Ivan Rebroff Sings "Evening Bells"

The great German singer Ivan Rebroff (Hans-Rolf Rippert, (1931-2008) was certainly one of the most beloved and most successful singers of all time. It’s almost impossible not to like his extraordinary voice, which, like that of Yma Sumac, seemed to have no limits on the top or bottom. He could sing so low it rattled the furniture, and so high that he once recorded “Ardon gli Incesi,“ or the Mad Scene from Lucia. I have that recording here someplace if I can find it. It’s buried in hundreds of old cassettes. “Evening Bells“ is one of his most popular recordings. No one seems quite sure what, if anything, his connection with Russia might have been, but he was a kind of “professional“ Russian, not a real one, and his Russian is quite good, except for a noticeable German accent. But who cares He was Rebroff, a consummate entertainer, and he sang many kinds of songs from many nations. He worked very hard, and became a very wealthy man. His popularity was simp