Baden-Baden
View of Baden-Baden from Mount Merkur.
Baden-Baden
Coordinates	48°45′46″N 8°14′27″E / 48.76278°N 8.24083°E / 48.76278; 8.24083Coordinates: 48°45′46″N 8°14′27″E / 48.76278°N 8.24083°E / 48.76278; 8.24083
Administration
Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
Admin. region	Karlsruhe
District	Urban district
Mayor	Wolfgang Gerstner (CDU)
Basic statistics
Area	140.18 km2 (54.12 sq mi)
Elevation	181 m  (594 ft)
Population	54,445 (31 December 2010)[1]
- Density	388 /km2 (1,006 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate	BAD
Postal codes	76530–76534
Area codes	07221, 07223
Website	baden-baden.de

Baden-Baden is a spa town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located on the western foothills of the Black Forest, on the banks of the Oos River, in the region of Karlsruhe. Its sister city is Menton, France.^{[citation needed]}

History[link]

The German word, 'Baden', translates as 'baths'. The springs of Baden-Baden were known to the Romans, and the foundation of the town refers to the emperor, Hadrian, with an inscription of somewhat doubtful authenticity. The bath-conscious Roman emperor, Caracalla, once came here to ease his arthritic aches.^[2] Baden was also known as Aurelia Aquensis, in honour of Aurelius Severus, during whose reign Baden would seem to have been well known. Fragments of its ancient sculptures are still to be seen, and, in 1847, the well preserved remains of Roman vapour baths were discovered just below the New Castle.^{[citation needed]}

The town was named Baden (without the repetition) in the Middle Ages. The town fell into ruin but reappeared in 1112 as the seat (until 1705) of the Margraviate of Baden.^[3] From the 14th century to the end of the 17th, Baden-Baden was the residence of the margraves of Baden, to whom Baden-Baden gave its name. The margraves first dwelled in the old castle, the ruins of which still occupy the summit above the town, but, in 1479, they moved to the new castle, which is situated on the hillside nearer to the town. During the Thirty Years' War and the Nine Years' War, Baden-Baden suffered severely from the various combatants, especially from the French, who pillaged it in 1643 and left it in ashes in 1689. The margrave Louis William, popularly known as Türkenlouis, moved to Rastatt in 1705.^{[citation needed]}

During the Second Congress of Rastatt (1797–1799), Baden-Baden was rediscovered as a spa town. The popularity of the city as a spa dates from the early 19th century, when the Prussian queen visited the site to improve her health.^[3] During the 19th century, the town rose to become a meeting place for celebrities, who were attracted by the hot springs as well as by the famous Baden-Baden Casino, the luxury hotels, the horse races, and the gardens of the Lichtentaler Allee. Clients included Queen Victoria, Wilhelm I, Napoleon III, Berlioz, Brahms, and Dostoyevsky.^[2] Baden-Baden is a setting in Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, but the city has a different name.^[2] Baden-Baden was then nicknamed the European summer capital and reached its zenith under Napoleon III during the 1850s and 1860s.^[3] The Russian writer, Dostoevsky, wrote The Gambler while compulsively gambling at the Baden-Baden Casino.^[4] Johannes Brahms' local residence, the Brahmshaus, can still be visited today.^{[citation needed]}

In 1931, the town of Baden-Baden was officially given its double name, which is the short form for "Baden in Baden" (i.e., Baden in the state of Baden). This was already in common use to distinguish the town from Baden bei Wien ("Baden near Vienna") and Baden, Switzerland. In both World Wars, the town escaped destruction. After World War II, Baden-Baden became the headquarters of the French forces in Germany.^{[citation needed]}

Under the supervision of the French Air Force, a military airfield was constructed at Baden-Söllingen between the Black Forest and the Rhine River, 15 km west of Baden-Baden; the runway and associated facilities were completed in June 1952. In 1953, units of the Royal Canadian Air Force were accommodated at the base later known as CFB Baden-Soellingen. In the 1990s, the base was converted into a civil airport, the Baden Airpark, which is now the second-largest airport in Baden-Württemberg.^{[citation needed]}

Sights[link]

