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Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (Soprano)

Born: December 9, 1915 - Jarotchin, near Posen, Germany
Died: August 3, 2006 - Schruns, Austria

The celebrated German-born English soprano, (Olga Maria) Elisabeth (Friederike) Schwarzkopf, was the daughter of Friedrich Schwarzkopf and his wife, Elisabeth Fröhling. From the very beginning, Elisabeth showed an interest in persuing a career in music. She performed in her first opera in 1928, as Eurydice in a school production of Orfeo ed Euridice in Magdeburg, Germany. She was also in demand in concerts and local amateur performances.

In 1934, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf applied for entrance to the Berlin Hochschule für Musik and was accepted. Elisabeth began studying with Lula Mysz-Gmeiner, who began training Elisabeth as a mezzo-soprano. Elisabeth's mother demanded that her daughter be transferred, and Elisabeth began studying with a Dr. Egonolf, who was convinced of Elisabeth's potential as a coloratura soprano.

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf trained with Dr. Egonolf for over a year before joining Berlin's Deutsche Oper as a junior soprano on April 13, 1938. Two days later, she made her professional stage debut as the Second Flower Maiden (First Group) in Act II of Wagner's Parsifal. Elisabeth sang at the Deutsche Oper for four years, during which she became a member of the German Nazi Party, leaving Berlin only to sing in one performance as Adele in Die Fledermaus at the Paris Opera when the Deutsche Oper went on tour in September 1941. She left the Deutsche Oper in 1946 and joined the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, where she enjoyed considerable success in roles like Mimi in La Bohème and Violetta in La Traviata. She left the company in 1950 to begin her international career.

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf is probably the only singer in history to sing under two names in a single performance. In October 1941, she sang Adele for the first of a series of Die Fledermaus performances but was demoted to the role of Ida for the remainder of the performances. In retaliation, Elisabeth kicked off her shoe during a performance, damaging the huge canvas screen at the back of the set. Her punishment was that she couldn't always sing in productions using her own name. Therefore, in a performance of Parsifal, the role of the Second Flower Maiden (First Group) was sung by Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and the role of the First Page is credited to Maria Helfer, Elisabeth's pseudonym for the month following the Fledermaus incident.

When the Vienna State Opera went on tour from 1947 to 1948, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf joined them and was able to travel to Europe's leading opera houses. With the Vienna State Opera, she made her debut at London's Royal Opera House on September 16,1947 as Donna Elvira in W.A. Mozart's Don Giovanni and her La Scala debut on December 28, 1948 as the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier. Her real debut at the Royal Opera House was as Pamina in W.A. Mozart's Die Zauberföte on January 16, 1948 and her real La Scala debut was in a performance of L.v. Beethoven's Missa Solemnis on June 29, 1950. She didn't make her Metropolitan Opera debut until October 13, 1964, as the Marschallin.

In March 1946, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was invited to audition for Walter Legge, one of the most respected names in the classical music recording business. She sang Wolf's Lied Wer rief dich denn? and Legge signed her to an exclusive contract with EMI. They began a close partnership and Legge became Schwarzkopf's manager and companion. They were married on October 19, 1953, in Epsom, England. In 1953 she became a naturalized British subject.

From 1960 to 1967, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf concentrated almost exclusively on 5 operatic roles. These are: Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, the Countess in W.A. Mozart's Nozze di Figaro, the Marschallin (probably her most famous role) in Der Rosenkavalier, Fiordiligi in Cosi fan tutte, and Countess Madeleine in Capriccio. During this time, she also achieved great success as Alice Ford in Falstaff. During her career, Elisabeth performed in two world premieres. She appeared as Anne Trulove in the world premiere of Igor Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress on 11 September 1951, as well as the Second Page in the world premiere of Arthur Kusterer's Katarina on May 14, 1939.

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf's last operatic performance was as the Marschallin in Act I of Der Rosenkavalier on December 31, 1971 in Brussels. For the next 6 years, she sang Lieder recitals exclusively around the world. On March 17, 1979, Walter Legge suffered a severe heart attack. He disobeyed his doctor's orders to rest and attended her final recital on the 19th in Zürich, Switzerland. Three days later, Legge died.

After retiring, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf began teaching and giving masterclasses. On New Year's day 1992, she was created Dame Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II. Today, she lives relatively quietly in her home in Zürich, visited by friends and a few pupils, but she still appears in public whenever she can.


More Pictures

Source: Soprano Central Website; Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Musicians (1997)
Contributed by
Aryeh Oron (May 2001, May 2003, August 2006)

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf: Short Biography | General Discussions

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Under her name

Soprano

Arias from BWV 68, BWV 208

Under her name

Soprano

BWV 508 [w/ pianist Gerald Moore]

Thurston Dart

Soprano

BWV 199 (x2), BWV 202; Arias from BWV 68, BWV 208 (x2)

Alceo Galliera

Soprano

C-1 (1950): Aria from BWV 68

Peter Gellhorn

Soprano

BWV 51

Szymon Goldberg

Soprano

[C-2] (1958): BWV 199

Eugen Jochum

Soprano

BWV 51

Herbert von Karajan

Soprano

BWV 232 ]1st], BWV 232 [2nd], BWV 243 [1st]

Otto Klemperer

Soprano

BWV 202, BWV 244

Ugo Rapalo

Soprano

Aria from BWV 92

Walter Susskind

Soprano

BWV 51

Links to other Sites

Dame Eilsabeth Schwarzkopf (Soprano Central)
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (Schubert Singers)
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (NY Times)
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf [German]
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf [Spanish]
BerlinOnline: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf feierte 85. Geburtstag [German]
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (3sat) [German]


Biographies of Performers: Main Page | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
Explanation | Acronyms | Missing Biographies | The Sad Corner




 

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Last update: Tuesday, September 10, 2019 12:04