was kindly given copies of these recordings from which I have fashioned an expanded episode in her honor. Most of these recordings have

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1:46:16

Episode 376. Bacquier en Récital (Bastille Day 2025)

Countermelody ·

2025/07/14

Today in honor of Bastille Day, I present an episode featuring the late Gabriel Bacquier, who considered himself an “acting singer” rather than a “singing actor.” He made his first mark as a sublime Mozart singer, from there moving into Verdi baritone parts, and finally as a supremely skilled basso buffo. What is less well-known is that he was also a superb recitalist, and in today’s bonus episode, I present him in recordings primarily from the early 1960s, but ranging into the late 1970s, which

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1:34:50

Episode 375. Gilda Cruz-Romo In Memoriam

Countermelody ·

2025/07/11

Back in December I published my first episode honoring the superb soprano Gilda Cruz-Romo, as part of my series honoring Mexican opera singers. In my research, I amassed a large number of live recordings from which I intended to cobble together a second episode in honor of her upcoming birthday. I was distracted by some family issues and, her February birthday came and went, and now, alas, Gilda is no longer with us. But to pay tribute to this exceptional artists, I have assembled a brand new

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