© 2024 Interlochen
CLASSICAL IPR | 88.7 FM Interlochen | 94.7 FM Traverse City | 88.5 FM Mackinaw City IPR NEWS | 91.5 FM Traverse City | 90.1 FM Harbor Springs/Petoskey | 89.7 FM Manistee/Ludington
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

From Interlochen's archives: 'The Headless Horseman' operetta radio broadcast

Tenor George Rasely at Interlochen's National Music Camp, 1943
Interlochen Center for the Arts
Tenor George Rasely at Interlochen's National Music Camp, 1943

A 1943 broadcast of a student performance of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Douglas Moore's operetta, directed by Metropolitan Opera tenor George Rasely.

In the summer of 1943, students at Interlochen's National Music Camp performed Douglas Moore's operetta "The Headless Horseman."

Selections from the operetta were broadcast on WKAR in August 6, introduced by the production's director, George Rasely.

The National Music Camp's operetta company performs the overture to Douglas Moore's "The Headless Horseman"
WKAR radio broadcast recorded August 6, 1943

Tenor George Rasely was a respected opera singer who regularly appeared with the Metropolitan Opera.

Tenor George Rasely at a piano, c. 1924
Bain News Service
/
Library of Congress
Tenor George Rasely at a piano, c. 1924

Rasely made his Met Opera debut in a 1936 production of Bedrich Smetana's "The Bartered Bride."

He performed in many Met productions between 1936 and 1944, including Verdi's "Falstaff," Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro" and Puccini's "Gianni Schicchi."

George Rasely introduces the National Music Camp production of Douglas Moore's "The Headless Horseman"
WKAR broadcast recorded August 6, 1943

Douglas Moore's operetta "The Headless Horseman" was just six years old at the time of this radio broadcast, having premiered in 1936.

Moore is best known for his folk operas including "The Devil and Daniel Webster" (1939) and "The Ballad of Baby Doe" (1956). He also won the Pulitzer Prize for his 1951 opera "Giants in the Earth."

George Rasely was familiar with Douglas Moore's music, having performed in the premiere of Moore's "The Devil and Daniel Webster" on Broadway in 1939.

The National Music Camp's operetta company performs "I have a fearful tale to tell" from Douglas Moore's "The Headless Horseman"
WKAR broadcast recorded August 6, 1943

Moore composed "The Headless Horseman" based on a libretto by Pulitzer Prize- and O. Henry Award-winning poet and short story writer. Stephen Vincent Benét.

Program from August 6, 1943 WKAR radio broadcast from Interlochen's National Music Camp
The National Music Camp's operetta company performs "Dear Katrina, Happy Bride" from Douglas Moore's "The Headless Horseman"
WKAR radio broadcast recorded August 6, 1943

Presenting full-length operas and operettas had been a part of the National Music Camp's programs since Interlochen's second year.

The first operetta performed at Interlochen's National Music Camp was Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Pirates of Penzance," presented in August 1929.

Cast members of "The Pirates of Penzance," the first operetta ever performed at Interlochen's National Music Camp, in 1929
Interlochen Center for the Arts
Cast members of "The Pirates of Penzance," the first operetta ever performed at Interlochen's National Music Camp, in 1929

The first American operetta given at Interlochen was Charles Wakefield Cadman's "Lelawana" in 1931.

Transcription disks of National Music Camp radio broadcast were recently digitized for preservation thanks to the generous support of the Hamer D. and Phyllis C. Shafer Foundation. Stefan Wiebe remastered the digitized archival recordings.

Dr. Amanda Sewell is IPR's music director.