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Jon Vickers

Canadian opera singer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jon Vickers
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This article is about the Canadian opera singer. For other people with similar names, see John Vickers (disambiguation).

Jonathan Stewart Vickers (October 29, 1926 – July 10, 2015), known professionally as Jon Vickers, was a world renowned Canadian heldentenor.

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In 1957 Vickers joined London’s Royal Opera House, Covent Garden company. In 1960 he joined the Metropolitan Opera.

Vickers became world-famous for a wide range of German, French, and Italian roles, but especially in the Wagner tenor roles in Die Walkure, Tristan und Isolde, Parsifal and in Beethoven's Fidelio. He was the foremost Wagner tenor of his era.

Vickers performed operas with prominent conductors such as Otto Klemperer, Herbert von Karajan, Sir Colin Davis, Hans Knappertsbusch, and Sir Thomas Beecham. With Karajan he recorded several operas accompanied by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.

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Background and education

Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Vickers was the sixth in a family of eight children. In 1950, he was awarded a scholarship to study opera at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto.

Vickers was born into the musical family of William, a teacher and school principal, and Myrle (née Mossop). As a youth he sang in his father's church, and his initial intention was to study medicine. He worked on a neighbour's farm and acquired the muscular stature that characterized him. During a semi-professional production his leading lady made a recording of his voice and sent it to The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. He auditioned there with Every Valley Shall be Exalted from Handel's Messiah and was offered a scholarship.[1]

Vickers studied with George Lambert at The Royal Conservatory of Music[2] and sang professionally in Canada from the early- to mid-1950s. In 1952 he won the Nos futures étoiles competition on CBC Radio.[3]

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International career

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His international career began with his 1957 Covent Garden Riccardo in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera. He continued to appear there into the 1980s, putting his personal stamp on the roles of Énée in Berlioz's Les Troyens, Radamès in Verdi's Aida and the title role in his Don Carlos, Handel's Samson, Florestan in Beethoven's Fidelio, Tristan in Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, Canio in Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, and the title role in Britten's Peter Grimes.[4] Some critics praised Vickers' Tristan as the best since Lauritz Melchior's.[5]

On 20 November 1957, Vickers sang the title role in a performance of The Dream of Gerontius by Sir Edward Elgar in Rome conducted by Sir John Barbirolli with the RAI Rome Symphony Orchestra and Chorus.[6]

Vickers gained major international recognition in both the U.S. and the UK in the role of Giasone (Jason) in performances of Luigi Cherubini's Medea with Maria Callas in the title role at both Dallas Civic Opera in November 1958[7][8][9][10] and the following season at Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in London, UK, in June, 1959.[11][12] This was a joint co-production between Dallas and Covent Garden. Vickers and Callas both emphasized dramatic skills as well as singing ability, and they worked well together, Vickers stating that “...when we finished the big love duet, she flew across the stage and put her arms around me and said, 'At last, a tenor who can act!'”[13] The same production was staged at La Scala Opera House in Milan, Italy in 1961-1962, again with Callas and Vickers heading the cast.[14][15] The libretto by Hoffman was based on Euripides' tragedy Medea, on Seneca the Younger's play Medea and on Pierre Corneille's play Médée.[16]

He debuted at the Bayreuth Festival in 1958 as Siegmund in Die Walküre and sang Parsifal there in 1964, both presentations conducted by legendary Wagner conductor Hans Knappertsbusch.[2] Later negotiations with Wieland Wagner concerning appearances as Siegfried in Götterdämmerung ceased on Wieland's death in 1966.

Vickers' debut role at the Metropolitan Opera in 1960 was Canio in Pagliacci.[17] He would appear at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, N.Y. over a period of 27 years in 280 performances of 17 roles, including Florestan in Fidelio, Siegmund in Wagner's Die Walküre, Don Jose in Bizet's Carmen, Radamès in Aida, Erik in Wagner's Der fliegende Holländer, Herman in Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades, Samson in both Handel's oratorio and Saint-Saëns' Samson et Dalila, the title role of Verdi's Otello, Don Alvaro in Verdi's La forza del destino, Peter Grimes, Tristan und Isolde, Laca in Janáček's Jenůfa, Vasek in Smetana's The Bartered Bride, and the title role in Wagner's Parsifal, giving his farewell in 1987.[17]

