Born: February, 23, 1926 - La Chaux-d'Abel, Kanton Bern, Switzerland

The Swiss bass-baritone, Arthur Loosli, studied from 1946 to 1950 painting and history of art in Berne, Paris and Florence and gained high esteem as a carver and a draughtsman, not least by international exhibitions in European big cities as well as in the USA. He worked for many years as an art teacher at the High School of Thun. However, since 1952 he trained his voice with Felix Loeffel at the Conservatoire of Berne. Further studies followed with Mariano Stabile in Venice (1958) and with Arne Sunnegaard in Stockholm (1958-1959). In 1959 he won the International Vocal Competition in s'Hertogenbosch.

Arthur Loosli began in 1958 a great international concert career, where he showed himself on the one hand as oratorio soloist of high rank, on the other hand as talented Lieder interpreter. He sang in important music centres in Switzerland, in Rome, Bergamo, Bari, Brescia, in Genoa, Lucca, Mantua, Parma, Padua and Ravenna, in Amsterdam, Brussels, Besan˘on, in Stuttgart, Mannheim, Nürnberg, in Stockholm and at the Festival of Wroclaw (Breslau). He mastered a broadly varied repertoire, which began with compositions from the Baroque period (J.S. Bach, G.F. Händel) and reached up to works of contemporary composers (Othmar Schoeck, Willy Burkhard, Arthur Honegger, Frank Martin, Benjamin Britten, M. Tippett). On the stage he did not appear, singing however roles in concert opera performance.

Recording: HMV (Johannes-Passion (BWV 245) by J.S. Bach as Christus, Lieder of O. Schoeck), Akzent (Winterreise and Schwanengesang by F. Schubert, with personal designs of the artist). Swiss Pan (Messe by Zelenka, Böhmische Pastorellen).

Source: Operissimo Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (May 2004)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (May 2004)

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Walter Geiser

Bass

BWV 25

Theo Loosli

Bass [Christ]

BWV 245

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