Artist Of The Week: Wolfgang Koch Celebrate’s ‘Dantons Tod’s’ 100th Anniversary

By Francisco Salazar

Wolfgang Koch is one of today’s leading baritones who has mastered many of the great German roles by Wagner and Strauss. He has performed all over the world and has also become well known for his interpretation of Wotan in Wagner’s “The Ring Cycle.”

This week, he adds another role to his repertoire in an unknown modern masterpiece. Koch will sing the role of George Danton in the modern opera “Dantons Tod” by Gottfried von Einem. The work receives a new production by Josef Ernst Kopplinger, marking the 100th anniversary of the opera’s premiere in Salzburg. It will also be a role debut for Koch and the work will be showcased around the world in a live stream.

Koch has performed around the world in theaters including the Stadttheater in Bern, the Staatstheater in Stuttgart, and the Volksoper in Vienna. He has also performed in Hamburg, Frankfurt, at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, at the Salzburg Festival, Bayreuth Festival, and Paris, Tokyo, Berlin, and Munich.

Among Koch’s signature roles are Telramund, Hans Sachs, Amfortas, Klingsor, The Flying Dutchman, Barak and Wotan, and Wanderer, as well as Jochanaan.

For those who will not be able to attend “Dantons Tod,” Koch will showcase his talent in Munich in “The Ring Cycle,” “Parsifal,” “Il Tabarro” and “Der Fliegende Holländer.” He also returns to the Metropolitan Opera next season for “Tosca.”

Recordings 

For those not familiar with Koch’s voice, the bass-baritone has numerous recordings including “Parsifal” from the Staatsoper Berlin, “Die Frau Ohne Schatten” from the Salzburg Festival, and “Salome,” which was recently released on Pentatone. He can also be heard in a recent recording of “Il Tabarro” with Elsa Van den Heever and on a DVD of “Lohengrin” with Jonas Kaufmann.

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