Stephen Grady Gould was an American heldentenor and leading interpreter of Richard Wagner's stage works. He performed around 100 times at the Bayreuth Festival, especially as Tannhäuser, first in 2004, Siegfried, and Tristan, all three even in one year in 2022 which earned him names such as Iron Man.
René Kollo is a German operatic tenor, especially known for his Wagnerian Heldentenor roles. He also performed a wide variety of operas and operettas, and made several recordings.
Matti Kalervo Salminen is a Finnish operatic bass, now retired, who has sung at the most important opera houses of the world, including the Metropolitan and Bayreuth Festival. He is distinguished by an imposing figure and height, a cavernous, heavy, dark voice with an expansive upper register, and an expressive face. According to one reviewer, in his prime Salminen was "... simply the largest bass voice in captivity. It is not just its roar in powering over Wagner's maximum orchestra, but the way he carves the sonority and forms the color."
Dame Gwyneth Jones is a Welsh dramatic soprano, widely regarded as one of the greatest Wagnerian sopranos in the second half of the 20th century.
The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra is a German symphony orchestra based in Berlin. In Berlin, the orchestra gives concerts at the Konzerthaus Berlin and at the Berliner Philharmonie. The orchestra has also given concerts in other German cities such as Aschaffenburg, Essen, Halle, Oldenburg, and Wiesbaden.
Marek Janowski is a Polish-born German conductor. He is currently chief conductor of the Dresden Philharmonic.
René Pape is a German operatic bass. Pape has received two Grammys, was named "Vocalist of the Year" by Musical America in 2002, "Artist of the Year" by the German opera critics in 2006, and won an ECHO award in 2009.
Günther Treptow was a German operatic tenor, best known for Wagner roles.
Ticho Parly was a Danish-born Heldentenor who sang leading roles in most of the major opera houses of Europe as well as the United States, including the Metropolitan Opera, where he debuted in 1966 as Tristan opposite Birgit Nilsson in Tristan und Isolde.
Bernd Weikl is an Austrian operatic baritone, particularly known for his performances in the stage works by Richard Wagner. He also has written books and directed operas.
Bernd Aldenhoff was a German Heldentenor.
Nina Maria Stemme is a Swedish dramatic soprano opera singer.
Gerd Brenneis was a German operatic tenor who had an active international career from the late 1950s through the 1990s. Known for his interpretations of the works of Richard Wagner, he worked as a principal artist at many of the world's great opera houses, including the Deutsche Oper Berlin, La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Vienna State Opera.
Andreas Schager is an Austrian operatic tenor. He began his career as a tenor for operettas, but has developed into singing Heldentenor parts by Richard Wagner including Tristan, Siegmund, Siegfried and Parsifal. A member of the Staatsoper Berlin, he has appeared internationally at venues including La Scala, The Proms and the Bayreuth Festival.
Franz-Josef Selig is a German operatic bass.
Albert Dohmen is a German operatic bass-baritone who is known internationally for performing leading roles by Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. He has also worked in concert halls and given lieder recitals.
Spas Wenkoff was a Bulgarian-Austrian operatic tenor. He was known internationally for mastering the heldentenor roles by Wagner, such as Tristan and Tannhäuser. He appeared in his signature role Tristan first in 1975 at the Staatsoper Dresden, followed by the centenary Bayreuth Festival in 1976, and the Metropolitan Opera in 1981, among many others. He was a member of the Berlin State Opera from 1976 to 1984, and then appeared freelance at major opera houses. He was awarded the title Kammersänger in both Berlin and Vienna.
Ruth Hesse is a German dramatic mezzo-soprano. She was a member of the Deutsche Oper Berlin from 1962 to 1995, and appeared internationally, including the Bayreuth Festival and the Salzburg Festival. She appeared regularly at the Vienna State Opera from 1965 to 1988, and was appointed an Austrian Kammersängerin in 1982. In Berlin, she took part in the world premiere of Henze's Der junge Lord.
Hermin Esser was a German operatic tenor who focused on roles by Richard Wagner, which he performed at the Bayreuth Festival and internationally.
Günther Groissböck is an Austrian operatic bass. Anthony Tommasini, chief classical music critic for The New York Times, described Groissböck's "imposing and good-looking" portrayal of Baron Ochs in Der Rosenkavalier at the Metropolitan Opera, New York, as "a revelation". James Jorden of the New York Observer praised Groissböck's "innovative take" on the role and his "big, virile sound". A 2018 recording of the Met performance was nominated for Grammy Award in the Best Opera Recording.
