(Above: Thomas Quasthoff and Claudia)
In anticipation of German bass baritone Quasthoff's 50th birthday (which falls on November 9) ZDF is hosting a birthday tribute of all-things-Quasthoff called, "Glückwunsch, Thomas Quasthoff!"
MC'd by Markus Lanz, Quastoff is joined by onstage and offstage accomplices: wife Claudia, Max Raabe, Maximilian Schell, Joachim Król, soprano Annette Dasch, and Sylvia Schwartz. The tribute, which will broadcast career highlights from the bass baritone's life, will be shown on Friday, November 6 on ZDF. We hope there'll be a clip from Quasthoff's illuminating Winterreise at la Scala from February 2009, where OC was entranced by his (and Barenboim's) intuitive Schubert. Tanti Auguri!
(Above: Annette Dasch, Claudia Quasthoff, Thomas Quasthoff, Markus Lanz, Maximilian Schell, Max Raabe, Sylvia Schwartz and Joachim Krol)