Edith Sussanne Antonie Guillaume (Juni 14, 1943 - September 11, 2013) was a Danish mezzo-soprano who sang for the

Danish National Opera Den Jyske Opera, also known as the Danish National Opera, is based in Aarhus, Denmark. Established in 1947, it's Denmark's largest touring opera company, and the second only to the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen. Description Founded in Aarhus in ...

and the

Royal Danish Opera The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first se ...

. She is remembered for performing in several modernist works, including those of

Krzysztof Penderecki Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best known works include '' Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', ...

Per Nørgård Per Nørgård (; born 13 July 1932) is a Danish composer and music theorist. Though his style has varied considerably throughout his career, his music has often included repeatedly evolving melodies—such as the infinity series—in the vein o ...

and

Ib Nørholm Ib Nørholm (24 January 1931 in Søborg, Gladsaxe Municipality – 10 June 2019) was a Danish composer and organist. Life and career Nørholm studied with Vagn Holmboe at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, where he later taught (from 1973), beco ...

Early life and education

Born on 14 June 1943 in Bergerac, France, Edith Sussanne Antoine Guillaume was the daughter of the French architect Hubert Guillaume and his Danish wife, Marie Worm. After her father's death in 1944, her mother married the engineer Julius Wærum who travelled widely. As a result, Guillaume spent her early childhood in France, Peru and Sweden, becoming fluent in several languages. In 1955, the family moved to Denmark where she attended the

Lycée Français The Agency for French Education Abroad, or Agency for French Teaching Abroad, (french: Agence pour l'enseignement français à l'étranger; abbreviation: AEFE), is a national public agency under the administration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ...

. When she was 18, she entered the

Royal Danish Academy of Music The Royal Danish Academy of Music, or Royal Danish Conservatory of Music ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Musikkonservatorium), in Copenhagen is the oldest professional institution of musical education in Denmark as well as the largest, with approxima ...

, studying under the tenor Thyge Thygesen. In June 1966, she married the horticulturalist and tree specialist Niels Edgar Hvass.

Career

Impressed by her performance at her debut concert, the composer Ib Nørholm offered her a part in his recently composed ''Syv tavler til Orfeus''. The work, which toured Europe, created considerable attention. As a result. Guillaume was engaged by the Danish National Opera (''Den Jyske Opera'') where in 1970 she took the title role in

Lars Johan Werle Lars Johan Werle (23 June 1926 – 3 August 2001) was a Swedish modernist composer. Life and career Werle was born in Gävle, Sweden, and taught himself how to compose, before going on to study musicology at the University of Uppsala from 1 ...

's ''Drömmen om Thérèse'' (Dreaming about Thérèse). It was to be the beginning of a long career with the company where she performed in both classical and modernist works, including the lead in

Antonio Bibalo Antonio Gino Bibalo (18 January 1922 – 20 June 2008) was an Italian- Norwegian pianist and composer of contemporary classical music, primarily operas. Biography Bibalo was born in Trieste and studied piano at the conservatory there. His path ...

's chamber opera ''Frøken Julie'' (Miss Julie). In 1974, she was engaged by the Royal Opera where she performed as lead mezzo-soprano in a wide variety of works, including ''

Così fan tutte (''All Women Do It, or The School for Lovers''), K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte ...

'', ''

Tancred Tancred or Tankred is a masculine given name of Germanic origin that comes from ''thank-'' (thought) and ''-rath'' (counsel), meaning "well-thought advice". It was used in the High Middle Ages mainly by the Normans (see French Tancrède) and espec ...

'', ''

Der Rosenkavalier (''The Knight of the Rose'' or ''The Rose-Bearer''), Op. 59, is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel ''Les amours du chevalier de Faublas'' ...

'', ''

The Devils of Loudun ''The Devils of Loudun'' is a 1952 non-fiction novel by Aldous Huxley. Premise It is a historical narrative of supposed demonic possession, religious fanaticism, sexual repression, and mass hysteria that occurred in 17th-century France surround ...

'', ''

Orpheus and Eurydice The ancient legend of Orpheus and Eurydice (, ''Orpheus, Eurydikē'') concerns the fateful love of Orpheus of Thrace for the beautiful Eurydice. Orpheus was the son of Apollo and the muse Calliope. It may be a late addition to the Orpheus myths ...

'', ''

Dido and Aeneas ''Dido and Aeneas'' (Z. 626) is an opera in a prologue and three acts, written by the English Baroque composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate. The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain. It was c ...

'' and ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the Opér ...

''. Edith Guillaume died on 11 September 2013 and is buried in

Gentofte Cemetery Gentofte () is a district of Gentofte Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Major landmarks include Gentofte Town Hall, Gentofte Hospital and Gentofte Church. Gentofte Lake with surrounding parkland and nature reserves ...

Awards

Among Guillaume's many awards include the

Tagea Brandt Rejselegat The Tagea Brandts ''Rejselegat'' (Travel Scholarship) is a Danish award to women who have made a significant contribution in science, literature or art. The grant, which is given without application, was created and endowed by Danish industrialist ...

(1977) and her distinction as a

Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

(1985).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guillaume, Edith 1943 births 2013 deaths Danish operatic mezzo-sopranos Danish opera singers People from Bergerac, Dordogne Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog