Emmanuel Berl (2 August 1892 – 21 September 1976) was a French journalist, historian and essayist. He was born at Le Vésinet in the modern département of Yvelines, and is buried in the Montparnasse Cemetery, Paris. In 1937 he married the singer, composer and film actress Mireille Hartuch; she had nicknamed him "Théodore" (which is what appears on their tomb). Berl was the cousin of Lisette de Brinon.

Biography[link]

Emmanuel Berl was from an upper middle class Jewish family related to Bergson and Proust and the novelist and screenwriter Monique Lange. He studied philosophy before volunteering for the armed services in 1914. Discharged in 1917 with a respiratory disease after having received the Croix de guerre (or, war cross), he joined the surrealists, especially working with Louis Aragon, Gaston Bergery and his former schoolmate from the Lycée Carnot, Pierre Drieu La Rochelle. In 1927, Berl and La Rochelle published a short-lived periodical: Les Derniers Jours. In 1928, with Édouard Berth, Marcel Déat, Bertrand de Jouvenel and Pierre Mendès-France, he took part in the editing of the Cahiers bleus which had just launched George Valois. The same year, he met André Malraux to whom he dedicated his Mort de la pensée bourgeoise, a satire in which Emmanuel Berl called for a more committed culture and literature.

During the 1930s, he entered politics on the side of the radicals. After working for the weekly Monde, in 1932 he launched the weekly Marianne, which was the leading weekly on the left until the appearance of Vendredi in 1935. In it, he defended a political line favourable to the Popular Front but his intransigent pacifism and his equal refusal of both fascist and communist totalitarianism led him to adopt heterodox positions and to show his curiosity and sympathies in neo-socialism. He clashed with the left because he favoured equipping France with a large and strong army. He stated: "Je suis pour la force et contre la violence" (“I am for force and against violence”).

In 1937, Éditions Gallimard sold Marianne. Emmanuel Berl resigned from the paper and founded a new weekly: Le Pavé de Paris, which he led until the exodus from Paris in 1940. He left for the southwest before being called on 17 June to Bordeaux, where Pierre Bouthillier asked him to work on a speech for Marshal Philippe Pétain (then President of the Council). He also drafted the two speeches of 23 and 25 June in which were powerful phrases like "I hate the lies which hurt you so much" ("Je hais les mensonges qui vous ont fait tant de mal") and "The earth, it does not lie" ("La terre, elle, ne ment pas"), among others. After a short spell in Vichy, he turned his back on the new regime and returned to his wife Mireille in Cannes and settled, in July 1941, in Argentat. There he drafted Histoire de l'Europe (History of Europe) and was reunited with Bertrand de Jouvenal, Jean Effel and André Malraux.

After World War II, he left politics to concentrate on literature and editing autobiographical works, including the notable book Sylvia. In 1967, the Académie française awarded him the Grand Prix de littérature.

After his death, at Paris, Patrick Modiano and Bernard Morlino did a lot to ensure his memory. The former published Interrogatoire, and the latter published two posthumous books of his friend: Essais and Un spectateur engagé. Morlino also published his own works: Les tribulations d'un pacifiste and Berl, Morand et moi.

Literary works[link]

• Méditation sur un amour défunt (1925),
• Mort de la pensée bourgeoise (1929)
• Mort de la morale bourgeoise (1930)
• Le Bourgeois et l'Amour (1931)
• Sylvia (1952)
• Présences des morts (1956)
• Rachel et autres grâces (1965)
• Trois Faces du sacré (1971)
• Le Virage (1972)
• Essais, collected texts chosen and presented by Bernard Morlino, 1985
• Interrogatoire par Patrick Modiano followed by Il fait beau, allons au cimetière (1976)
• Tant que vous penserez à moi (in collaboration with Jean d'Ormesson), 1992

References[link]

Most of the original content of this article comes from this version of the equivalent French-language Wikipedia article, fr:Emmanuel Berl.

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Berl Senofsky (April 19, 1926–June 21, 2002) was a violinist of the twentieth century.

