www.donaldbinks.com.au

i n t e r e s t s  

IN DEUTSCH

PAGE 1

 

  

R I C H A R D  T A U B E R  IN AUSTRALIA
 
   
Please wait until the motion picture (in FLASH format) loads to the left. If you have a Broadband Connection it won't take too long. If you have Dial-Up you could be waiting all night!
(GO TO RICHARD TAUBER PAGE 2 FOR LINKS TO MORE VIDEOS)
 
RICHARD TAUBER IN AUSTRALIA
Tauber was approached to come to Australia as early as 1934, but refused to go because it was too far away and he disliked long sea voyages. It was finally the persuasion of fellow artist, Lotte Lehmann, who urged him to accept, so enthusiastically did she speak of her own successful concert tour of 1936.
 
On the 11th of October, 1937, after six months of arduous negotiations, Tauber finally signed a contract to tour Australia the following year under the auspices of the Australian Broadcasting Commission. The conditions of the contract provided for a minimum of 25 recitals over 10 weeks; payment of 3 fares, a fee of £400 stg for each recital (tax free) and £100 stg as soloist at Celebrity Orchestral Concerts.
 
At the end of May 1938, Mr. & Mrs. Tauber flew from London to join the Orient Liner "Orontes" in Naples. 
 
On the voyage out to Australia Tauber gave a concert at Colombo where he received a standing oviation.
 
The ship arrived in Australia with the happy couple aboard at Fremantle on 21st June where Tauber was interviewed by the ABC's Perth representative, Conrad Charlton. Tauber confided to him how much he reveled in conducting; how he was really a greater conductor than a singer and that he was willing to accept a lower fee if he could conduct a number of concerts on his tour. (In all this he was duly accommodated both in Melbourne & Sydney).
 
Accompanying Tauber as his private secretary was his step-brother, Robert Hase-Tauber, and Percy Kahn, his accompanist and faithful companion for over four years. Tauber had in fact remarked that he would not have made this tour without Kahn "for all the cheese in China".
 
On the Taubers' arrival in Melbourne they were greeted by the General Manager of the ABC, Mr. (later "Sir"), Charles Moses, and given a reception at the Melbourne Town Hall by the Lord Mayor, Councilor Campbell. This was followed in the afternoon with an attendance at the Grand National Steeplechase at Flemington Racecourse.
 
Richard and Diana made an extensive sight-seeing tour of Melbourne taking in such sights as the Shrine of Remembrance, the Healesville Sanctuary and the Dame Nellie Melba Kindergarten in Richmond.
 
Tauber himself was a keen photographer and never went anywhere without his sixteen millimetre cine-camera. (Extensive footage was donated by DIana Napier to the British Film Institute).
 
Tauber gained a great deal of publicity in Melbourne, such wonderful things were mentioned as - his humming a scale to a tank of gaping fish, chatting to a cockatoo, inserting pennies into an antiquated music box, clambering like a larking schoolboy into a shaky ancient coach and buying his wife two model hats from a Collins Street salon.
 
Any reference to Tauber 'down under' would certainly not be complete without reference to some of the publicity afforded his wife. Diana Napier was featured by the press constantly throughout the tour. From the very beginning she charmed everyone with her sparkling personality. Her fur coats, unusual hats and elaborate wardrobe made her a star attraction to both the public and the press. In fact the press photographers had a field day wherever she went. 
 
Tauber's first Australian concert was at the Melbourne Town Hall on Thursday June 30th, 1938 where he was given a rousing welcome, however it was Diana who stole the show, causing a sensation with her stunning three quarter length fur coat with immense sleeves worn over a misty lace and chiffon gown. (see photo).
 
Through his Australian tour Tauber's associate artist was the talented young violinist, Vaughan Hanly. Whilst in Sydney Tauber was the best man at the wedding of Hanly to Loran McKean.
 
"With his right hand upon the piano, his left over his heart, and all the Town Hall lights blazing at their maximum candle-power, Tauber opened his first concert in Melbourne", so said a newspaper report of the time. The first part of the programme was devoted to a group of songs by Grieg, a violin sonata played by Vaughan Hanly, a group of Schubert lieder and a fine interpretation of Schubert's "Serenade". However it was in the second part when he sang songs from films and operettas that he really captivated the audience. It was after all, by these songs that he had become known and loved by the public.
 
