Bass-baritone Walter Berry was born in 1929 in Vienna, Austria. After studying at the Vienna Music Academy he made his operatic debut at the Wiener Staatsoper in 1947. He sang regularly with the company for the rest of his career. He also sang frequently at the Salzburg summer festival. Berry was most famous for his interpretation of the bird catcher Papageno in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, which he performed often in Vienna and recorded under the direction of Otto Klemperer. Mozart’s Figaro, Bluebeard in Bartok's Duke Bluebeard's Castle, Wozzeck in Berg’s opera of the same name, and Don Alfonso in Mozart’s Cosi fan Tutte were other renowned roles of him. From 1956 to 1971 he was married to famed mezzo-soprano Christa Ludwig. They performed often together during this time period. Walter Berry passed away in October of 2000.