Although scheduled to sing Tannhäuser at Covent Garden in the late 1970s, Vickers dropped out, claiming he could not empathize with the character,[18] and that the opera itself was blasphemous in nature.[4][19] He sang Nerone in Monteverdi's L'incoronazione di Poppea at the Paris Opéra, and Alvaro in La forza del destino at the Met (1975). His roles also included Don Carlos, Andrea Chenier, Herod in Salome. Vickers sang Pollione in Norma.[20]

He also sang rarely heard roles such as Cellini in Berlioz's Benvenuto Cellini,[21] Ratan-Sen in Roussel's Padmavati and Sergei in Shostakovitch's Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District.[22] Many critics praised his interpretation of Verdi's Otello,[23] which he recorded twice: in 1960 with Tullio Serafin and 1973 with Herbert von Karajan. Vickers also was a long time collaborator with American pianist Richard Woitach.[24][25]

Vickers became one of Karajan's favourite singers at the lavish Salzburg Easter and Summer Festivals in Der Ring des Nibelungen, Carmen, Otello, Fidelio as well as Tristan und Isolde.

Vickers further sang at the 'home' of Italian opera, Milan's La Scala, as well as in the major opera houses of Chicago, San Francisco, Vienna, and at the Salzburg Festival. He retired in 1988.[26]

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Recordings

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Among Vickers' most central recordings were those of Florestan in Beethoven's Fidelio released in 1962 conducted by Otto Klemperer with the Philharmonia Orchestra[27] and also of Fidelio later in 1971 with Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.[28] In the Wagner repertoire, Siegmund in Richard Wagner's Die Walküre in 1961 with conductor Erich Leinsdorf and the London Symphony Orchestra,[29] also Die Walküre later in 1966 with Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra,[30] and Tristan in Tristan und Isolde in 1971-1972, also with Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.[31] Vickers' most critically acclaimed performance of Parsifal in Wagner's Parsifal was from the Bayreuth Festival in 1964 conducted by Hans Knappertsbusch,[32] which was the great conductor's final performance.

The role of Énée (Aeneas) in Hector Berlioz' Les Troyens with Sir Colin Davis conducting the Royal Opera House Orchestra in 1969 was highly regarded.[33][34][22][20] Also, there was a legendary and controversial 1959 recording of Handel's Messiah with Sir Thomas Beecham.[35][20][36][37] Vickers' later roles included highly acclaimed recordings of Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes conducted by Sir Colin Davis with the orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden[38] and of Verdi's Otello conducted by Karajan with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.[39][40]

Vocal style

Vickers' huge, powerful voice and solid technique met the demands of many German, French and Italian roles. He was also highly regarded for his powerful stage presence and thoughtful characterizations.[41] (Conversely, he was sometimes incorrectly criticized for "scooping"—beginning a note below pitch and then sliding up to the correct pitch—and for "crooning".)[42] While his soft singing was often dismissed by critics as “crooning” or falsetto, it was actually an enveloping, fully supported sound, seeming to come from all around the theater. [43]

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Personal life and death

Vickers was too young to serve in World War II, although two older brothers experienced heavy action in the conflict, one becoming a prisoner of war. Vickers was always strongly anti-Hitler in his statements and judgments, including the role of Wagner's philosophy in influencing the Nazis.[44]

During the Bayreuth Festival of 1964, when Vickers was billeted at a local house, he was offended by some favourable remarks made by the house owner about the period under Nazi rule. Vickers declined further roles at the Bayreuth Festival.

Vickers was a dedicated, outspoken Protestant; one writer referred to him as "God's tenor" for this reason.[45]

In 1953 he married Henrietta Outerbridge. They had five children. After her death in 1991, he married Judith Stewart.[1] Vickers died of Alzheimer's disease on July 10, 2015, in Ontario.[46][47]

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Honours

In 1968 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada. Vickers received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts, in 1998.[48]

Discography

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Vickers' voice was recorded in dozens of performances, including:[22]

Opera recordings

Concert recordings

Recital recordings

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References

Bibliography

External links

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