Mary Bothwell (November 28, 1900 – mid-1970s) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

classical vocalist and

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

. As a singer she began her career as a

contralto A contralto () is a classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range is the lowest of their voice type, voice types. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare, similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to ...

, but ultimately ended up performing

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 ...

parts in the

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

and concert repertoire.

Early life and education

Bothwell was born in Hickson near

Woodstock, Ontario Woodstock is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The city has a population of 46,705 according to the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Canadian census. Woodstock is the seat of Oxford County, Ontario, Oxford County, at the head of the Thames River, On ...

, the daughter of Alexander Bothwell and Mary Thompson. She studied at the Canadian Academy of Music in Toronto where she was a voice student of Otto MorandoMiloslav Rechcigl Jr..
Encyclopedia of Bohemian and Czech-American Biography
'. AuthorHouse; 10 November 2016. . p. 648–. and a

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

student of Peter C. Kennedy. From 1920 to 1929 she performed as a contralto in opera and

oratorio An oratorio () is a musical composition with dramatic or narrative text for choir, soloists and orchestra or other ensemble. Similar to opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguisha ...

performances in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

and

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. In 1937 she went to Austria to study singing at the

Mozarteum University of Salzburg Mozarteum University Salzburg (German language, German: ''Universität Mozarteum Salzburg'') is one of three affiliated but separate (it is actually a state university) entities under the "Mozarteum" name in Salzburg, Salzburg municipality; th ...

. The following year she moved to New York City, where she was a pupil of

Paul Althouse Paul Shearer Althouse (December 2, 1889 – February 6, 1954) was an American opera singer. He began his career as a lyric tenor with a robust Italianate sound, in roles including Cavaradossi in ''Tosca'', Pinkerton in ''Madama Butterfly'', and T ...

Career

Bothwell made her recital debut in New York City at

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on November 1, 1938, and continued to appear there until the early 1960s. In 1947 she made her first European tour which included performances in

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, the

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, and

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. That same year she was praised at the Scheveningen Festival for her portrayal of the Marschallin in ''

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 Louvet de Couvrai's novel ''Les amours du cheva ...

''.
Musical Leader
'. Vol. 98-99. 1966. p. 100. She was also celebrated for her portrayal of Isolde in ''

Tristan und Isolde ''Tristan und Isolde'' (''Tristan and Isolde''), WWV 90, is a music drama in three acts by Richard Wagner set to a German libretto by the composer, loosely based on the medieval 12th-century romance ''Tristan and Iseult'' by Gottfried von Stras ...

'', a role she notably performed with the

BBC Symphony Orchestra The BBC Symphony Orchestra (BBC SO) is a British orchestra based in London. Founded in 1930, it was the first permanent salaried orchestra in London, and is the only one of the city's five major symphony orchestras not to be self-governing. The ...

under conductor

Adrian Boult Sir Adrian Cedric Boult, CH (; 8 April 1889 – 22 February 1983) was a British conductor. Brought up in a prosperous mercantile family, he followed musical studies in England and at Leipzig, Germany, with early conducting work in London ...

in 1948. She performed on radio in

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, and

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

. Among her recordings for Royale are An Hour of Lieder: * Hugo Wolf Sung by Mary Bothwell (1310) * An Hour of Concert Songs (1318) * Bless This House (1538) * Richard Strauss Album (4069) Bothwell was elected president of the Canadian Women's Club of New York City in 1958. During her term as president she encouraged the careers of young Canadian performers. Bothwell became known also for her paintings of flowers. "Wild Flowers of Switzerland", 36 botanical studies in oil by Mary Bothwell was exhibited for the first time at the Horticultural Society of New York on April 18, 1971.What's New in Art. In the Galleries: Mary Bothwell – The Horticultural Society of New York. ''The New York Times'', March 25, 1973, Sunday. Section: AL, Page 162.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bothwell, Mary 1900 births 1985 deaths Canadian operatic sopranos 20th-century Canadian painters Operatic contraltos 20th-century Canadian women opera singers 20th-century Canadian women painters