Göta Ljungberg
Encyclopedia
Göta Ljungberg was a major Swedish Wagnerian soprano of the 1920s who sang throughout American and Europe and left an important recorded legacy.
She debuted as Gutrune in Wagner's Götterdämmerung
with the Stockholm Opera in 1917. She remained one of the leading singers there until 1926 when began her international career.
She went on to sing at most of the principal opera houses in Europe and America and "was acclaimed not only for her singing, but also for her acting and dramatic intensity"
At the Berlin State Opera she often appeared in Wagner but also as Tosca
, Santuzza (Cavalleria rusticana
) and Elektra
, as well as in musicals.
Her Royal Opera House
London debut was in 1924 as Sieglinde (Der Ring des Nibelungen
) under Bruno Walter
. She later appeared there as Salome
, Kundry (Parsifal
), Tosca and Elisabeth (Tannhäuser
).
She sang at the Metropolitan Opera
from 1932 to1935 as Isolde (Tristan und Isolde
) and Brünnhilde as well as Salome.
Voice problems eventually caused retirement but as late as 1938 she gave a set of songs with orchestra in concert in Copenhagen
: Salome
, cond. Coates. She has a "large range of vocal colour... this long lament, so beautifully sung here by Mme. Ljungberg."
late 1920s: Richard Wagner
: Ring
excerpts, conducted by Albert Coates
and Leo Blech
. "The sexy, passionate Ljungberg"
1926: Wagner: Die Walküre
. "The best of the vocal records [of that month] appears to be that of the Love Duet.. sung by Gota Ljungberg and Walter Widdop, at whose hands the amorous frenzy of the climax is given full value"
1929: Richard Strauss
: Salome (Finale). Cond. Blech. "The performance is all that we should expect from such performers"
1931: Wagner: Tristan und Isolde
act III, with Walter Widdop, cond. Blech: One critic claimed that "[her] voice is a fine one but [she] sings here not quite so well as in some of her other recorded roles". Hermann Klein for the Gramophone is more enthusiastic: "neither in the important matter of style nor for beauty of voice or purity and breadth of declamation could [her colleagues in the recording] be compared with an IsoIde like Göta Ljungberg"
1933: Giacomo Puccini
: Tosca
arias with Joseph Schmidt. "Neither singer seems to have reached an adequate understanding of the dramatic significance of the duet"
Biography
Born in Sundsvall, she studied at the Stockholm Opera School with the physician and vocal coach Gillis Bratt. She undertook further studies with Mme Charles Cahier in Stockholm and also in Milan and Berlin.She debuted as Gutrune in Wagner's Götterdämmerung
Götterdämmerung
is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four operas titled Der Ring des Nibelungen...
with the Stockholm Opera in 1917. She remained one of the leading singers there until 1926 when began her international career.
She went on to sing at most of the principal opera houses in Europe and America and "was acclaimed not only for her singing, but also for her acting and dramatic intensity"
At the Berlin State Opera she often appeared in Wagner but also as Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
, Santuzza (Cavalleria rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from a play written by Giovanni Verga based on his short story. Considered one of the classic verismo operas, it premiered on May 17, 1890 at the Teatro...
) and Elektra
Elektra (opera)
Elektra is a one-act opera by Richard Strauss, to a German-language libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, which he adapted from his 1903 drama Elektra. The opera was the first of many collaborations between Strauss and Hofmannsthal...
, as well as in musicals.
Her Royal Opera House
Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
London debut was in 1924 as Sieglinde (Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
) under Bruno Walter
Bruno Walter
Bruno Walter was a German-born conductor. He is considered one of the best known conductors of the 20th century. Walter was born in Berlin, but is known to have lived in several countries between 1933 and 1939, before finally settling in the United States in 1939...
. She later appeared there as Salome
Salome (opera)
Salome is an opera in one act by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by the composer, based on Hedwig Lachmann’s German translation of the French play Salomé by Oscar Wilde. Strauss dedicated the opera to his friend Sir Edgar Speyer....
, Kundry (Parsifal
Parsifal
Parsifal is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner. It is loosely based on Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, the 13th century epic poem of the Arthurian knight Parzival and his quest for the Holy Grail, and on Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval, the Story of the Grail.Wagner first conceived the work...
), Tosca and Elisabeth (Tannhäuser
Tannhäuser (opera)
Tannhäuser is an opera in three acts, music and text by Richard Wagner, based on the two German legends of Tannhäuser and the song contest at Wartburg...
).
She sang at the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
from 1932 to1935 as Isolde (Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
) and Brünnhilde as well as Salome.
Voice problems eventually caused retirement but as late as 1938 she gave a set of songs with orchestra in concert in Copenhagen
Recorded Legacy with critiques
1924: Richard StraussRichard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
: Salome
Salome (opera)
Salome is an opera in one act by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by the composer, based on Hedwig Lachmann’s German translation of the French play Salomé by Oscar Wilde. Strauss dedicated the opera to his friend Sir Edgar Speyer....
, cond. Coates. She has a "large range of vocal colour... this long lament, so beautifully sung here by Mme. Ljungberg."
late 1920s: Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
: Ring
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
excerpts, conducted by Albert Coates
Albert Coates (musician)
Albert Coates was an English conductor and composer. Born in Saint Petersburg where his English father was a successful businessman, he studied in Russia, England and Germany, before beginning his career as a conductor in a series of German opera houses...
and Leo Blech
Leo Blech
Leo Blech was a German opera composer and conductor who is perhaps most famous for his work at the Königliches Schauspielhaus Leo Blech (21 April 1871 – 25 August 1958) was a German opera composer and conductor who is perhaps most famous for his work at the Königliches Schauspielhaus Leo...
. "The sexy, passionate Ljungberg"
1926: Wagner: Die Walküre
Die Walküre
Die Walküre , WWV 86B, is the second of the four operas that form the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen , by Richard Wagner...
. "The best of the vocal records [of that month] appears to be that of the Love Duet.. sung by Gota Ljungberg and Walter Widdop, at whose hands the amorous frenzy of the climax is given full value"
1929: Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
: Salome (Finale). Cond. Blech. "The performance is all that we should expect from such performers"
1931: Wagner: Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
act III, with Walter Widdop, cond. Blech: One critic claimed that "[her] voice is a fine one but [she] sings here not quite so well as in some of her other recorded roles". Hermann Klein for the Gramophone is more enthusiastic: "neither in the important matter of style nor for beauty of voice or purity and breadth of declamation could [her colleagues in the recording] be compared with an IsoIde like Göta Ljungberg"
1933: Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
: Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
arias with Joseph Schmidt. "Neither singer seems to have reached an adequate understanding of the dramatic significance of the duet"