Kmentt, Waldemar

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Kmentt, Waldemar

Kmentt, Waldemar, Austrian tenor; b. Vienna, Feb. 2, 1929. He was a student at the Vienna Academy of Music of Adolf Vogel, Elisabeth Rado, and Hans Duhan. While still a student, he toured the Netherlands and Belgium with a student ensemble of the Academy. In 1950 he made his formal debut as a soloist in Beethoven’s 9th Sym. in Vienna, and then appeared as the Prince in The Love for 3 Oranges at the Vienna Volksoper in 1951. In the latter year, hebecame a member of the Vienna State Opera, where he appeared as Jaquino at the reopening of the opera house in 1955. He also sang regularly in Salzburg (from 1955) and Düsseldorf (from 1958), and made guest appearances in Milan, Paris, Rome, Bayreuth, Munich, and other operatic centers. As a concert artist, he sang widely in Europe as well. He acquired a fine reputation for his performances of works from the Austro-German repertoire.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire

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