Gustave Kerker (1847-1923)
Die Oberen Zehntausend (Broadway in Berlin), operetta in three acts (1897)
Words by Julius Freund (1862-1914)
Burning to Sing or Singing to Burn, a spoof in one act (1904)
Words by RH Burnside (1873-1952)
The Belle of Broadway, musical comedy in two acts (1897)
Words by Hugh Morton (1865-1916)
Ivette, Claire; Madame Tremolini – Elke Kottmair (soprano)
Germaine – Gritt Gnauck (mezzo)
Princess Fifi; Bell Boy – Nadja Stefanoff (mezzo)
Gaston; Fireman Higgins – Ralf Simon (tenor)
Chatillard; Signor Tremolini – Gerd Wiemer (baritone)
Théophile Boche; Thomassini – Alfred Berg (baritone)
James Boche, Olivier; Fireman Harris – Christian Grygas (baritone)
NDR Radiophilharmonie/Howard Griffiths
rec. 2009, Großer Sendesaal of NDR, Hannover, Germany
CPO 777 509-2 [2 CDs: 93]
German-born composer Gustave Adolph Kerker, who spent most of his life in the USA, made his name alongside Hungarian Franz Lehár and Austrian Johann Strauss II at the turn of the century, and composed in a similar style. While his name may not mean much nowadays, it used to be well known for the abundance of his operettas/musicals. He teamed up with writer Hugh Morton (Charles Morton McLellan’s pen name) to provide a book for The Belle of New York, his lasting success.
I find Kerker’s music in this box particularly vibrant and uplifting. One is reminded in general of those German drinking choruses of The Student Prince or White Horse Inn. The singers and orchestra radiate engaging energy, and the strong rhythms give the tempi considerable inertia. Conductor Howard Griffiths’s pace seems ideal. I like it how the voices blend well in duets, and how they have the strength to rise to an uplifting climax in Act Two of Die Oberen Zehntausend “Wir tanzen auf einem Pulverfaß” (“We’re dancing on a powder keg”). It is also used as a reprise to round off Act Three.
Speaking of Die Oberen Zehntausend (The Top Ten Thousand): it is better known as Broadway in Berlin, for it was played on the Continent, then Britain and America. This operetta was one of Kerker’s many stageworks following The Belle of New York, the success that launched his name seven years earlier. The first disc is devoted to 19 numbers from this show. It gives one a good feel for the spectrum of the music. The seven characters offer a varied and pleasant selection of solos, duets and ensembles from the operetta, so one can assess Kerker’s style.
Burning to Sing or Singing to Burn is a one-act piece, presumably written as a curtain raiser by a 34-year-old Robert H Burnside, born into a Scottish theatrical family. He travelled to New York in 1894 to direct productions of Lillian Russell. Although labelled a Drama, the piece it is in fact a spoof, a skit that sends up grand opera’s over-the-top situations.
A bellboy knocks on a hotel room door. In a lengthy recitative, he tells Madame that the hotel is on fire. She must immediately evacuate. Madame then freshens up and her husband quickly shaves to be equally presentable. The hotel manager then appears to hasten their evacuation. A farewell lament to the bedroom and a quartet of discussion about the birdcage they are leaving behind causes them to remember the beauty of birdsong. Firemen arrive at the window and join in a superfluous sextet as flames lick the door and windows. In a powerful finale the walls cave in and everyone dies in true grand-opera style.
I would love to see the staged version, where the full force of the satire can be appreciated.
The Belle of New York is one of the shows that heralded the start of musicals at the turn of the century; Lehár’s The Merry Widow followed in 1905. Here we have an uninterrupted selection of the favourite numbers in an orchestral arrangement by the popular Charles Godfrey. The Belle of New York was a spectacular show with large cast of 29 but it only played for two months at New York’s Casino Theater before transferring to London’s Shaftesbury Theatre. There it sparkled and after two years reached 697 performances. This explains why the vocal score I have was published in London. Ten of the original 23 numbers appear here in a non-vocal arrangement.
A CD transfer from the MGM film with Fred Astaire is available, but in my opinion it carries a dated soundtrack. Too many film soundtracks seem to be recorded in a sound stage with poor wide acoustics.
The Belle’s slight story concerns Violet, a Salvation Army girl who reforms the womanizing son of a wealthy businessman. The son is soon disinherited by his father who instead decides to leave his wealth to the daughter of an old friend. By coincidence, this daughter happens to be Violet and her love for the downtrodden son becomes amply rewarded.
There is an informative booklet in German and English. I had hoped to find out more about the book writers, since they contribute in a big way to every show’s success or failure. It is interesting to read of the development of Howard Griffith’s career. After studying at the RCM in London, he has worked long on the Continent, so will have become accustomed to a wide repertoire of music. Having worked with many radio orchestras, he will have developed a wide compass of composers.
Raymond J Walker