• 

  The Florentinerberg (Florentine Hill) with the New Castle (top right), the Caracalla Spa (bottom right), and the Friedrichsbad (bottom left)

• 

  Stiftskirche in Baden-Baden

• 

  Kurhaus with casino in Baden-Baden

• 

  The Trinkhalle with the mineral water spring

• 

  Brenner's Park-Hotel & Spa

• 

  Russische Kirche, an orthodox church in Baden-Baden

• 

  Friedrichsbad (Frederick's bath), New Castle and Klosterschule vom Heiligen Grab (Abbey school)

• Hohenbaden hb.JPG

  The "Old castle" (Hohenbaden)

Tourism[link]

Baden-Baden is a picturesque German bathing town.^[7] The city offers many options for sports enthusiasts;^[2] Golf and tennis are both popular in the area.^[2] Horse racing fans enjoy the international racing season each August at nearby Iffezheim.^[2] The countryside is ideal for hiking and mountain climbing.^[2] In the winter Baden-Baden is a skiing destination.^[2]

The springs of Baden-Baden have been known for more than 2,000 years, and their composition resembles that of the Roman baths of the 3rd century.^[8] The water at the baths of "Caracalla-Therme" spa is rich in sodium chloride, and comes from artesian wells 1,800 metres (5,900 ft) under the Florentiner Mountain.^[9]

The Spielbank casino is more than 200 years old and the oldest of its type in Germany.^[10] Dostoyevsky is said to have written The Gambler after he lost his money and even his shirt here.^[10] The rooms were designed in the style of a French château.^[10]

The Russian writer Ivan Turgenev based his novel Smoke (1867) in Baden-Baden, describing it as a place where the Russian nobility spend time.^{[citation needed]}

There is a picturesque 18-hole golf course in Fremersberg.^[11]

Much of the Joseph Losey movie The Romantic Englishwoman (1975) was filmed on location in the town, with the Brenner's Park Hotel featuring particularly prominently. The Bollywood movie Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) was the first Indian movie to be shot in Baden-Baden.^{[citation needed]}

From 23 to 28 September 1981, the XIth Olympic Congress took place in the Kurhaus in Baden-Baden. The England football team were based near Baden-Baden at Hotel Bühlerhöhe (Schwarzwaldhochstraße) during the 2006 FIFA World Cup.^{[citation needed]}

References[link]

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Baden (Germany).

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Baden-Baden

External links[link]

• Official site (German) (English) (Spanish) (French) (Italian) (Japanese) (Russian) (Chinese)
• "Art and Nightlife Have Baden-Baden Percolating Again", New York Times, July 9, 2006

v t e Regions, and urban and rural districts in the state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany Regions Freiburg Karlsruhe Stuttgart Tübingen Urban districts Baden-Baden Freiburg Heidelberg Heilbronn Karlsruhe Mannheim Pforzheim Stuttgart Ulm Rural districts Alb-Donau Biberach Bodensee Böblingen Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald Calw Emmendingen Enz Esslingen Freudenstadt Göppingen Heidenheim Heilbronn Hohenlohe Karlsruhe Konstanz Lörrach Ludwigsburg Main-Tauber Neckar-Odenwald Ortenau Ostalbkreis Rastatt Ravensburg Rems-Murr Reutlingen Rhein-Neckar Rottweil Schwarzwald-Baar Schwäbisch Hall Sigmaringen Tübingen Tuttlingen Waldshut Zollernalb

Kaufmann outside London's Royal Opera House following the dress rehearsal for Tosca on 9 May 2008

Jonas Kaufmann (born 10 July 1969) is a German operatic tenor. Although he has sung a variety of leading roles including both the Mozart and Wagner repertoire, he is particularly known for his performances in spinto roles such as Don José in Carmen, Cavaradossi in Tosca, Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur, and the title role in Don Carlos.^[1]

Early life and education[link]

Kaufmann was born in Munich. His father worked for an insurance company, and his mother was a kindergarten teacher. He had one older sister. He started studying piano when he was eight, and he sang in his elementary school choir. Although he studied for math entrance exams, in the summer of 1989 he began his vocal training at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich. While studying, he sang some small roles at the Bavarian State Opera. He graduated from school in 1994.^[2]

