Klein, Peter

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Klein, Peter

Klein, Peter, German tenor; b. Zündorf, near Cologne, Jan. 25, 1907; d. Vienna, Oct. 4, 1992. He studied at the Cologne Cons. He made appearances in Düsseldorf, Kaiserslautern, and Zürich. He was a member of the Hamburg State Opera (1937–41), then at the Vienna State Opera, and also appeared at Bayreuth (from 1946). In 1947 he first appeared at London’s Covent Garden as Jacquino with the visiting Vienna State Opera; he returned there regularly until 1960. He made his Metropolitan Opera debut in N.Y. on Nov. 21, 1949, as Valzacchi in Der Rosenkavalier, remaining on its roster until 1951. From 1956 to 1977 he was head of the opera dept. at the Vienna Cons. His other roles included Basilio, Mime in the Ring cycle, the Captain in Wozzeck, and Monsieur Taupe in Capriccio.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire