Martial Singher (August 14, 1904 – March 9, 1990) was a French baritone opera singer born in Oloron-Sainte-Marie, Pyrénées-Atlantiques.[1]
Initially singing only as a hobby, he was encouraged by then French education minister Édouard Herriot to pursue singing professionally. He would go on to perform at the Opéra National de Paris, the Royal Opera House, New York City Opera, San Francisco Opera, Chicago Opera and the Metropolitan Opera.
He recorded an acclaimed Méphistophelès under Charles Munch in the RCA recording of Berlioz's La damnation de Faust (February 1954) with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, David Poleri as Faust and Suzanne Danco as Marguerite. In 1959 he is Chorèbe in Les Troyens, conducted by Robert Lawrence.
Later in his life he became an accomplished music teacher at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and at the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal before moving to Santa Barbara and taking over the Music Academy of the West. He is known for influencing the careers of such artists as James King, Donald Gramm, Jeannine Altmeyer, Benita Valente, John Reardon, Louis Quilico, Jean-François Lapointe, Judith Blegen, Cynthia Hoffmann, Thomas Moser, and William Workman. Singher has also been the teacher of world-famous baritones such as Thomas Hampson and Rodney Gilfry.
He wrote a book useful to vocalists aspiring to an operatic career, An Interpretive Guide to Operatic Arias: A Handbook for Singers, Coaches, Teachers, and Students (1983).
Singher died in Santa Barbara. He had married Margareta Busch, daughter of the conductor Fritz Busch, in 1940. They had three sons. Michel Singher, is an accomplished international conductor.
MartialSingher (August 14, 1904 – March 9, 1990) was a French baritone opera singer born in Oloron-Sainte-Marie, Pyrénées-Atlantiques. Initially singing...
began his career as an accompanist to his father, the French baritone MartialSingher. In the footsteps of his grandfather, German conductor Fritz Busch...
of a scholarship he also studied at Mannes College, New York, with MartialSingher (voice), Ralph Herbert (staging) and Emil Cooper (repertoire), and...
the George London Foundation Competition. Her teachers have included MartialSingher, Ruth Falcon, and Anthony Manoli, who is also her accompanist. After...
New York: W. W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-31712-9. (At archive.org) Singher, Martial; Singher, Eta (2003). An Interpretive Guide to Operatic Arias: A Handbook...
won a Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording. Altmeyer studied with MartialSingher and Lotte Lehmann at the Music Academy of the West in Montecito. In...
1939, with Ferrer as Cassandre this time, José de Trévi as Énée, and MartialSingher as Chorèbe. Gaubert conducted all performances in Paris before the...
Music Academy of the West where she was a pupil of Lotte Lehmann and MartialSingher. From 1968-1970 she was graduate student in the opera program at the...
studied singing at Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and with MartialSingher at the Music Academy of the West, attended master classes with Lotte...
Berlioz: Les Troyens (Chester Watson (bass), Regina Resnik (soprano), MartialSingher (baritone), Frances Wyatt (mezzo-soprano), William Lewis (tenor), John...
Southern California. He studied at the Music Academy of the West with MartialSingher with whom he also studied privately for six years. In 1999 he sought...
1950, with Giovanni Martinelli as Samson, Blanche Thebom as Dalila, MartialSingher as The High Priest of Dagon, and John Lawler as Abimélech. Other operas...
pianist William Masselos, violist Walter Trampler, and opera baritone MartialSingher, among others. In 1960, Avakian left Warners to sign on as manager...
the Music Academy of the West in Montecito with Lotte Lehmann and MartialSingher. She later studied with Margaret Harshaw at the Curtis Institute of...
summers of 1978 and 1979, he studied under Gwendolyn Koldowsky and MartialSingher at the Music Academy of the West, where he won the Lotte Lehmann Award...
Seal CD, 1992 The Age of Living Stereo: A Tribute to John Pfeiffer - MartialSingher (Performer), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Hector Berlioz (Composer)...
In English CD: Testament Cat: SBT4 1443 1959-60 Richard Cassilly, MartialSingher, Kenneth Smith, John Dennison, William Lewis, Glade Peterson, Frances...