In 1995, after a vocal crisis, Kaufmann received help from American baritone Michael Rhodes who taught him a "new way of singing" and how to become "more relaxed in my voice and in myself."^[3] In Kaufmann's book Meinen die wirklich mich? he said, "To find a Michael Rhodes that can really help you and bring you to success is really a great stroke of luck."^[4]

Career[link]

He began his professional career at Staatstheater Saarbrücken in 1994^[5] and was soon invited to make debuts in German theaters such as the Stuttgart Opera and Hamburg State Opera, as well as international debuts at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Opéra National de Paris, and La Scala. He made his Salzburg Festival debut in 1999 in a new production of Busoni's Doktor Faust and returned there in 2003 as Belmonte in Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail and for concerts of the Beethoven's Ninth with the Berlin Philharmonic.

He performed in Covent Garden in 2006-2007 in the role of Don José in Bizet's Carmen to critical acclaim, and also sang Alfredo in Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata at the Metropolitan Opera and in Covent Garden in 2008. In May 2008, Kaufmann made his role debut as Cavaradossi in Puccini's Tosca in Covent Garden, again to critical acclaim.^[6]

In 2008-09 he performed Manon in Chicago opposite Natalie Dessay and in the title role of a new production of Lohengrin at the Bavarian State Opera. He also sang Lohengrin at the Bayreuth Festival opening night performance of the 2010 season; the production was staged by Hans Neuenfels and conducted by Andris Nelsons.

His debut recording with Decca, Romantic Arias, was released in January 2008. He has also recorded a Schubert song cycle on the same label and the role of Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly for EMI.

In January 2010 he assumed the title role in Jules Massenet's Werther at the Opera Bastille; the performance was recorded and released on DVD in November 2010.

In April 2011 he returned to the Metropolitan Opera as Siegmund in director Robert Lepage's new production of Richard Wagner's Die Walküre the second part of his much larger work Der Ring des Nibelungen, scheduled to be presented in its entirety during the 2011-12 season.^[7] In September 2011, he underwent surgery to remove a lymph node from his chest.^[8][9][10] In December, he was back, performing the title role in Gounod's Faust.^[11]

Personal life[link]

Kaufmann is married to mezzo-soprano Margarete Joswig. They have three children and live in Zürich, Switzerland.^[12]

Repertoire[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (February 2012)

Kaufmann's repertoire includes the following:

• Abert: Ekkehard - title role
• Beethoven: Fidelio - Florestan, Jaquino
• Berlioz: La damnation de Faust - Faust
• Bizet: Carmen - Don José
• Cilea: Adriana Lecouvreur - Maurizio
• Gounod: Faust - title role
• Humperdinck: Königskinder - Königssohn
• Massenet: Manon - Des Grieux
• Massenet: Werther - title role
• Monteverdi:Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria - Telemaco
• Monteverdi:L'incoronazione di Poppea - Nerone
• Loewe: Drei Wünsche- Hassan
• Mozart: Così fan tutte - Ferrando
• Mozart: Die Zauberflöte - Tamino
• Mozart: Idomeneo - title role
• Mozart: Die Entführung aus dem Serail - Belmonte
• Mozart: La Clemenza di Tito - Tito
• Paer: Leonora - Florestano
• Paisiello: Nina, o sia La pazza per amore - Un Pastore + Lindoro
• Puccini:La Rondine - Ruggero
• Puccini: La bohème - Rodolfo
• Puccini: Tosca - Cavaradossi
• Rossini: Il Barbiere Di Siviglia - Almaviva
• Schubert: Fierrabras - title role
• Marc Schubring: Cyrano de Bergerac - Christian
• Smetana: The Bartered Bride - Hans
• Verdi:Falstaff - Fenton
• Verdi: La traviata - Alfredo
• Verdi: Otello - Cassio
• Verdi: Rigoletto - Duca
• Verdi: Don Carlos - title role
• Wagner: Tannhäuser- Walther
• Wagner: Parsifal - title role
• Wagner: Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg - Walther
• Wagner: Die Walküre - Siegmund
• Wagner: Lohengrin - title role

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website jonaskaufmann.com
• Jonas Kaufmann on bach-cantatas
• Unofficial Website