To the delight of the audiences he was generous with his encores on on some occasions the length of the programme would be nearly doubled. One concert could not begin until extra rows of chairs were provided on the already overflowing stage.
 
His singing of the aria "To My Beloved" from "Don Giovanni" was a show stopper, and had to be repeated, after which he delighted the audience with a group of songs by Schumann, including "Devotion".The second part of each concert was broadcast by the ABC. (Unfortunately none were recorded).
 
Whilst staying at the Hadley Hotel in Hobart (Tasmania), Tauber's accompanist (Percy Kahn) became friendly with a Mrs. Beryl Hadley whose father-in-law owned the hotel. She was instrumental in providing the lyrics to Kahn's composition "I knew that you must care" which Tauber in due course recorded.
 
Before finishing there is one funny story about Tauber whilst he was in Australia. He was being entertained at a dinner by the hierarchy of the ABC. Some boring old windbag got up to make a rather longwinded address of welcome. Tauber, who had apparently had a little more to tipple than usual, found his way to a soda siphon, then sneaked up behind the speaker and gave him a refreshing squirt on the neck. Needless to say Diana was not impressed, but it does show that Tauber had a wonderful, if sometimes misplaced sense of humour.
 
Note: (19th December, 2006) - Thank you to all those who have sent messages concerning this page. It is wonderful to think that Tauber is still remembered with so much affection and admired for his wonderful music. Thank goodness for the gramophone in that his music will always be with us.
 
HOME THE REGENT COURT CIRCULAR PONDERINGS TONY'S SAY INTERESTS THE HOUSE  RICHARD TAUBER ABOUT DONALD
OTTO VON HABSBURG KAISER KARL THEATRE ORGAN BART'S PAGE COMPETITION  PAGE DONALD BINKS' DIARY      
 

Programme from the 1938 Australian Tour

On the Cinesound Studios soundstage during the filming of "Dad & Dave Go to Town" with Bert Bailey, Ken Hall and a dog

In Adelaide
In Sydney with his ever present cine-camera
A toast at the Blackfriar's Club, Sydney
A small boy pressures Mr. Tauber to sign a gramophone record at David Jones, Sydney
Reading a congratulatory telegram before his first concert at the Melbourne Town Hall
At the piano
On board the "Orontes"
Signing autographs at the Hotel Australia, Sydney. (He charged 6d a time which was given to charity).
Being helped into suitable daywear at the Black & White Artists Club, Sydney
 
Tauber Portrait

WHO WAS RICHARD TAUBER?
(- for the uninitiated!)
 Richard Tauber was one of the twentieth century's greatest lyric tenors whose renderings of Mozart arias are amongst the finest in recorded history.
 Tauber was born in Austria in 1891 and made his opera debut in 1913, however it was through his association with popular ballads and operetta that he became widely known and acclaimed. He was really the equivalent of Elvis Presley of his day in terms of popularity.
 He was sometimes criticised for putting out so much "popular" music, but he replied saying that if he thought anything musical, he would sing it. A song written especially for him by Franz Lehar, - "You are my Heart's Delight" was his million seller, and became his theme song.
 Shortly after his Australian tour in 1938, Tauber continued on tour to South Africa, but eventually had to escape to England after the Nazi invasion of his native Austria. He had married actress Diana Napier in 1936 and settled permanently in the U.K. becoming a British Subject in 1940.
 During the war he toured as a guest conductor and wrote and starred in the musical "Old Chelsea". In 1947 he was diagnosed with lung cancer, but made a courageous appearance on stage with his beloved Vienna State Opera in a performance of "Don Giovanni", where he sang his role on one lung. Richard Tauber died in January 1948.
 
The motion picture extract on this page from "End of the Rainbow" is copywrite 1991-2007 by The Wireless Broadcasting Company and all rights are reserved.
 
This page and website are (c) 2006 Donald Binks. All rights reserved. No unauthorised copying without express permission.
 

RETURN TO MAIN INTERESTS PAGE
 
write to Donald Binks
his email address is:
dbinks@aapt.net.au