Jan (Janice) DeGaetani (July 10, 1933 – September 15, 1989) was an American mezzo-soprano known for her performances of contemporary classical vocal compositions.
DeGaetani was born in Massillon, Ohio. Educated at The Juilliard School with Sergius Kagen, she was best known for her wide range, precise pitch, clear tone, and command of extended techniques that made her voice perfectly suited to the demanding style of modern and avant-garde vocal composition. Her recording of Schoenberg's song cycle Pierrot lunaire is one of the classic recordings of the piece. (Due to its use of atonality, wide range, and virtuoso techniques such as sprechstimme, all while requiring a lyrical sensibility, it is exceptionally difficult to sing.) Her collaboration with George Crumb was also a fruitful one; she premiered his song cycle Ancient Voices of Children, and many of his other works were written for her. Uncommonly for a singer of her caliber (though her voice was not as powerful as most), DeGaetani rarely appeared in opera, instead concentrating on solo recital work in the art song literature.
Her talent at foreign languages also made her an accomplished interpreter of lieder; she sang and recorded works by composers such as Hugo Wolf, Hector Berlioz, and Gustav Mahler and was noted for her intelligence and skillful analytical interpretation. Her interpretive skills also lent themselves to songs in her native tongue of English, such as Aaron Copland's 12 Poems of Emily Dickinson, and the songs of Charles Ives. On the other end of the spectrum, DeGaetani was also a noted performer of the medieval and Renaissance repertoire.
DeGaetani made her New York performance debut in 1958. Afterward, she performed with the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble regularly, and also appeared with several world-famous orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Berlin Philharmonic, the BBC Symphony, and the Chicago Symphony, and made numerous recordings with them and in chamber ensembles. She was professor of voice at Eastman School of Music and Artist in Residence at the Aspen Music Festival from 1973 until her death. Notable students include American sopranos Dawn Upshaw, Karen Holvik, Renée Fleming, and Lucy Shelton, mezzo-sopranos Milagro Vargas and Mary Nessinger, and baritone William Sharp.
DeGaetani died in Rochester, New York, in 1989, aged 56, of leukemia.
Jan (Janice) DeGaetani (July 10, 1933 – September 15, 1989) was an American mezzo-soprano known for her performances of contemporary classical vocal compositions...
(disambiguation) Caetani (surname) Jan DeGaetani This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Gaetani. If an internal link led you here...
2 79262 Dawn Upshaw: Girl with the Orange Lips - Ravel, de Falla, et al. 79263 JanDeGaetani, Gilbert Kalish: Schubert: Songs; Wolf: Songs from the Spanische...
artists, particularly his thirty-year collaboration with mezzo-soprano JanDeGaetani, but also including cellists Timothy Eddy and Joel Krosnick, and soprano...
his vocal works were written for the virtuoso mezzo-soprano singer JanDeGaetani. Black Angels (Thirteen Images from the Darkland) was written in 1970...
Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, which featured Gilbert Kalish (piano), JanDeGaetani (mezzo-soprano), and Michael Dash (boy soprano). The debut recording...
Cleveland and Louisville Orchestras; and chamber music for Carole Cowan, JanDeGaetani, Reri Grist, Gilbert Kalish, Joel Krosnick, Robert Levin and many others)...
Czechoslovak Brass Orchestra Michael Daves Nataly Dawn Yussef Dayes JanDeGaetani Georges Delerue Jeremy Denk Donnacha Dennehy Toumani Diabaté (World...
di Figaro etc) Janet Baker, James King Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde JanDeGaetani Ives: Songs Carlo Bergonzi Carlo Bergonzi Sings Verdi Barbra Streisand...
Schoenberg: a collection of musicological and literary studies. Delaere, Mark, Jan Herman editors. Leuven, Belgium: Éditions Peeters: 109-24. Pierrot lunaire...
Hammers to Bytes A Prayer for Jerusalem for Mezzo-Soprano and Percussion, JanDeGaetani and Glenn Steele. Composers Recordings, Inc. (New World Records) S-344...
Bell Cathy Berberian Yma Súmac Iva Bittová Thomas Buckner Jill Burton JanDeGaetani Paul Dutton Diamanda Galás Roy Hart Imogen Heap Shelley Hirsch David...
Kenneth Frazelle's work came to national attention when the noted singer JanDeGaetani and pianist Gilbert Kalish premiered Worldly Hopes, in 1987, at the...
studying choral and operatic conducting with Fiora Contino and voice with JanDeGaetani. From 1976–79, he attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, earning...
City, earning her M.M. in 1984. She also attended courses given by JanDeGaetani at the Aspen Music School. She was a winner of the Young Concert Artists...
Zinman, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Zubin Mehta, Leonard Slatkin, Dawn Upshaw, JanDeGaetani, Dorian Wind Quintet, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and the American...
F Major Arthur Weisberg (conductor), Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, JanDeGaetani and Michael M. Dash for Crumb: Ancient Voices of Children Beaux Arts...
bass Thomas Paul. Later singers included soprano Carol Webber, altos JanDeGaetani, D'Anna Fortunato and Mary Westbrook-Geha, tenor David Britton and baritone...
Ciesinski, voice David Craighead, organ Robert De Cormier, choral conductor JanDeGaetani, voice Leonardo De Lorenzo, flute David Effron, orchestral conductor...
his students at Juilliard was the important American mezzo-soprano JanDeGaetani. As a pianist, he specialized in accompanying singers, especially important...
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