The death has been announced of Rosemary Kuhlmann, an American-born soprano who played a central role in the world premiere, shown live on NBC Television, of Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors on Christmas Eve 1951.

She was 29 at the time and went on to sing at City Opera and the Met. Rosemary has died, aged 97.

Obit here.

The sound engineer, bass player, musical organiser and co-founder of Coffee Cup Productions, the irrepressible Mark Tulloss, has died tragically of a heart attack. Every corner of the Chicaog music community is bereft.

The filmmaker John Theroux writes: ‘We all lost someone really special. Even if you did not know him, you will feel how special he was evey single time I turn a projector on from this day forward. Let me tell you about this person for a second. Mark Tulloss had a smile and an energy that was contagious. His partner Kirsten Kuhlmann and him run Coffee Cup Productions which has lifted up SO MANY ARTISTS including myself. I never knew this interview would be the last time Mark and I talked ‘face to face’. He was so giving, had a ton of ambition and we were going to high five eachother at that beautiful financial finish line; the one any artist like Mark deserves to cross. He worked SO HARD, he spread SO MUCH LOVE and my deepest condolenses go out to his family and his close friends, who are also WONDERFUL people. This person HUMAN-ed in a way that I RESPECT so much. I miss you so much Mark. And we are all missing you way too soon. I love you ♡ the light you shined, shines on. We are going to shine it so hard for you ♡’

Jonas Kaufmann is the cover boy of October’s Opera News, pegged to a new Sony album.

Its editor-in-chief, F. Paul Driscoll, writes:

‘At fifty, singularly attractive and charismatic, Kaufmann is an authentic star with surpassing powers of persuasion. Other tenors may sing with greater volume, but few can invest a character with the emotional force that Kaufmann brings to a performance…’

 


And walks on water?

 

The Dutch conductor leaves the London stage after leading the Vienna Philharmonic in Bruckner’s 7th symphony at the BBC Proms last night.

Haitink, 90, has spent much of his working life in London as music director successively of the London Philharmonic, Glyndebourne and the Royal Opera House Covent Garden.

Chris Christodoulou’s picture captures perfectly his dignified departure.

photo: Christidoulou/BBC tel. 09796 157455

 

 

The electroacoustic genius Ivo Malec died last week.

Pierre Schaeffer’s righthand assistant came from Zagreb to Paris in 1959, adding a Balkan lyricism to austere musique concrète. He received the first commission to write an opera for the Bastille’s ‘salle mouvable’.

His studio at the Paris Conservatoire was thronged with avid students.

The highly rated Joseph Kaiser has cancelled two operas at Teater an der Wien and one at Covent Garden.

Kaiser, 41, offered no immediate confirmation on his website. Nothing, either, from his agent, Bill Palant at EtudeArts.

His Operabase profile shows no future engagements.

Also out is the US tenor Bryan Hymel. He has scratched San Francisco’s season-opener, Gonoud’s Roméo et Juliette for ‘personal reasons’. His replacement is Samoan-New Zealand tenor Pene Pati.

 

UPDATE: Joseph Kaiser on his Facebook page: ‘Due to personal reasons, I will be taking an indefinite leave of absence from my international singing career. Thank you for your support over the years. I will deeply miss all of my wonderful colleagues and am indebted to all those who believed in me for the past 22 years. I ask that you kindly respect my privacy.’

That sounds terminal.