Eloquence Classics

‘Der Zigeunerbaron’ (The Gypsy Baron) completes a trio of Strauss-family recordings made by Clemens Krauss for Decca in the early 1950s. Like ‘Die Fledermaus’ (482 7379) and his New Year Concerts (482 7364), it is now reissued by Eloquence, in a new remastering with a fresh editorial retrospective from Mike Ashman on the special chemistry between composer, conductor and orchestra.

After ‘Die Fledermaus’, it took Johann Strauss another eleven years to rediscover the recipe for a hit operetta. Having recorded it in September 1950 and issued the records in January 1951, however, Decca waited just months before returning to the Musikverein in April 1951 to tape Der ‘Zigeunerbaron’ with the same conductor, orchestra and lead singers. At the time and ever since, it has been felt that here was a combination of unrepeatable artistic finesse, not only with regard to Krauss’s fiery yet elegant conducting but also the lead tenor of Julius Patzak, to the manner born.

Krauss (1893–1954) had learnt counterpoint with Richard Heuberger, composer of ‘Der Opernball’ and gone on to cut his opera-conducting teeth in Brno and then Szczecin with not only Mozart and Wagner but also the most durable examples of Parisian and Viennese operetta. Meanwhile Patzak had studied composition with Franz Schmidt – both of them Viennese to their fingertips – but was largely self-taught as a singer which may partly explain his inimitably plangent timbre. Singing Saffi opposite him was Hilde Zadek who was a State Opera favourite throughout her career: her Donna Anna is a highlight of the Viennese ‘Don Giovanni’ conducted by Rudolf Moralt a few years later, also reissued by Eloquence (480 7181).