Helena Tattermuschová
Encyclopedia
Helena Tattermuschová is a Czech
lyric coloratura soprano
, known chiefly for her character roles in the operas of Mozart and Janáček.
Tattermuschová was born in Prague and studied vocal performance with Vlasta Linhartová at the Academy of Music in Prague. Upon completion of her studies, she was engaged by the Ostrava
Opera where she made her stage debut as Musetta in 1955. By 1956, she was a member of the Prague National Theater opera company where she continued to sing well into the 1980s. She possessed a high lyric soprano voice that tended to cast her into either “daughter” roles or youthful trouser roles for many years into her career.
That distinctively girlish vocal quality inclined Tattermuschová to the soubrette characters in Mozart operas, notably Papagena in The Magic Flute
, Zerlina in Don Giovanni
and Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro
. She also took on the coloratura roles of Rosina in Rossini's The Barber of Seville
and Gilda in Verdi's Rigoletto
.
Tattermuschová’s singular contribution to opera was her body of work singing the Czech repertoire on the national and international stage as well as on recordings. She enjoyed one of her greatest triumphs in 1970 in the title role of Vixen Sharp-Ears from Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen
, which she subsequently recorded. Her youthful voice uniquely suited her to the key role of the boy Aljeja in the nearly all-male cast of Janáček’s From the House of the Dead
(performed at the 1964 Edinburgh Festival). She was also Krista in The Makropulos Affair.
In addition to her Janáček roles, Tattermuschová sang in the nationalist Czech operas of Smetana
and Dvorak
. Her stage roles in Smetana included the servant girl Barče in The Kiss
, the Councillor’s daughter Blaženka in The Secret
and the merry widow Karolina in The Two Widows
. In Dvořák’s operas, she was the kitchen boy Turnspit in Rusalka
and the schoolmaster’s daughter Terinka in The Jacobin
. Outside of Czechoslovakia, she appeared as a guest artist at opera houses in Barcelona, Brussels, Amsterdam, Warsaw, Naples, Venice and Sofia.
Czech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
lyric coloratura soprano
Soprano
A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
, known chiefly for her character roles in the operas of Mozart and Janáček.
Tattermuschová was born in Prague and studied vocal performance with Vlasta Linhartová at the Academy of Music in Prague. Upon completion of her studies, she was engaged by the Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
Opera where she made her stage debut as Musetta in 1955. By 1956, she was a member of the Prague National Theater opera company where she continued to sing well into the 1980s. She possessed a high lyric soprano voice that tended to cast her into either “daughter” roles or youthful trouser roles for many years into her career.
That distinctively girlish vocal quality inclined Tattermuschová to the soubrette characters in Mozart operas, notably Papagena in The Magic Flute
The Magic Flute
The Magic Flute is an opera in two acts composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a Singspiel, a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue....
, Zerlina in Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and with an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga on October 29, 1787...
and Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro
The Marriage of Figaro
Le nozze di Figaro, ossia la folle giornata , K. 492, is an opera buffa composed in 1786 in four acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte, based on a stage comedy by Pierre Beaumarchais, La folle journée, ou le Mariage de Figaro .Although the play by...
. She also took on the coloratura roles of Rosina in Rossini's The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville , which was originally an opéra comique, or a mixture of spoken play with music...
and Gilda in Verdi's Rigoletto
Rigoletto
Rigoletto is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the play Le roi s'amuse by Victor Hugo. It was first performed at La Fenice in Venice on March 11, 1851...
.
Tattermuschová’s singular contribution to opera was her body of work singing the Czech repertoire on the national and international stage as well as on recordings. She enjoyed one of her greatest triumphs in 1970 in the title role of Vixen Sharp-Ears from Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen
The Cunning Little Vixen
The Cunning Little Vixen is an opera by Leoš Janáček, with a libretto adapted by the composer from a serialized novella by Rudolf Těsnohlídek and Stanislav Lolek, which was first published in the newspaper Lidové noviny.-Composition history:When Janáček discovered Těsnohlídek's...
, which she subsequently recorded. Her youthful voice uniquely suited her to the key role of the boy Aljeja in the nearly all-male cast of Janáček’s From the House of the Dead
From the House of the Dead
From the House of the Dead is an opera by Leoš Janáček, in three acts. The libretto was translated and adapted by the composer from the novel by Dostoyevsky...
(performed at the 1964 Edinburgh Festival). She was also Krista in The Makropulos Affair.
In addition to her Janáček roles, Tattermuschová sang in the nationalist Czech operas of Smetana
Bedrich Smetana
Bedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style which became closely identified with his country's aspirations to independent statehood. He is thus widely regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music...
and Dvorak
Antonín Dvorák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. Dvořák’s own style is sometimes called "romantic-classicist synthesis". His works include symphonic, choral and chamber music, concerti, operas and many...
