khankonchak's video: G Korsten- O souverain o juge o p re

Gé Korsten (1927-1999) One of my happiest tenor "discoveries" in recent years has been the splendidly warm, resonant voice of the late Gé Korsten. That he is remembered by relatively few opera enthusiasts can be attributed to the fact that his career was limited exclusively to South Africa (his parents immigrated to Johannesburg from Rotterdam when Korsten was eight years old). Coming from a poor family that could not afford singing lessons, he did not begin vocal studies until he was well into his 20's and supporting himself with a career as an electrician. His stage debut came finally in 1957, when Korsten appeared as Canio with Die Pretoriase Operagroep, of which he was a founding member. Five years later he was awarded a bursary to study in Vienna for a year, but he declined a subsequent contract offer from the Staatsoper and returned to South Africa, continuing to sing and run his business, which he ultimately sold in 1970 to devote himself fully to the operatic stage. The decision gave Korsten the opportunity to further demonstrate his artistic versatility by performing in operetta, musicals, and film, as well as making numerous recordings of popular Afrikaans songs, which brought him immense popularity in his adopted homeland. The richness and luster of Korsten's voice can be traced back to his early days as a baritone, and allowed him to gradually expand into lirico-spinto roles, though his desire to sing Lohengrin and Otello apparently never came to pass. But he provides plenty of verve and enthusiasm here in Rodrigo's "O souverain", from Massenet's Le Cid. Except for a few odd-sounding vowels the singing can hardly be faulted- it is emotionally generous and tonally refulgent throughout. It also leaves little doubt that Korsten could easily have enjoyed a successful international career had he so desired. A truly lamentable loss for most of the world! Unfortunately, I have no information as to the date or venue of this recording. I'm sorry also for the poor sound, but I believe the musical rewards are great and largely make up for it. For those interested in further sampling the art of Gè Korsten, I highly recommend the following Youtube videos, referenced here with kind permission from sumacjk: "Celeste Aida": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3Arlze31gQ "Una furtiva lagrima": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAdJVZQmIQY