Robert Weede

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Robert Weede (né Wiedefeld, in Baltimore, Maryland, on February 22, 1903; died in Walnut Creek, California, on July 9, 1972) was one of the most esteemed of American operatic baritones. He studied at the Eastman School and in Milan, and made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 1937, as Tonio in Pagliacci. His other roles there included Rigoletto (opposite Jussi Björling), Amonasro (Aïda), Manfredo (L'amore dei tre re), Shaklovity (Khovanschina) and Baron Scarpia (Tosca). He debuted as the protagonist of Rigoletto in Chicago (1939), San Francisco (1940), and at the New York City Opera (1948).

At the City Opera, Weede also sang in Pagliacci and in the world premiere of William Grant Still's Troubled Island, opposite Marie Powers, Marguerite Piazza and Robert McFerrin. In Mexico City, the baritone appeared with Maria Callas in Aïda and Tosca. Later, he sang with that soprano in Chicago, in Il trovatore and her only appearances in Madama Butterfly.

In 1956, he scored a great success on Broadway, as the first Tony Esposito in Loesser's The Most Happy Fella, which he recorded. He was seen on Broadway in Milk and Honey (1961-63, which was also recorded) and Cry for Us All (1970), as well. He also had recorded excerpts from Bizet's Carmen, in 1946, with Risë Stevens conducted by Georges Sébastian, and recorded an album of arias by Verdi for Capitol Records in 1953, conducted by Nicola Rescigno.

Weede often gave assistance to younger singers, especially John Alexander, Dominic Cossa, Mario Lanza and Norman Treigle.¹ In 2006, Lebendige Vergangenheit published a Compact Disc of excerpts from his Bizet and Verdi recordings, as well as various live performances from 1948 through 1954.

¹ Strange Child of Chaos: Norman Treigle (page 217), by Brian Morgan, iUniverse, 2006.

[edit] References

  • The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia, edited by David Hamilton, Simon and Schuster, 1987. ISBN 0-671-61732-X

[edit] External links

  • [1] YouTube: Robert Weede in an excerpt from Tosca (audio only, 1937).