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Richard Stilwell III (born 6 May 1942 in St. Louis, Missouri) is an operatic and concert baritone.
After graduating from Indiana University in 1966, Stilwell joined the United States Army Chorus in Washington He appeared as a soloist with the Chorus singing the tribute: "One Small Step" in a national telecast with the returning astronauts of Apollo 11 and President Richard Nixon. He also appeared with the American Light Opera Company.
Stilwell sang Billy Budd in the premiere of Britten's Billy Budd at the Metropolitan Opera, directed by John Dexter, and The Lodger in the premier of Dominick Argento's The Aspern Papers alongside Frederica Von Stade and Elisabeth Söderström. He appears alongside Frederica von Stade in the landmark recording of Pelléas et Mélisande under the baton of Herbert von Karajan, and as the voice of Count Almaviva (from Le nozze di Figaro ) and Don Giovanni in the 1984 film, Amadeus .
On DVD, Stilwell can be seen in Götz Friedrich's film of Falstaff (with Karan Armstrong and Gabriel Bacquier, conducted by Sir Georg Solti, 1979), La bohème from the Met (with Teresa Stratas, Renata Scotto, and José Carreras, in Franco Zeffirelli's production, 1982), and Robert Wilson's production of Madama Butterfly (2003).
After serving for sixteen years as artist-faculty at Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts, Mr. Stilwell is retired and, together with his wife, Kerry, happily cultivating a garden of grandchildren provided by his two sons (and their wives) who live nearby.
Ileana Cotrubaș is a Romanian operatic soprano whose career spanned from the 1960s to the 1980s. She was much admired for her acting skills and facility for singing opera in many different languages.
Pelléas et Mélisande is an opera in five acts with music by Claude Debussy. The French libretto was adapted from Maurice Maeterlinck's symbolist play of the same name. It premiered at the Salle Favart in Paris by the Opéra-Comique on 30 April 1902; Jean Périer was Pelléas and Mary Garden was Mélisande, conducted by André Messager, who was instrumental in getting the Opéra-Comique to stage the work. It is the only opera Debussy ever completed.
Sir Geraint Llewellyn Evans CBE was a Welsh bass-baritone noted for operatic roles including Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro, Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, and the title role in Wozzeck. Evans was especially acclaimed for his performances in the title role of Verdi's Falstaff. He sang more than 70 different roles in a career that lasted from his first appearance at Covent Garden in 1948 to his farewell there in 1984.
Dale Duesing is an American baritone. As an opera singer, he has had an international career spanning five decades.
Joseph, Baron Van Damme, known as José van Dam, is a Belgian bass-baritone, described as having "a magnificent resonant and expressive voice" and being "an excellent actor".
Frederica von Stade is a semi-retired American classical singer. Best known for her work in opera, she was also a recitalist and concert artist, and she recorded more than a hundred albums and videos. She is especially associated with operas by Mozart and Rossini, and also with music by French and American composers, most notably Jake Heggie. A Chevalier of France's Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, twice the winner of a Grand Prix du Disque and nominated nine times for a Grammy award, she is widely regarded as the pre-eminent lyric mezzo-soprano of her generation.
Teresa Stratas is an operatic soprano and actress from Canada of Greek descent. She is especially well known for her award-winning recording of Alban Berg's Lulu. She has now formally retired.
Sir Simon Keenlyside is a British baritone who has performed in operas and concerts since the mid-1980s.
Pelléas and Mélisande is a Symbolist play by Maurice Maeterlinck.
Judith Blegen is an American soprano, particularly associated with light lyric roles of the French, Italian and German repertories.
Eberhard Freiherr von Waechter was an Austrian lyric baritone, celebrated for his performances in the operas of Mozart, Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. After retiring from singing, he became intendant of the Vienna Volksoper and the Vienna State Opera.
Gabriel Bacquier was a French operatic baritone. One of the leading baritones of the 20th century and particularly associated with the French and Italian repertoires, he was considered a fine singing actor equally at home in dramatic or comic roles and gave regular song recitals. He was a long-term member of the Opéra-Comique and the Paris Opera, but forged a long career internationally at leading opera houses in Europe and the U.S. His large discography spans five decades, and he was considered as “the ambassador of French song”.
Didier Henry is a French baritone.
Jacques Imbrailo is a South African classical baritone, who sings in operas and oratorios.
Nadine Denize is a French mezzo-soprano.
Henri Gui was a French baryton-martin singer, particularly associated with the role of Pelléas in the opera by Debussy, who also sang in operetta, mainly in France but elsewhere in Europe and the United States as well.
Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria is a 166-minute studio album of Claudio Monteverdi's opera, performed by a cast of singers headed by Ann Murray, Patrick Power, Frederica von Stade and Richard Stilwell with the Glyndebourne Chorus and the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Raymond Leppard. It was released in 1980.
Pelléas et Mélisande is a 162-minute studio album of Claude Debussy's opera, performed by Christine Barbaux, José van Dam, Nadine Denize, Ruggero Raimondi, Frederica von Stade, Richard Stilwell and Pascal Thomas with the Chorus of the German Opera Berlin and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Herbert von Karajan. It was released in 1979.
Le nozze di Figaro is a 169-minute studio album of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera, performed by Christiane Barbaux, Jules Bastin, Jane Berbié, Ileana Cotrubas, José van Dam, Zoltan Kélémén, Tom Krause, Marjon Lambriks, Frederica von Stade, Anna Tomowa-Sintow and Heinz Zednik with the Chorus of the Vienna State Opera and the Vienna Philharmonic under the direction of Herbert von Karajan. It was recorded in April 1978 and released in 1979.
The Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor is an Austrian mixed choir of classical music and is formed by members from the Chor der Wiener Staatsoper.