Letters Worldwide

• W.R. Moran, California: Thanks for the LLL Newsletter... Glad to see the emphasis on discography correction! Good mission. Re: RCA CD 7809-2 you might have said this was also largely made from original metal parts, all the unpub. except one at least. Pleased you are commenting on quality, too. It would be a good idea to always give dates... The Wahl piece is excellent, and important as it explains why an acoustical recording was made after electrical recording had been introduced. Good for you and Horst!
• La Baronne Elie de Rothschild, Paris: I would love to be a member of the Lotte Lehmann League. What do I do about it? Dalton Baldwin sent me a copy. Where can I buy the "Rosenlieder" compact disk? I remember Lotte Lehmann in 1931! in Vienna.

The only requirement for LLL membership is love of Lehmann. Gary and I pay for printing and postage, as it's simpler than keeping track of subscriptions. [Website users note, the LLL Newsletter is no longer published.] "Rosenlieder" are on a Pearl CD, GEMM CD 9409, titled "Lotte Lehmann with Jan Kiepura and Richard Tauber." -JS

• Lt. Col. James Alfonte, Texas: Your Lehmann newsletter is most welcome... Did you know [Lehmann and Elisabeth Rethberg] were sworn in as US citizens together? Rethberg often spoke of Lehmann and prized a pillow which L. had given her and for which she had done the needlepoint. Would you be kind enough to send me the address of the Record Collector?

I have no subscription info on the Record Collector, but the address is c/o Larry Lustig, 111, Longshots Close, Broomfield, Chelmsford, Essex, CM1 SDU, England. -GH

• Frank Drake, Chicago: I most certainly do wish to continue receiving your wonderful newsletter. Although I never saw Madame Lehmann in person, I did see a few of her masterclass videos. I remember her demonstrating Schubert's "Der Wegweiser." That demonstration opened up to me what a powerful microcosm a Lied could be. Like for so many others, she has been a great inspiration for me. Will it ever be possible for the League to make available to collectors far removed from Santa Barbara copies of (non-copyright) recordings such as are on public use cassettes at UCSB?

Contact the Curator at UCSB's Lehmann Archives in the Library, Special Collections, Santa Barbara, CA 93106: Another university library might be able to obtain copies of some of the Archive tapes for public use. California visitors might want to pre-arrange a visit to the Lehmann Archives; there's much to see and hear. -JS

• Sherman Zelinsky, New Hampshire: Especially enjoyed all the data re: her Rosenkavalier recording. With her so close association with this role I had always assumed this was perhaps her favorite recording, until I received a letter from her in which she wrote that the one she liked best, her very favorite, was the Walküre!
• Hugh Samson, California: For the pleasure your bulletins have given me. (With a check enclosed.)

Many thanks indeed! Contributions to our printing and postage expenses are always appreciated.

• Bo-Chang Lee, Taiwan: Thanks for sending Lotte Lehmann League. They are always giving me such pleasure.
• Alfred Frankenstein, Israel: From an essay published in the Hebrew magazine "Musica" in Tel-Aviv:

"The first time I heard the singer was in 1927 at a concert of the Berlin Philharmonic orchestra conducted by Bruno Walter. Lotte Lehmann sang the "Wesendonck Lieder" and the Rezia aria from Oberon. From thereon I did not miss a single appearance of the singer in Berlin, neither in concert nor in opera. I am not ashamed to admit my feelings of sentimentality now, after more than 60 years, when I remember the marvellous impressions of Lehmann's voice and her artistic personality. Whenever I look again into the many letters she wrote to me, into the number of photographs of the artist and also her many books... all this confirms the lasting impression of a rare artistic personality—unforgettable for me.

"At the end of the 20s Lehmann was often guest of the municipal opera of Berlin (Charlottenburg). That was the time that Bruno Walter was chief conductor there. So I was fortunate enough to hear Lehmann in her famous parts: Turandot, Ariadne, Fidelio, Sieglinde, Desdemona. When she returned to Berlin in 1932, she appeared as Eva in Meistersinger at the State Opera and Wilhelm Fürtwängler was conductor... Whenever I look into the programs of that period, I enjoy again the marvellous atmosphere of all those evenings. I remember particularly a special performance of Gounod's Faust when three famous singers appeared together: Lehmann as Marguerite, Kiepura as Faust and Ludwig Hoffman as Mephisto. In my program I find that Lehmann sang in five performances within nine days... This was in 1927 and two days later she was again Turandot, her partner Kiepura, the Liu Lotte Schöne, conductor Bruno Walter. A few days later with Bruno Walter, an unforgettable performance: Ariadne, with Maria Ivogün."