Elisabeth Rethberg ( Lisbeth Sättler; 22 September 1894 – 6 June 1976) was a German operatic

spinto soprano A spinto soprano is a type of operatic soprano voice that has the limpidity and easy high notes of a lyric soprano, yet can be "pushed" on to achieve dramatic climaxes without strain. This type of voice may also possess a somewhat darker timbre tha ...

singer who was active from the period of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

through the early 1940s. After

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

assigned the role of the Empress in his ''

Die Frau ohne Schatten ' (''The Woman without a Shadow''), Op. 65, is an opera in three acts by Richard Strauss with a libretto by his long-time collaborator, the poet Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It was written between 1911 and either 1915 or 1917. When it premiered at the V ...

'' to her at the Dresden Opera in 1919, she went on to perform as Verdi's

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 ...

at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

in New York City and

La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...

in Milan, among others. She returned to Dresden often, including to appear in title role of ''

Die ägyptische Helena ''Die ägyptische Helena'' (''The Egyptian Helen''), Op. 75, is an opera in two acts by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It premiered at the Dresden Semperoper on 6 June 1928. Strauss had written the title role with ...

'' in the world premiere.

Life and career

Early years

Lisbeth Sättler was born in Schwarzenberg. Her father was a teacher, and supplied her first musical education. She studied piano and voice at the Dresden Royal Conservatory from age 16 with Otto Watrin. She made her operatic debut in Dresden opposite

Richard Tauber Richard Tauber (16 May 1891, Linz – 8 January 1948, London) was an Austrian lyric tenor and film actor. He performed the tenor role in numerous operas, including ''Don Giovanni'' by Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte. Early life Richard Tauber was b ...

on 16 June 1915, as Arsena in the

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

'' Der Zigeunerbaron'' by Johann Strauss. In 1916 she performed leading roles such as the Countess Mozart's '' Figaro'', Eva in Wagner's ''

Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (; "The Master-Singers of Nuremberg"), WWV 96, is a music drama, or opera, in three acts, by Richard Wagner. It is the longest opera commonly performed, taking nearly four and a half hours, not counting two breaks between acts, and is traditio ...

''. In 1919,

entrusted her to perform the role of the Empress in his ''

'', she was so successful that he wanted to engage her at the

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is a historic opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by ...

. She was then recognised internationally, and appeared at major operas houses in Europe.

Metropolitan Opera

Rethberg sang with the Dresden Opera until 1922, when she made her debut at the

(Met) as Verdi's

. She moved to the US and remained with the Metropolitan Opera for 20 seasons, singing 30 roles. She studied further with

Estelle Liebling Estelle Liebling (April 21, 1880 – September 25, 1970) was an American soprano, composer, arranger, music editor, and celebrated voice teacher and vocal coach. Born into the Liebling family of musicians, she began her professional opera career ...

in New York City. Her four Met opening nights (Wagner's ''

Die Walküre (; ''The Valkyrie''), Wagner-Werk-Verzeichnis, WWV 86B, is the second of the four epic poetry, epic music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's Literary cycle, cycle ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was ...

'', Mozarts ''Figaro'' and two times ''Aida'') tie her with Licia Albanese as the soprano awarded the most Met opening nights. She also was engaged by London's

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

, where she sang in 1925 and from 1934–1939.

Other international performances

She appeared 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 Austria, to audiences at

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, where she performed again as Aida, conducted by Toscanini, and elsewhere in Europe. Erich Salomon Elisabeth Rethberg Richard Strauss 1928

Rethberg often returned to Dresden. In 1928, she created the title role in Strauss's ''

'', conducted by

Fritz Busch Fritz Busch (13 March 1890 – 14 September 1951) was a German conductor. Busch was born in Siegen to a musical family and studied at the Cologne Conservatory. After army service in the First World War, he was appointed to senior posts in two G ...

. She retired from the stage in 1942.

Personal life

Rethberg was first married to Ernst Albert Dormann. In 1956, she married the Russian-born Met

comprimario A comprimario is a small supporting role in an opera (or a singer who sings those roles). The word is derived from the Italian language, Italian "''con primario''", or "with the primary", meaning that the ''comprimario'' role (or singer) is not a p ...

singer George Cehanovsky. Rethberg died in Yorktown Heights at age 81

Recordings

Elisabeth Rethberg 1924 Brunswick Sleeve

Rethberg made recordings of arias and ensemble pieces in Germany and the United States between 1921 and the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Many of these are available on LP and CD transfers.* Rethberg, Elisabeth
cantabile-subito.de The most notable records of her art include live Metropolitan Opera recordings of her role in the complete operas, including ''Marriage of Figaro'', Verdi's ''

Simon Boccanegra ''Simon Boccanegra'' () is an opera with a prologue and three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, based on the play ''Simón Bocanegra'' (1843) by Antonio García Gutiérrez, whose play ''El trovador'' had bee ...

'' and ''

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 ...

'', and Wagner's ''

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 ...

''. Concerning her

lieder In the Western classical music tradition, ( , ; , ; ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German and Dutch, but among English and French speakers, is often used interchangea ...

discography, she was included in the 1930s Hugo Wolf Society recording project (e.g. "Müh'voll komm' ich und beladen"). Rethberg had a distinctive lyrical but focused voice felt to be at once extremely feminine and penetrating. She is heard in live recordings later in her career of ''Lohengrin'' opposite

Lauritz Melchior Lauritz Melchior (20 March 1890 – 18 March 1973) was a Danish-American opera singer. He was the preeminent Wagnerian heldentenor of the 1920s through the 1940s and has come to be considered the quintessence of his voice type. Late in his car ...

, ''Otello'' opposite

Giovanni Martinelli Giovanni Martinelli (22 October 1885 – 2 February 1969) was an Italian operatic spinto tenor. He was associated with the Italian lyric-dramatic repertory, although he performed French operatic roles to great acclaim as well. Martinelli wa ...

and

Lawrence Tibbett Lawrence Mervil Tibbett (November 16, 1896 – July 15, 1960) was an American opera singer and recording artist who also performed as a film actor and radio personality. A baritone with large, deep, and dark-timbred voice. His dynamic range (in ...

, and ''Simon Boccanegra'', again with Martinelli and Tibbett. Only a few measures exist of her Leonora in Verdi's '' Il trovatore'' opposite Martinelli and

Richard Bonelli Richard Bonelli (born George Richard Bunn; 6 February 1889 – 7 June 1980) was an American operatic baritone active from 1915 to the late 1970s. Although he sang predominantly on stage in both light and grand operas, he also performed at vario ...

. While no full recordings exist of her most famous role, Aida, she recorded many extracts from it in the studio. A combination of live performances and studio recordings remain of her rendition of Amelia from Verdi's '' Un Ballo in Maschera'', that possibly best illustrate the combined lyric and dramatic potential of her voice.

References

External links

*
Elisabeth Rethberg
(recordings) adp.library.ucsb.edu {{DEFAULTSORT:Retheberg, Elisabeth 1894 births 1976 deaths German operatic sopranos Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber alumni 20th-century German women opera singers