The German tenor, Walter Geisler, studied first with Richard Tömler as baritone; the re-trained by Paul Lohmann as tenor.
Walter Geisler began his career in 1938-1939 at the Stadttheater of Greifswald, however was then drafted to the war service. He sang in 1940-1943 at the Theater of Brüx (Most, C|vSR), in 1943-1944 at the Theater of Reichenberg (Liberec). After the end of World War II, he resumed his stage activity in 1947 at the Stadttheater of Göttingen; was in 1948-1949 at the Staatstheater Wiesbaden; and from 1949 to 1957 was engaged at the Staatsoper of Hamburg. At the same time, from 1949 to 1955, he was also engaged at the Komischen Oper Berlin, where he sang Max in Freischütz among other things. Then he had guest engagements, among other things, at the Städtischen Oper Berlin (1956-1961), the Staatstheater Hannover (1956-1959) and the Nationaltheater Mannheim (1959-1965). In 1957 he sang Walther von Stolzing in Meistersingern at the Bayreuth Fetival, and in 1960 Florestan in L.v. Beethoven's Fidelio in Amsterdam. He also appeared at the Staatsoper Berlin (1954-1955), at the Covent Garden Opera in London (1957), at the Theater of Graz (1963), at the Oper of Lüttich (1969 as Tristan), at the Festival of Wiesbaden (1962 as Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos), in Turin, in France and Spain. His additional stage roles were: Belmonte in W.A. Mozart's Entführung aus dem Serail, Erik, Siegmund, Walther von Stolzing, Kaiser in Frau ohne Schatten, Othello of Verdi, Grieux in Puccini's Manon Lescaut, Rodolfo in La Bohème, José in Georges Bizet's Carmen.
Recordings: Opera (L.v. Beethoven's Symphony No. 9), Eterna, Melodram (Meistersinger, recorded live at the 1957 Bayreuth Festivals), Eterna. |