. Her stage roles in Smetana included the servant girl Barče in The Kiss
The Kiss (opera)
The Kiss is an opera in two acts, with music by Bedřich Smetana and text by Eliška Krásnohorská, based on a novel by Karolina Světlá. It received its first performance in Prague on November 7, 1876.- Roles :- Act I :...
, the Councillor’s daughter Blaženka in The Secret
The Secret (opera)
The Secret is a comic opera in three acts by Bedřich Smetana. The libretto was written by Eliška Krásnohorská. The premiere took place September 18, 1878 at the Nové České Divadlo in Prague.-Background:...
and the merry widow Karolina in The Two Widows
The Two Widows
The Two Widows is a two-act Czech opera by Bedřich Smetana based on the libretto of Emanuel Züngel. The libretto is based on Jean Pierre Felicien Mallefille's one-act play "Les deux veuves." The opera was composed between June 1873 and January 1874, with its first première on March 27th, 1874 at...
. In Dvořák’s operas, she was the kitchen boy Turnspit in Rusalka
Rusalka (opera)
Rusalka is an opera by Antonín Dvořák. The Czech libretto was written by the poet Jaroslav Kvapil based on the fairy tales of Karel Jaromír Erben and Božena Němcová. Rusalka is one of the most successful Czech operas, and represents a cornerstone of the repertoire of Czech opera houses...
and the schoolmaster’s daughter Terinka in The Jacobin
The Jacobin
The Jacobin is an opera in three acts by Antonín Dvořák to an original Czech libretto by Marie Červinková-Riegrová. Červinková-Riegrová took some of the story's characters from the story by Alois Jirásek, "At the Ducal Court", but devised her own plot around them. The first performance was at the...
. Outside of Czechoslovakia, she appeared as a guest artist at opera houses in Barcelona, Brussels, Amsterdam, Warsaw, Naples, Venice and Sofia.
Recordings
- Janáček: The Cunning Little VixenThe Cunning Little VixenThe Cunning Little Vixen is an opera by Leoš Janáček, with a libretto adapted by the composer from a serialized novella by Rudolf Těsnohlídek and Stanislav Lolek, which was first published in the newspaper Lidové noviny.-Composition history:When Janáček discovered Těsnohlídek's...
(as Vixen Sharp-Ears), with Zikmundová, Kroupa and Gregor (Supraphon) - Janáček: The Cunning Little VixenThe Cunning Little VixenThe Cunning Little Vixen is an opera by Leoš Janáček, with a libretto adapted by the composer from a serialized novella by Rudolf Těsnohlídek and Stanislav Lolek, which was first published in the newspaper Lidové noviny.-Composition history:When Janáček discovered Těsnohlídek's...
(as Cocholka the Hen), with Bohmová, Domanínská and Neumann (Supraphon) - Janáček: The Makropulos Affair (as Krista), with Prylová, Žídek, Kočí and Gregor (Supraphon)
- Janáček: JenůfaJenufaJenůfa is an opera in three acts by Leoš Janáček to a Czech libretto by the composer, based on the play Její pastorkyňa by Gabriela Preissová. It was first performed at the Brno Theater, Brno, 21 January 1904...
(as Jano), with Domanínská, Niplová, Pribyl, Žídek and Gregor (Supraphon) - Janáček: From the House of the DeadFrom the House of the DeadFrom the House of the Dead is an opera by Leoš Janáček, in three acts. The libretto was translated and adapted by the composer from the novel by Dostoyevsky...
(as Aljeja), with Bednář, Blachut, Žídek and Gregor (Supraphon) - Smetana: LibušeLibuše (opera)Libuše is a '"festival opera" in three acts, with music by Bedřich Smetana. The libretto was originally written in German by Josef Wenzig, and was then translated into Czech by Ervin Špindler. In Czech historical myth, Libuše, the title character, prophesied the founding of Prague. The opera...
with Niplová, Bednář, Pribyl, Šubrtová, Soukupová, Kroupa, Žídek and Krombholc (Supraphon) - Orff: TrionfiTrionfi (Carl Orff)Trionfi is a trilogy of cantatas by German composer Carl Orff:* Carmina Burana* Catulli Carmina* Trionfo di AfroditeCarmina Burana is by far the most famous of the three....
with Žídek, Tržická, Topinka and Smetáček (Supraphon) - Kovařovic: Psohlavci with Votava, Blachut, Tikalová, Krásová, Otava and Dyk (Supraphon)
- Ryba: My Lovely Nightingale (Pastorella for soprano, flute, organ & orchestra) with Josifko, Vodraská and Smetáček (Supraphon)
- Honegger: Cris du monde (Oratorio for vocal soloists, chorus and orchestra) with Baudo (Praha)
- Fišer: Lament Over the Ruined Town of Ur (and other works) with Berman, Tarabova, Maxian, Straus, Belfin and Kuhn (Panton)
- Helena Tattermuschová: Operatic Selections by Smetana et al. (Panton)