David Bispham
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David Scull Bispham (January 5, 1857–October 2, 1921), was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Danforth Bispham and Jane Lippincott Scull, who were Quakers. He was the first American–born operatic baritone to win an international reputation.
A native of Philadelphia, Bispham appeared in numerous musical performances in his childhood despite having no formal musical training. At twenty-eight he went to Europe, studying singing in Florence with Luigi Vannuccini and in Milan with Francesco Lamperti. In 1891 he was selected from among fifty applicants to perform the role of the Duc de Longueville in a London performance of André Messager's La Basoche; this marked his first professional appearance on any stage. In 1892, he appeared as Kurwenal in Parsifal, his first Richard Wagner role, under Gustav Mahler at Drury Lane. His success there brought him a contract for Covent Garden, where he appeared, primarily in Wagnerian roles, for the next few seasons.
Bispham made his American debut, once again in Wagner, at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City on November 18, 1896; that night he sang the role of Sixtus Beckmesser in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. He remained with the company until 1903, singing mainly Wagnerian roles; he also appeared in the American premieres of Ignace Paderewski's Manru and Ethel Smyth's Der Wald. After 1903 Bispham's operatic appearances were few, and he devoted most of his time to recitals, with which he had much success. He made a point of singing English versions of songs by such composers as Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Schubert, and Robert Schumann.
In 1916 he appeared in an English-language version of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Der Schauspieldirektor in New York. The performance was such a success that it led to the formation of the Society of American Singers; the company, with Bispham's inspiration, gave three seasons of light operas in English. Bispham's commitment to opera in English also led, after his death, to the creation of the David Bispham Memorial Medal, to be awarded to operas in English by American composers. He was a 'strong' advocate for performing vocal music in the audience's language.
Bispham died in New York City, New York in 1921.
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[edit] Reference
- David Ewen, Encyclopedia of the Opera: New Enlarged Edition. New York; Hill and Wang, 1963.
