For 39 years he belonged to the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper Berlin: Peter Maus was what is called a mainstay of the house. When the lyrical tenor with the slender height was engaged in Charlottenburg in 1974, at the age of 25, he quickly became the audience’s favourite, with buffo roles such as Wenzel from “The Bartered Bride”, Pedrillo from Mozart’s “Entführung aus dem Seraglio”. ‘ or Don Curzio from The Marriage of Figaro.
But the singer, who was born in Bayreuth in 1948, has also taken on large and small roles in dramatic works over the decades at the Deutsche Oper, as well as in world premieres, and he has performed a total of 70 different stage works here.
In addition to his music theater work, Peter Maus was also in demand as an oratorio singer, especially as an evangelist in the Bach Passions.
From 1982 to 2002 the tenor could also be seen in supporting roles at the Bayreuth Festival. His blind shepherd from the final act of “Tristan” in the legendary production by Heiner Müller is particularly impressive. He often sang this role at the Deutsche Oper, most recently in 2019. “Don’t overestimate yourself, then others will appreciate you,” was the tenor’s credo, whose unpretentious artistry was greatly appreciated by his ensemble colleagues.
On his official departure from the Deutsche Oper in 2013, Peter Maus sang the mime in Wagner’s “Rheingold”. For April next year he was engaged to play Alcindoro, Musetta’s accompanist in the “Quartier Latin” act, in Puccini’s “La Bohème”. But that will never happen again: Peter Maus died at the age of 74 after a short illness in his adopted home of Berlin.
