Annelies Kupper (21 July 1906 – 8 December 1987), was a German operatic

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

, particularly associated with

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

and the German repertory. Kupper was born at Glatz (now

Kłodzko Kłodzko (; ; ; ) is a historic town in south-western Poland, in the region of Lower Silesia. It is situated in the centre of the Kłodzko Valley, on the Eastern Neisse (Nysa Kłodzka) river. Kłodzko is the seat of Kłodzko County (and of the ru ...

) in

Lower Silesia Lower Silesia ( ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ) is a historical and geographical region mostly located in Poland with small portions in the Czech Republic and Germany. It is the western part of the region of Silesia. Its largest city is Wrocław. The first ...

. She studied in Breslau and was a music teacher there before making her operatic debut in 1935. She then appeared in

Schwerin Schwerin (; Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch Low German: ''Swerin''; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Zwierzyn''; Latin: ''Suerina'', ''Suerinum'') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Germ ...

(1937–38),

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

(1938–40), Hamburg (1940–46), Munich (1946–61). She sang Eva in ''

Die Meistersinger Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...

'' at the

Bayreuth festival The Bayreuth Festival () is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of stage works by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived and promoted the idea of a special ...

, in 1944, and returned as Elsa in ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wo ...

'' in 1960. She created Danae in Richard Strauss's ''

Die Liebe der Danae ''Die Liebe der Danae'' (''The Love of Danaë'') is an opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to a February 1937 German libretto by Joseph Gregor, loosely based on a sketch written in 1920 in the style of Jacques Offenbach's satirical works, "Da ...

'' at the

Salzburg festival The Salzburg Festival () is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer, for five weeks starting in late July, in Salzburg, Austria, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart's operas are a focus of ...

, in 1952. Kupper was especially admired as

Countess Almaviva ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienna ...

, in addition to

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

and Strauss roles, she also gained considerable acclaim as

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...

and Desdemona (in ''

Otello ''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on William Shakespeare, Shakespeare's play ''Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the La Scala, Teatro alla Scala, M ...

''). A sensitive and warm-voiced singer, she retired in 1961, and taught at the Music Conservatory in Munich. She died in Munich at age 81.

Selected recordings

* ''Lohengrin'' –

Lorenz Fehenberger Lorenz Fehenberger (24 August 1912 – 29 July 1984) was a German operatic tenor, particularly associated with the German and Italian repertories. Fehenberger was born in Oberweidach, Upper Bavaria, and began singing as a boy in a church choir, l ...

, Annelies Kupper, Helena Braun,

Ferdinand Frantz Ferdinand Frantz (February 8, 1906 in Kassel – May 26, 1959 in Munich), was a German operatic bass-baritone. He was well known in his time for his performances in the operas of Richard Wagner. Fond of music as a boy, he joined a choral society ...

, Otto Von Rohr – Bavarian Radio Chorus and Orchestra,

Eugen Jochum Eugen Jochum (; 1 November 1902 – 26 March 1987) was a German conducting, conductor, best known for his interpretations of the music of Anton Bruckner, Carl Orff, and Johannes Brahms, among others. Biography Jochum was born to a Roman Catholic ...

–

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

(1953) * ''Aida'' – Annelies Kupper, Max Lorenz,

Margarete Klose Margarete Klose (6 August 1899 or 1902 – 14 December 1968) was a German operatic dramatic mezzo-soprano. Life Klose was born (as Frida Klose) and died in Berlin. She lost her father early in life and had to earn her living as a secretary, un ...

, Rudolf Gonszar, Otto Von Rohr – Frankfurt Radio Chorus and Orchestra, Kurt Schroder – Walhall Eternity (1952) sung in German

Sources

* ''Le guide de l'opéra'', R.Mancini & J.J.Rouveroux, (

Fayard Fayard (complete name: ''Librairie Arthème Fayard'') is a French Paris-based publishing house established in 1857. Fayard is controlled by Hachette Livre. In 1999, Éditions Pauvert became part of Fayard. Claude Durand was director of Fayar ...

, 1986), {{DEFAULTSORT:Kupper, Annelies 1906 births 1987 deaths People from Kłodzko Musicians from the Province of Silesia German operatic sopranos Academic staff of the University of Music and Theatre Munich 20th-century German women opera singers