Alfred Paulus (Bass)

Born: Germany

The German bass, Alfred Paulus, received his training at the Musikhochschule Stuttgart. However, after his studies he participated as an officer in World War I during the years 1914-1918.

Alfred Paulus first worked from 1920 to 1924 as bass at the Stuttgart State Opera, however in 1924 he went as heroic baritone to the Staatstheater Dessau, where he remained until 1929. There he sang in 1926 in the German first performance of the opera Marouf by H. Rabaud. He sang from 1929 to 1934 at the Landestheater of Braunschweig. Appearances led him to the State Operas of Berlin and Dresden and to the Opera House of Riga (1930). In 1929 he sang at the Wagner Festival in Paris under F. vom Hoesslin as Donner in Rheingold and Gunther in Götterdämmerung. He showed himself as a great concert singer with concert appearances in Vienna (1930), Munich (1931), Hamburg (1931) and Berlin (1930-1931). He sang in 1930 in Leipzig in the premiere of the Cantata Das dunkle Reich by Hans Pfitzner.

In 1934 Alfred Paulus gave up the occupation of singer and was again active as an officer in the German armed forces until 1945. After World War II, he became a teacher for singing and dramatic instruction, finally professor at the Musikhochschule Stuttgart from 1946 to 1958.

Alfred Paulus' big stage roles were the title hero in Fliegenden Holländer, Hans Sachs in Meistersingern, Wotan in the Nibelungenring, Amfortas in Parsifal, Boris Godunov in the opera of the same name by Mussorgsky, and the title roles in the operas Falstaff by Verdi and Gianni Schicchi by Puccini.

Recording: on Vox label.

Source: Operissimo Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (May 2005)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (May 2005)

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Karl Straube

Bass

BWV 75
Radio: BWV 75, BWV 139

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