Jan Kiepura
Encyclopedia
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
singer (tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
) and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
Biography
Jan Kiepura's parents were Franciszek (a baker) and Miriam (a violist). He was born of a Jewish mother and a Polish father. The mother was baptised in order to get married. During 1916-1920 he attended the Junior School in Sosnowiec where he passed the MaturaMatura
Matura or a similar term is the common name for the high-school leaving exam or "maturity exam" in various countries, including Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia,...
exam. In 1921 he studied law at the University of Warsaw
University of Warsaw
The University of Warsaw is the largest university in Poland and one of the most prestigious, ranked as best Polish university in 2010 and 2011...
. He learned singing from Wacław Brzeziński and Tadeusz Leliwa. In 1923, in the cinema "Sfinks" in Sosnowiec took place the first concert. In 1924 Kiepura was admitted by Emil Młynarski to choir. He played the role of Góral
Goral
Goral may refer to:* Three species of Asian ungulates in the genus Naemorhedus.* The Gorals, a people living in southern Poland, northern Slovakia and the Czech Republic....
in Moniuszko's Halka
Halka
Halka is an opera by the Polish composer Stanisław Moniuszko. The libretto was by Wlodzimierz Wolski , a young Warsaw poet with radical social views. It is part of the canon of Polish national operas.-Performance history:...
. He also took part in a production of Gounod's Faust in Lwow.
In 1926 he left Poland. Before World War II, he built a well-known hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, "Patria", in Krynica-Zdrój, which cost him about US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
3 million. Some Polish movies were made there. He played in twelve musicals, including O czym się nie myśli (1926), Die Singende Stadt (Neapol, śpiewające miasto) (1930), Tout Pour L'amour (Zdobyć cię muszę) (1933), and Mon coeur t'appelle
Mon coeur t'appelle
Mon coeur t'appelle is a 1934 French musical film directed by Carmine Gallone and Serge Véber, written by Ernst Marischka, produced by Arnold Pressburger. The film stars Jan Kiepura, Danielle Darrieux and Lucien Baroux. The music score is by Robert Stolz...
(1934).
Return to Warsaw
Kiepura's arrivals caused sensation in capital of Poland and his shows evoked huge enthusiasm. Apart from performances in concert halls he also sang to a crowd gathered under the balcony of hotel "Bristol". He also sang while standing on the car's roof, from carriage's window. He also spoke to the audience. However, he was not a frequent guest in Poland. He signed contacts with Opera Convert Garden in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Opéra Comique in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and National Opera in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. Kiepura also started a film career while firstly co-operating with Berlin's UFA
UFA
Ufa is a city in Russia.UFA or Ufa may also refer to:*Ufa River, a river in Russia*Ufa, Ethiopia, a town in Ethiopia*Ultra flat architecture, a network architecture design for LTE 4G mobile telecommunication networks...
and then with Motion Picture Industry in Hollywood. He played in mamy films but the most famous are: The Singing City, The Song of Night, Ich liebe alle Frauen, The Charm of La Boheme, Das Land des Lächeln.
Marriage
On October 31, 1936, Kiepura married the lyric soprano Marta EggerthMarta Eggerth
Marta Eggerth is a singer/actress from "The Silver Age of Operetta". Many of the 20th century's most famous operetta composers, including Franz Lehár, Fritz Kreisler, Robert Stolz, Oscar Straus, and Paul Abraham, composed works especially for her...
(b. 1912). The two often sang together in operettas, in concerts, on records, and in films until his death. Kiepura and Eggerth (both of whom had Jewish mothers) were forced to flee Europe due to the rise of Nazism and the onset of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. They emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Death
He died at the age of 64 in Harrison, New YorkHarrison, New York
Harrison is a village and town in Westchester County, New York, United States, located approximately northeast of Manhattan. The population was 27,472 at the 2010 census.-Establishment:...
from heart attack during a call, after receiving unfavorable news from one of his financial agents, and was buried in Powązki Cemetery
Powazki Cemetery
Powązki Cemetery , also known as the Stare Powązki is a historic cemetery located in the Wola district, western part of Warsaw, Poland. It is the most famous cemetery in the city, and one of the oldest...
, Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
.
Chronology
- 1927: performances in Budapest, Berlin, Vienna, London (Royal Albert Hall), Stuttgart, Munich and Prague. Faust, Calaf, and Stranger ("Miracle Heliana" Korngold) in Vienna. Concerts in Warsaw, Lvov, Gdansk.
- 1928: performances in Budapest, a three-year contract with La Scala, debut in the role of Calaf, and then he sings well and Mascarila Cavaradossiego the premiere of "Le Preziosa ridicole" Lattuady under the baton of Arturo Toscanini. Cavaradossi in Paris with a team of the Vienna Staatsoper. Cavaradossi in Warsaw and Poznan. Concerts in Kraków, Warsaw and Poznan.
