New LL CDs and Videos Proposed

I received a call from Ernest Gilbert of Video Artists International, who is interested in re-releasing Lehmann material on CDs. In spite of his company's name, they also publish CDs, usually of archival interest. He is obviously a Lehmann fan and though he says that he really wants to put together a series of CDs of Lehmann rarities, the first focus is "to achieve the best possible transfer of the Town Hall farewell recital."[Website readers note: he did release this on CD. See Recommended CDs on the MegaIndex page.] To that end he is looking for the original tapes (or something close). If anyone has this or other rare Lehmann items, they should contact him: Ernest Gilbert, VAI, 109 Wheeler Ave., Pleasanteville, NY 10570.

Since future CDs would attempt to fill in the gaps of the LL discography not presently available on other labels, I have sent him tapes of various commercial and "live" Lehmann performances for his consideration. He was amazed at LL's "God Bless America" as well as by the great number of recordings which haven't been re-released.

His company obviously deals in videos and Mr. Gilbert has expressed interest in the various LL master class video tapes available.

Perhaps, he suggests, highlights from various video sources could be combined to create a wonderful item of value to both educators and the vocal afficianados. Anyone with unusual material should contact Mr. Gilbert at the address given above or by phone: 800 477-7146. He also seeks LL photos which haven't been seen too often. The Lehmann Archive at UCSB has cooperated with him already.

It is gratifying to see the vivid interest shown by the various media in the art of LL. In the notes that accompany the Great Voices of the Century CD mentioned elsewhere in this newsletter, author Tony Watts writes: "Few singers had such great ability to project their personality on to record as Lotte Lehmann. A fine musician whose beautiful voice was always used with impeccable taste, she made many recordings of a wide range of repertoire, and few of them fail to shed some new light on the music. Always totally immersed in the character she was portraying, and alive to every nuance of the text, it is no wonder that she was a great Lieder singer. Her interpretive ability was, no doubt, the result of keen intelligence, imaginatively applied, but the listener is never made aware of the mechanics. Hers was truly the art that conceals art."

We who know about this great art should feel compelled to share this with our friends and colleagues. And if any Lehmann unpublished material is discovered, we should share it with the archive or media that can best use it. -GH