Born in
Graudenz,
West Prussia, Witte grew up in Bremen from 1920 and first became an actor and
répétiteur. At the
Bremen conservatory, he then studied singing with the bass-baritone
Philipp Kraus. In 1930, at the age of 19, he made his stage debut at the
Theater Bremen as Nando in d'Albert's
Tiefland. In 1937, he joined the
Theater Wiesbaden, and also at the
Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires (1938). for 47 performances, including as Froh in the
Ring cycle and as the Fool in Mussorgsky's
Boris Godunov. From 1940 to 1942, he sang at the opera house in
Breslau, where he took part in the world premiere of
Hans Stieber's
Der Dombaumeister on 7 February 1942. He also performed as Pinkerton in Puccini's
Madama Butterfly alongside
Erna Berger, as Richard in Verdi's
Un ballo in maschera, and as Laca in Janáček's
Jenůfa. In 1943 and 1944, he appeared at the
Bayreuth Festival as David in
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and as Loge in
Das Rheingold in 1952 and 1953. In 1950, he performed the title role of Wagner's
Parsifal at the Berlin State Opera. He appeared in the title role of Britten's
Peter Grimes at the
Städtische Oper Berlin in 1947, when the opera was first performed in Berlin, alongside
Elisabeth Grümmer as Ellen Orford. He then returned to his Berlin home, where his repertoire shifted to roles including Shostakovich's
Die Nase, Harry McRae in
Alan Bush's
Joe Hill in the opera's world premiere in 1970 He made his last stage appearances at the age of eighty. In 1951, he was active as a director for the first time with
Richard Mohaupt's
Bremer Stadtmusikanten at the
Admiralspalast. At the new house Unter den Linden, he directed Wagner's
Tristan und Isolde,
Lohengrin and the
Ring cycle, with
Franz Konwitschny as conductor, leaning on the
Wieland Wagner's Bayreuth style. He also directed
Daphne by Richard Strauss, conducted by
Otmar Suitner. From 1970, Witte was also a
lecturer in vocal studies at the
Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin. an honorary membership. Witte died in Berlin aged 97, only a few days after the death of his wife Josefa, a former member of the Berlin State Opera Ballet. == Recordings==