- 1929: performances in Budapest (Calaf), Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires (Cavaradossi, the Duke of Mantua, Alfredo in "La Traviata"), Montevideo, Frankfurt. Cavaradossi, the Duke of Mantua, Rodolfo ("La Bohème" Puccinigo) and a concert in Warsaw.
- 1930: The throat disease reduces for some time his performances at opera houses. Film career, becoming one of the first European cinema idols sound. The film, "Naples, singing the city"(London). Cavaradossi in.
- 1931: Knight des Grieux in "Manon" Massenet's La Scala in Milan. He sang in Hamburg and Chicago. Cavaradossi in Warsaw. Concerts in Warsaw, Poznan and Lvov.
- 1932: the movie "Song of the Night " (Berlin), concerts in Warsaw and Poznan.
- 1933: The film "I need to get you"(Berlin). Calaf in Warsaw. Opens Hotel "Patria" in Krynica.
- 1934: The movie "I sing for you"(London), Cavaradossi in Berlin, Warsaw Faust, Cavaradossi, Knight des Grieux and Rodolfo at the Paris Opera Comique, in Krynica concert for flood victims.
- 1935: Cavaradossi in Kraków, a concert in Berlin, the film "I love all women" (Ciné-Alliance for UFA), awarded the Polish Gold Cross of Merit and the Knight's Cross of the French Legion of Honour.
- 1936: Movies 'Love Song' (USA) and "sunshine" (Vienna), married Oct. 30 in Katowice, Martha Eggerth, an Austrian actress and singer of Hungarian descent, has performed for the construction of the National Museum in Kraków, awarded the Officer's Cross, Order of Polonia Restituta and the Belgian Order of Leopold I.
- 1937: concerts in Kraków and Paris, the film "Bohemian Charm" (Vienna), Swedish Cross North, Warsaw Philharmonic concerts in the winter to help the poor population.
- 1938: Debut at New York's Metropolitan Opera (from 10 February to 9 April there occurred 13 times in the office and at the venue the band in Boston and Cleveland, he sang Rodolfo (4 times), Don José in "Carmen" by Bizet (4 times) Duke of Mantua (4 times) and participated in a concert gigs in Warsaw (Don José).
- 1939: from 10 February to 10 April there are 15 times at the Metropolitan Opera and the guest appearances of this syndrome in Boston, Cleveland, Dallas and Rochester, he sang Rodolfo (5 times), Chevalier des Grieux (5 times), Duke of Mantua (2 times ) Cavaradossiego (once) and participated in two concerts, summer concerts in Cieszyn, Poznan, Gdynia, and after World War II in Paris and France Polonia centers.
- 1940: The Nazis place him in the Lexikon der Juden in der Musik (Lexicon of Jewish musicians), he returned to America, giving concerts to Poles in Montreal (to 1944 associated with the Civic Opera of Chicago).
- 1942: the switch. February and March, again appeared with the New York Metropolitan Opera, singing there for only five: Don José Cavaradossiego (2 times), Duke of Mantua's aria in a concert and a show lounge Rodolfo team in Philadelphia (in total for the years 1939-1942 he sang with MET 1922 Times in New York and 11 times during the performances in other cities).
- 1943: the movie "My song for you"(USA), he rented the Majestic Theater on Broadway, where he and his wife took part as Danilo in "The Merry Widow" Lehar who is extremely popular, he made the presentation to tour other U.S. cities And after the war, even after Britain, France, Italy and Germany, singing "widow"in four languages).
- 1946: exhibited at the Majestic Theater musical "Polonaise" Bronislaw Kapera the recitals of Chopin's music.
- 1948: he returned with his family to Europe and settled for six years in Paris, the new version of the movie "bohemian charm" (Rome).
- 1949: The film "Valse brillante"(Paris), performing with his wife in "Czardas Princess" on stage Kálmán Théâtre de Paris.
- 1952: the movie "Land of Smiles" (West Berlin), re-settled in America, buying property in Rye, New York, which did not interrupt his performances in Europe.
- 1954: The title role in "Carewiczu" Lehar's Viennese Raimundtheater on stage.
- 1956: title role in "Paganini" Lehar's Viennese Raimundtheater on stage.
- 1958: visited Poland twice, performed in Bydgoszcz, Gdansk, Lodz, Katowice, Kraków, Poznan, Warsaw and Wroclaw.
- 1959: re-sung in Poland, he returned to the role Daniły in the "Merry Widow"on stage in New York.
- 1960: concerts in West Berlin.
- 1965: Danilo in "The Merry Widow" in West Berlin.
- 1966: last appearance (13 August) in Portchester for the Polish American community.