Gert Lutze (Tenor)

Born: September 30, 1917 - Leipzig, Saxony, Germany
Died: November 6, 2007 - Munich, Bavaria, Germany

The German tenor, Gert Lutze, studied medicine, passed the medical state examination, attained a doctorate in medicine, and operated as assistant in the university clinic for skin diseases in Leipzig. Simultaneously he in the Thomanerchor Leipzig, to which he had already belonged since 1928 as a boy. When in the performances of the Matthäus-Passion (BWV 244) in Karfreitag in 1946 the tenor, which was planned to sing the Evangelist, failed, he replaced him and had in this demanding role under the Thomaskantor Günter Ramin a sensational success.

After this spectacular debut, Gert Lutze became a soloist in oratorios and cantatas, as well as a Lieder singer. Then he participated also in opera productions, particularly in th broadcasting stations of Leipzig and Berlin, and took over roles for lyric tenor, like Rodolfo in La Bohème, Pinkerton in Madame Butterfly, Ferrando in W.A. Mozart's Così fan tutte, and the title role in Sadko Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. He was to be heard also in operetta productions (Czardasfürstin).

However, the centre of Gert Lutze's artistic work were the oratorios, and especially the J.S. Bach singing. He belonged to the most important artists in this area of his generation. In 1950 he sang at the Internationales Bachfest Schaffhausen (Switzerland), in 1952 in Zürich, Basel and Berne, in 1953 in Copenhagen and Helsinki, in 1954 in Paris, Rouen, Nancy, Brussels and Luxembourg. During the same year 1954 he was admired as the Evangelist in Johannes-Passion (BWV 245) by J.S. Bach in Leningrad and Moscow, then also in Milan, Turin, Genova, Florence and Bologna. In 1955 he appeared in Prague as a guest, and undertook an extended concert tour in the People's Republic of China. In 1957 he could be heard in Bologna and Florenz in J.S. Bach's Matthäus-Passion (BWV 244). In 1960 he participated in a television production Tannhäuser in Wartburg. During 1960 he shifted he his centre of activity from Leonberg to Stuttgart. Here he established himelf as a skin physician, but continued far his career as concert and oratorio singer.

Gert Lutze became known by radio broadcasts and by his records. These appeared first on Eterna, then under the label of Telefunken Decca, including beautiful performances of J.S. Bach Cantatas under the Munich conductor Karl Richter. The richness and beauty of his voice, the technical accomplishment, the impeccable pronounciation, his expressive singing style, and the feeling and the refinement of the text penetration, are to be admired thereby again and again.

Sources:
Operissimo Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (July 2001)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (July 2001); Manfred Krugmann (Dates, May 2011)

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Helmut Koch

Tenor

BWV 201, BWV 205

Günther Ramin

Tenor

BWV 12, BWV 21, BWV 24, BWV 36 [1^st], BWV 41, BWV 42, BWV 43, BWV 63, BWV 65, BWV 67, BWV 78, BWV 92, BWV 95, BWV 103, BWV 110, BWV 111, BWV 117, BWV 119, BWV 128, BWV 131, BWV 137, BWV 138, BWV 144, BWV 177, BWV 232
Radio: BWV 112, BWV 146
[CR-2] (1948, Radio recording): BWV 2
[CR-102] (1955, Radio recording): BWV 102
[CR-248] (1952, Radio recording): BWV 248/1-3 [1^st recording]

Karl Richter

Tenor

BWV 12, BWV 137, BWV 140, BWV 232 [1^st], BWV 248 [1^st]

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