Rosa von Milde, also Rosalie von Milde, ''née'' Rosa Agthe (25 June 1827 – 25 January 1906) 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 ...

and

voice teacher A voice teacher or singing teacher is a musical instructor who assists adults and children in the development of their abilities in singing. Typical work A voice teacher works with a student singer to improve the various skills involved in sing ...

. She was a leading singer at the Weimar Court Theatre from 1848 to 1867, which flourished when

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

directed it. She created, among others, the roles of Elsa in 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 ...

'', conducted by

Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...

in 1850, and Margiana in ''

Der Barbier von Bagdad ''Der Barbier von Bagdad'' (''The Barber of Baghdad'') is a comic opera in two acts by Peter Cornelius to a German libretto by the composer, based on ''The Tale of the Tailor'' and ''The Barber’s Stories of his Six Brothers'' in '' One Thousa ...

'' by Peter Cornelius in 1858.

Life

Agthe was born on 25 June 1827 into a music-loving family in

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 ...

. Her father , a

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

ian, gave her piano lessons at a young age. When her singing talent was recognised, she took voice lessons for three years with the

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

Franz Götze (1814–1888). On 9 June 1845, she made her stage debut at the Weimarer Hoftheater (Weimar Court Theatre) as Amina in Bellini's ''

La sonnambula ''La sonnambula'' (; ''The Sleepwalker'') is an opera semiseria in two acts, with music in the ''bel canto'' tradition by Vincenzo Bellini set to an Italian libretto by Felice Romani, based on a scenario for a ''ballet-pantomime'' written by Eu ...

''. She made her official debut as a permanent singer at the Hoftheater in September 1848 in the title role of Louis Spohr's ''

Jessonda ''Jessonda'' is a grand opera (''Große Oper'') by Louis Spohr, written in 1822. The German libretto was written by , based on Antoine-Marin Lemierre's 1770 play ''La veuve du Malabar ou L'Empire des coutumes''. Spohr had been newly appointed Ho ...

''. She had great success with roles in

Richard 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 ...

's stage works. She appeared as Elisabeth in ''

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; ), often stylized "The Tannhäuser", was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and 1265. His name ...

''. On 28 August 1850, she performed as Elsa in ''

'' in the work's world premiere, conducted by

. Her future husband, the baritone Hans Feodor von Milde, performed as Telramund. Liszt commented: The couple married in 1851. They had two children, Franz von Milde and Rudolf von Milde (1859–1927), who also became singers, and an

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

daughter,

Natalie von Milde Natalie may refer to: Places * Natalie, Michigan, an unincorporated community People * Natalie (given name) * Natalie (singer) (born 1979), Mexican-American R&B singer/songwriter * (born 1999), better known as Natalie Zenn, Indonesian actr ...

. The couple often appeared together on stage, for example in 1852 as Teresa and Fieramosca in the first German production of ''Benvenuto Cellini'' by Berlioz, in an arrangement by Liszt. In 1854, Milde participated in the world premieres of both

Heinrich Dorn Heinrich Ludwig Egmont Dorn (14 November 1800 or 1804 – 10 January 1892) was a German conductor, composer, teacher, and journalist. He was born in Königsberg, where he studied piano, singing, and composition. Later, he studied in Berlin with L ...

's ''Die Nibelungen'' and Schubert's ''

Alfonso und Estrella ' (''Alfonso and Estrella''), 732, is an opera with music by Franz Schubert, set to a German libretto by Franz von Schober, written in 1822. Like ''Fierrabras (opera), Fierrabras'' (1823), it marks Schubert's attempt to compose grand Romantische ...

''. She created the role of Margiana in ''

'' by Peter Cornelius in 1858. Cornelius dedicated his composition ''12 Sonette für Rosa von Milde'' to her in 1859. On 21 May 1865, she created the role of Chimene in his ''Der Cid'', while her husband appeared as Ruy Diaz. Rosa-von-Milde

In 1867, Rosa von Milde took her leave from the Weimar stage. The reason was personal differences between her and the new artistic director

Franz von Dingelstedt Franz von Dingelstedt (30 June 1814 – 15 May 1881) was a German poet, dramatist and theatre administrator. Life and career Dingestedt was born at Halsdorf, Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel), Germany, and later studied at the University of Marbur ...

. She then worked as a voice teacher and from 1876 at the Weimarer Musikschule. Rosa von Milde died in Weimar on 25 January 1906 at the age of 78.

Note

References

External links

"Rosa von Milde (1827–1906)"
(image) museum-digital.de
"Teilnachlass von Rosa und Hans Feodor von Milde"

Bavarian State Library The Bavarian State Library (, abbreviated BSB, called ''Bibliotheca Regia Monacensis'' before 1919) in Munich is the central " Landesbibliothek", i. e. the state library of the Free State of Bavaria, the biggest universal and research libra ...

"Rosa von Milde"
findagrave.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Milde, Rosa von German operatic sopranos German voice teachers 1827 births 1906 deaths Musicians from Weimar

Life

Note

References

Further reading

External links