He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Russian immigrant violinists. He received his first music lessons from his father at the age of three. By the time he was six he had won a scholarship to study with Louis Persinger, a former pupil of Eugène Ysaÿe. At the age of twelve he received a scholarship to the Juilliard School to study with Ivan Galamian, with whom he remained for twelve years. Following military service in World War II, Senofsky made his New York recital debut as the winner of the coveted Walter Naumberg Award in 1946. Shortly thereafter, he appeared as a soloist for the first time with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra. He remained as assistant concertmaster there from 1951 to 1955.

In 1955, Senofsky became the first and only American violinist to win the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition. Since then, he has become a permanent member of the jury for the Belgian competition.

Senofsky performed regularly on the international concert circuit. In the United States he has played with the New York Philharmonic, the American Symphony Orchestra, and the orchestras of Chicago, Los Angeles, and Pittsburgh, among others. He has also performed in Europe, South America, and the Far East.

In addition to extensive touring, recording, and teaching duties at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, where he started in 1965, Senofsky was the founder and prime mover of the American Artists International Foundation, Inc. Established to help prepare young American musicians for international competitions, the organization has made it possible for American violinists to participate in the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition. In 1983, Senofsky was invited by the director of the Shanghai Conservatory to start a new school of violin playing; he remained in the People's Republic of China for three months giving master classes and performances.

Newsweek once called Senofsky a "giant of a man...an American musical hero of Bunyanesque proportions." Consistently praised for the warmth and beauty of his tone, breathtaking virtuosity, and impeccable musicianship, Berl Senofsky's artistry has won him the boundless admiration of his colleagues and audiences alike.

External links[link]

• Senofsky at Cembal D'Amour Classical Recordings
• Obituary of Senofsky in NY Times
• New York Times review of the documentary The Winners

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This article on an American violinist or fiddler is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Christine Berl (born July 22, 1943) is an American composer. She was born in New York City, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in piano from Mannes College of Music in 1964. She continued her education at Queen's College, graduating with a Master of Arts degree in composition in 1970.^[1][2]

After completing her education, she married and had two sons. She has served as artistic consultant for Tirreno Records.^[3] Berl was honored with a Distinguished Artist Series concert in 1990.^[1]

Works[link]

Selected works include:

• Dark Summer for voice, piano, and string trio, 1989
• The Violent Beer it Away for orchestra, 1988
• Elgy for piano solo, 1974
• Three pieces for Chamber Ensemble, 1975
• Sonata for piano, 1986–87
• The Lord of the Dance, 1989^[1]

Her work has been recorded and issued on media, including:

• Three Pieces For Chamber Ensemble, American Society Of University Composers (Record No.7) (LP) 1984

References[link]

Rudolf Moralt (26 February 1902, Munich - 16 December 1958, Vienna) was a German conductor, particularly associated with Mozart and the German repertory.

Born in Munich, he studied there with Walter Courvoisier and August Schmid-Lindner, and was engaged as a répétiteur at the Munich State Opera under Bruno Walter and Hans Knappertsbusch from 1919 until 1923.

He was conductor at the opera house of Kaiserslautern (1923-28) and musical director of the opera house in Brno (1932-34). He also worked in Braunschweig and Graz before being appointed chief conductor at the Vienna State Opera in 1940 until his death.

A reliable, unaffected and deeply sympathetic conductor, Moralt was responsible for a high standard of repertory performances in Vienna for almost twenty years. Though overshadowed by the more famous conductors of his time, he nevertheless achieved many notable performances, especially of works by Mozart, Wagner, Strauss, Pfitzner.

He appeared frequently at the Salzburg Festival, and as guest in many other European cities and in South America. His records include a celebrated Ring Cycle, a notable Don Giovanni and a superbly played Salome which shows how exceptional his musicianship could be when he had adequate rehearsal time. This little-known recording is amongst the best realizations of the opera, marred only by the fresh but slightly flat singing of Wegner.

He died in Vienna, aged 56.

Sources[link]

• Grove Music Online, Gerhard Brunner, May 2008.

