Friedrich Bracks (Tenor)

Born: May 11, 1983 - Starnberg, near Munich, Bavaria, Germany,

The German tenor and actor, Friedrich Bracks (formerly Friedrich Custodio Spieser), studied at Went to Johann Sebastian Bach Gymnas. He received his first vocal training as a child at the Windsbacher Knabenchor, where he already sang as a soloist at that time. After graduation he studied first first drama. This study led him to the acting coach Suzanne Geyer in Munich (from 2006), and various drama schools in Los Angeles, including The New Collective and TVI Actors Studio in Sherman Oaks, California. During his time in Munich, he also began in 2009 private vocal studies with Ingrid Bettag and Peter Pöppel. Meanwhile, he continues to work on his singing technique with Martin Lindsay in Cologne. In 2018, he participated in the “vielklang” master-class and in 2019, in the International Bach Academy in Stuttgart as a soloist.

Besides his singing career, Friedrich Bracks has worked as a stage actor. His engagements as an actor include projects at Volkstheater München, Theater Impuls and Theater Plan B, as well as film and television productions. He also works as a filmmaker for the Bayerischen Rundfunk. Focussing on his singing career, he specialized in early music, which led him to perform as Evangelist at the Bachwoche Stuttgart conducted by Hans-Christoph Rademann.

Friedrich Bracks has been working with numerous ensembles such as Kammerchor München, Kammerchor Stuttgart (Director: Frieder Bernius), Chorus Musicus Köln (Director: Christoph Spering), Gaechinger Cantorey (Director: Hans-Christoph Rademann), Zürcher Sing-Akademie (Director: Timothy Brown) and the Belgian soloist ensemble Vox Luminis (Director: Lionel Meunier) on national and international stages. He was artistic director at the a cappella men's ensemble Ensemble miXtur and founding member of the Ensemble Preferenza. In 2017, he made his debut for Virtuosi Ambulanti e.V. as tenor in the vocal ensemble of the production of Carlo Coccia's Die Herzogin von Guise (Caterina di Guisa). Starting in March 2020, he is the new tenor of the Calmus Ensemble Leipzig. He currently lives in Leipzig, Saxony.

Sources: Virtuosi Ambulanti Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (February 2018)
John Friedrich Custodio/ Friedrich Bracks profile on Facebook
Calmus Ensemble Website
The Artist (March 2018, September 2020)
Photo 03: Lisa Hinder;
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (February 2018, August-September 2020)

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Karl Friedrich Beringer

Tenor

Member of Windsbacher Knabenchor:
[C-4] (1999): BWV 34, BWV 93, BWV 100

Frieder Bernius

Tenor

Member of Kammerchor Stuttgart:
[C-4] (2017): BWV 235, BWV 80

Calmus Ensemble Leipzig

Tenor

[F2020-M1/2] [V-6] (2020, Video): Chorales BWV 370, BWV 197/10, BWV 298, BWV 177/5, BWV 245/5, BWV 248/6/6(59)
[F2020-M1/3] [V-7] (2020, Video): BWV 229, BWV 230, BWV 225

Christoph Spering

Tenor

Member of Chorus Musicus Köln:
[C-7] (2019): CD-1: BWV 137, BWV 140, BWV 26; CD-2: BWV 41, BWV 115, BWV 95

Links to other Sites

Friedrich Custodio Spieser - Tenor (Virtuosi Ambulanti) [German]
John Bracks on Facebook
Ensemble - ensemble miXtur [German]
Calmus Ensemble: The Voices