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Contents
Purpose
Background
Order of the bios in the Index pages
Info for each bio | Links & Usage | Missing Bios
Purpose
The purpose of this section of the Bach Cantatas Website (BCW) is to build a repository of short biographies (bios) of all the important (and less important) performers of the J.S. Bach's vocal works and players of his keyboard and lute works. This is a work in progress.
Background
The bios include mainly singers, conductors, chorus masters, choral and instrumental groups. I have used (almost) every possible source for collecting info for the bios - websites, linear notes, programme notes, record companies, books, etc. Some of the members of the BCML were very helpful in collecting some bios and sending updates and corrections. Some of the performers, their agents, their relatives, their acquaintances or their fans were also very kind to send me material. I am very grateful for everyone who was willing to help. The fruits of this enterprise can be now found in the BCW. At the beginning of August 2017 there are already over 11,400 performer bios in the BCW. The Index of which can be found above.
Order of the bios in the Index pages
The performers entries of the artists in the index pages are sorted alphabetically by the family name. Words such as 'the', 'van', 'der', 'de', 'von', 'van', 'of', ‘Sir’, etc. are not considered. f.e. Nico van der Meel appears under Meel; Elisabeth von Magnus, under Magnus, Sir Georg Solti, under Solti, etc.
Choral and intrumental groups appear in the index pages under their name in the original language (and not the English translation). f.e. Wiener Sangerknaben (and not Vienna Boys' Choir). Words like ‘the’, ‘die’, ‘Orchestra’, ‘Capella’, ‘Choir’, ‘Chor’, ‘Concerto’, ‘Knabenchor’, etc. are not considered. f.e. Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment appears under Age of Enlightenment; The King's Consort under King's Consort, Knabenchor Hannover under Hannover, Concerto Palatino under Palatino, etc. If the city is part of the group name, the group also appears under the city name.
Info for each bio
The info for each bio is arranged as follows:
Birth: Date and Place.
Death: Date and Place (if applicable).
The body of the bio, including studies, prizes, main steps of the career, repertoire, important recordings, etc.
Photos of the artist.
Source of information for the bio.
Name of the contributor.
List of the performer’s recordings of Bach cantatas and other vocal works, arranged according to the conductor, and BWV number. If the conductor has a page of his Bach's recordings at the Performers Section, there is a link to this page. The BWV number of each listed cantata/vocal work is linked to the relevant page.
Links to other Sites in which there is important information about the performer.
Links & Usage
All the pages of recordings of the cantatas/other vocal works have also been updated to include links to the performers’ bios. You can now browse easily between the pages. When you see in a recordings' page of a cantata/other vocal work a performer whom you like and you are interested to know more about him (or her) and which other Bach’s vocal works he (or she) has recorded, all you have to do is pressing the link and you get immediately to the performer’s bio. There are similar links in the Performers Section.
Missing Bios
Some bios are still missing, especially of singers from previous generations. List of the Missing Biographies appears above. Also, I am not immune from doing mistakes, and you might find broken or missing link, wrong or insufficient information, etc. If you want to contribute a short biography of a Performer of the Bach Cantatas/other vocal works, please send me a message. The subject line should start with the name of the Performer. You can also quote a reliable source. It that case, please mention the name of the author and the exact source. Please, keep the biography concise (up to 1,000 words) and check the accuracy of the details. If you have any corrections and/or additions to the details of the biographies in this Section of the BCW, or suggestions for improvements, please send me a message.
Enjoy,
Aryeh Oron
WebMaster of Bach Cantatas Website (BCW)
WebMaster of Original Abu-Gosh Music Festival Website
RingMaster of J.S. Bach Web Ring
Moderator of Bach Mailing List (BML)
E-Mail address: oron-a@inter.net.il |
