Rudolf Berger

Having studied with Adolf Robinson in his (at the time primarily German-speaking) home town, he made his debut as Telramund in Brno in 1896. Via Olomouc, he soon came to Berlin (Court Opera, from 1898 onwards). He sang in several world premieres, including Leoncavallo's Roland von Berlin in 1904, or Humperdinck's Die Heirat wider Willen the following year. In 1901, 1906 and 1908, he sang at the Bayreuth Festival (Amfortas, Klingsor, Gunther).

In 1908, he restudied wwith Oscar Saenger in New York, so as to become a tenor. In 1909, he had his second Berlin Hofoper debut, as Lohengrin. He was now a successful heldentenor, appearing in Paris, London, Amsterdam, Prague, Vienna; in 1914, he made his Met debut as Siegmund, and sang also Tannhäuser, Stolzing, Tristan, Lohengrin and the older Siegfried at that theater, until he died just one year later.