In 1923 an operatic road company from Germany visited the U. S. The German Opera's productions were not up to top Metropolitan standards, but some of its singers wereparticularly a stocky Russian bass named Alexander Kipnis. Kipnis made such a hit singing Pogner in a Manhattan performance of Wagner's Meistersinger that U. S. critics immediately hailed him as one of the greatest basses of his time.
Basso Kipnis decided to become a U. S. citizen and marry a U. S. woman, settled in Chicago. During the Chicago Opera's peak years under Impresario Mary Garden, Kipnis was one of its brightest stars. When...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
