Ernst Haefliger

Ernst Haefliger (6 July 1919 – 17 March 2007) was a Swiss tenor.

External audio
audio icon You may hear Ernst Haefliger singing the role of "Tamino" in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera Die Zauberflöte K. 620 with the RIAS Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ferenc Fricsay in 1955 Here on archive.org

Biography

Haefliger was born in Davos, Switzerland, on 6 July 1919 and studied at the Wettinger Seminary and the Zürich Conservatory. Later he became a pupil of Fernando Carpi in Geneva and the noted tenor Julius Patzak in Vienna. He devoted himself to lieder and choral works, and soon established a reputation for impeccable style and musicianship.

Haefliger sang the Evangelist in Bach's St John Passion for the first time in Zurich, in 1943. After this debut he was engaged for several concerts in Switzerland and – after World War II – abroad. He soon won the attention of Ferenc Fricsay, who engaged him for the Salzburg Festival where Haefliger's world career started in 1949 with the role of Tiresias in Carl Orff's opera Antigonae. He also sang the role of First Armed Man in Die Zauberflöte conducted by Wilhelm Furtwängler the same year at the Salzburg Festival.

In 1952, he responded to the call of Ferenc Fricsay and joined him at the Deutsche Oper Berlin where he sang the tenor parts in all Mozart operas, in Rossini's The Barber of Seville and Le comte Ory, in Pfitzner's Palestrina, the role of Hans in Smetana's The Bartered Bride, among others.

Haefliger had a lengthy and extensive international career. He made his Boston debut in 1965 for the Peabody Mason Concert series.[1][2] Furthermore, he recorded many lieder, oratorio's and operas for Angel, Columbia, Vanguard and Philips Records, whereas Deutsche Grammophon has issued a box set of twelve CD’s entitled "The Art of Ernst Haefliger," with repertoire ranging from J.S. Bach to Janácek and including the three great Schubert lieder cycles.

From 1971 to 1988, he taught at the Hochschule für Musik in Munich, Germany.

Haefliger also gave master classes in Zürich, Japan and the United States, and wrote "Die Singstimme" (Berne 1983).

Personal life

Haefliger died from acute decompensated heart failure on 17 March 2007, in Davos, aged 88. The pianist, Andreas Haefliger, is his son.

Awards

References
  1. Boston Herald, 13 February 1965, McLaren Harris, "Ernst Haefliger, tenor, hailed in memorable program of songs"
  2. Boston Globe, 13 February 1965, Michael Steinberg, "Ernst Haefliger's beautiful debut"
  3. Paul Suter (2005). "Ernst Haefliger". In Andreas Kotte (ed.). Theaterlexikon der Schweiz (TLS) / Dictionnaire du théâtre en Suisse (DTS) / Dizionario Teatrale Svizzero / Lexicon da teater svizzer [Theater Dictionary of Switzerland]. Vol. 2. Zürich: Chronos. pp. 782–783. ISBN 978-3-0340-0715-3. LCCN 2007423414. OCLC 62309181.


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