Frederica von Stade (born June 1, 1945) is an American mezzo-soprano. Born in Somerville, New Jersey,^[1] she acquired the nickname "Flicka" in her childhood. Von Stade attended the Mannes College of Music in New York City. She made her debut with the Metropolitan Opera in 1970 and in 1971 appeared as Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro at the Santa Fe Opera. "It was two of the newcomers who left the audience dazzled: Frederica von Stade as Cherubino and Kiri Te Kanawa as the Countess. Everyone knew at once that these were brilliant finds. History has confirmed that first impression."^[2]

Trained in the bel canto style, von Stade is known for her roles in Rossini's The Barber of Seville and La Cenerentola. In addition to opera, von Stade has also performed a wide range of musicals, from Show Boat to The Sound of Music to A Little Night Music and has appeared on numerous PBS specials, most notably in 1991's A Carnegie Hall Christmas Concert. She has also appeared in many Kennedy Center Honors broadcasts for CBS. Von Stade is also a respected recital artist, performing works ranging from Mozart and Haydn to Mahler to Broadway show tunes. Her LP album of Mahler songs was praised as "cherishable" by Peter G. Davis of The New York Times.^[3]

Composers, including Dominick Argento, Jake Heggie and Richard Danielpour, have produced works specifically for von Stade. She originated the role of "Tina" in Dallas Opera's world premiere production of Argento's The Aspern Papers. She has also recorded other works by Argento.^[4] Danielpour composed Elegies for orchestra, mezzo-soprano, and baritone in memory of von Stade's father, Charles von Stade, who was killed late in World War II, two months before von Stade's birth. Elegies premiered in January 1998 with the Jacksonville Symphony led by Roger Nierenberg and has now been recorded by the London Philharmonic Orchestra.^[5] In 2008, she created the role of "Madeline" in the opera Last Acts, a part which the composer Jake Heggie had specially written for her.

On January 19, 1985, she sang at the 50th Presidential Inaugural Gala, the day before the second inauguration of Ronald Reagan. She was introduced by Tony Randall. She sung an aria from Les Huguenots by Giacomo Meyerbeer.

Von Stade was the featured performer at the opening ceremonies of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and also sang with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir at the Cultural Olympiad held in conjunction with the games. She also sang at the choir's annual Christmas Concert the following year.^[6]

She currently resides in Alameda, California where she gives performances supporting the arts in local schools.

Recordings[link]

She has made over sixty recordings, including complete operas, aria albums, symphonic works, solo recital programs, and popular crossover albums. She has done humorous recordings, such as Songs of the Cat with Garrison Keillor. Her Show Boat album was a bestseller. She has also appeared with Kathleen Battle and Judi Dench on Seiji Ozawa's recording of Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream. Her recordings have garnered six Grammy nominations, two Grand Prix du Disque awards, the Deutsche Schallplattenpreis, Italy's Premio della Critica Discografica, and "Best of the Year" citations by Stereo Review and Opera News.

Honors[link]

Von Stade was honored with an award in 1983 at the White House by President Reagan in recognition of her significant contribution to the arts and by France's highest honor in the Arts as an officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. She was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in April 2012.

Trivia[link]

Von Stade was the idol of a key character in the CBS series Northern Exposure (her interpretation of Bailero from Canteloube's Chants d'Auvergne appeared on its original soundtrack album).

A case summary involving a dispute over marital property and earnings (Elkus v. Elkus, 572 N.Y.S.2d 901 (N.Y. App. Div. 1991))[1] between von Stade and Peter Elkus, formerly her husband, appears in Dukeminier's Property textbook, commonly used in the first year of law school.

Von Stade appeared in the finale of We Are Most Amused, the Charity Gala thrown for the 60th birthday of Prince Charles. She performed as a Valkyrie accompanying Eric Idle in singing a modified version of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life".

References[link]

Sources[link]

Wikinews has related news: Award show producers try Emmy Idol

• Official Frederica von Stade web site
• Frederica von Stade on Charlie Rose
• Frederica von Stade at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Frederica von Stade in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Frederica von Stade at the Notable Names Database
• Kellow, Brian, Cherubino Grows Up, Opera News, April 1995
• Spoto, Donald, Flicka in 3/4 Time,Opera News, March 2000