Julia Culp
Encyclopedia
Julia Bertha Culp the "Dutch nightingale", was an internationally celebrated mezzo-soprano
in the years 1901–1919.
Culp was born in Groningen, the Netherlands
into a Jewish family of musicians and comedians. She was the daughter of contrabass
player Baruch Culp and his wife Sara Cohen. At the age of seven she began to practice the violin
, and at 11 had her first public violin performance. Her first performance as a singer was on 30 December 1893. In the summer of 1896, she left Groningen for Amsterdam
, where she studied at the Conservatory under renowned former opera singer Cornélie van Zanten
.
Soon after completing her studies in 1900, Culp's singing career took flight. She was discovered by German-American conductor Wilhelm Berger, who took her to Berlin
to perform at the concert hall Saal Bechstein in 1901. Before long, she was performing all over Europe and America, sharing the stage with such notable composers, conductors and singers as Edward Grieg, Richard Strauss
, Camille Saint-Saëns
, Enrico Caruso, Otto Klemperer
, Willem Mengelberg
, Pablo Casals
, Percy Grainger
, Enrique Granados
and Thomas Beecham
.
As early as 1902 she performed for Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
and in 1903 she was invited to sing at the German imperial court for Empress Augusta Viktoria
. In 1913, Culp made her American debut at Carnegie Hall
in New York
. In the U.S., she soon became known as the "Dutch nightingale".
Julia Culp made some 90 recordings between 1906 and 1924. In the U.S.
, she made 41 recordings for the label Victor in the years 1914–1917 and in 1924.
She married Erich Merten on 29 June 1905 and settled in Zehlendorff near Berlin
. However, the marriage was unsuccessful and they divorced in 1918. In the meantime, she had met a Czech industrialist, Wilhelm Ginzkey, and they married on 23 July 1919. At that time, she converted from Judaism
to Catholicism
, ended her singing career and moved to Vienna
. Julia remained married to Ginzkey until his death in 1934.
In the meantime, the Nazis had come to power in Germany
. After the German annexation (Anschluss
) of Austria
in 1938, Culp fled to the Netherlands
, moving in with her sister Betsy in Amsterdam
. When the Nazis invaded and occupied The Netherlands in 1940, Culp once again found herself in grave danger. Both she and her sister went into hiding and managed to survive the war. They returned to their flat in the Wolkenkrabber (skyscraper
) building on the Daniël Willinkplein (Victorieplein) in Amsterdam, where she remained until her death at age 90.
In 2000, Michael Oliver
wrote in the International Opera Collector: "You might describe Julia Culp as a connoisseur’s singer. Her voice was not large, her compass not wide. She never sang in opera; striking dramatic gesture were not her line. What she excelled in were the singer’s rather than the vocal actress’s virtues: sustained legato line, remarkable breath control, subtle colour, immaculate care for words…. But ‘connoisseur’s singer’ does not mean that only connoisseurs can appreciate her; one becomes a connoisseur by listening to her."
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
in the years 1901–1919.
Culp was born in Groningen, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
into a Jewish family of musicians and comedians. She was the daughter of contrabass
Contrabass
Contrabass refers to a musical instrument of very low pitch; generally those pitched one octave below instruments of the bass register...
player Baruch Culp and his wife Sara Cohen. At the age of seven she began to practice the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, and at 11 had her first public violin performance. Her first performance as a singer was on 30 December 1893. In the summer of 1896, she left Groningen for Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, where she studied at the Conservatory under renowned former opera singer Cornélie van Zanten
Cornélie van Zanten
Wijntje Cornelia van Zanten was a Dutch opera singer, singing teacher and author.Van Zanten, who sang both mezzosoprano and alto, also wrote her name as Cornélie or Cornelie and was known among friends as Corry or Kee.She studied at the conservatory of Cologne, among others, and then continued...
.
Soon after completing her studies in 1900, Culp's singing career took flight. She was discovered by German-American conductor Wilhelm Berger, who took her to Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
to perform at the concert hall Saal Bechstein in 1901. Before long, she was performing all over Europe and America, sharing the stage with such notable composers, conductors and singers as Edward Grieg, 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...
, Camille Saint-Saëns
Camille Saint-Saëns
Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
, Enrico Caruso, Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the leading conductors of the 20th century.-Biography:Otto Klemperer was born in Breslau, Silesia Province, then in Germany...
, Willem Mengelberg
Willem Mengelberg
Joseph Willem Mengelberg was a Dutch conductor, famous for his performances of Mahler and Strauss with the Concertgebouw Orchestra.- Biography :...
, Pablo Casals
Pablo Casals
Pau Casals i Defilló , known during his professional career as Pablo Casals, was a Spanish Catalan cellist and conductor. He is generally regarded as the pre-eminent cellist of the first half of the 20th century, and one of the greatest cellists of all time...
, Percy Grainger
Percy Grainger
George Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...
, Enrique Granados
Enrique Granados
Enrique Granados y Campiña was a Spanish pianist and composer of classical music. His music is in a uniquely Spanish style and, as such, representative of musical nationalism...
and Thomas Beecham
Thomas Beecham
Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet CH was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic orchestras. He was also closely associated with the Liverpool Philharmonic and Hallé orchestras...
.
As early as 1902 she performed for Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Wilhelmina was Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1890 to 1948. She ruled the Netherlands for fifty-eight years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw World War I and World War II, the economic crisis of 1933, and the decline of the Netherlands as a major colonial...
and in 1903 she was invited to sing at the German imperial court for Empress Augusta Viktoria
Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein
Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein was the last German Empress and Queen of Prussia. Her full German name was Auguste Victoria Friederike Luise Feodora Jenny von Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg.She was the eldest daughter of Frederick VIII, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein and Princess...
. In 1913, Culp made her American debut at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. In the U.S., she soon became known as the "Dutch nightingale".
Julia Culp made some 90 recordings between 1906 and 1924. In the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, she made 41 recordings for the label Victor in the years 1914–1917 and in 1924.
She married Erich Merten on 29 June 1905 and settled in Zehlendorff near Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. However, the marriage was unsuccessful and they divorced in 1918. In the meantime, she had met a Czech industrialist, Wilhelm Ginzkey, and they married on 23 July 1919. At that time, she converted from Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
to Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
, ended her singing career and moved to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Julia remained married to Ginzkey until his death in 1934.
In the meantime, the Nazis had come to power in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. After the German annexation (Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
) of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
in 1938, Culp fled to the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, moving in with her sister Betsy in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. When the Nazis invaded and occupied The Netherlands in 1940, Culp once again found herself in grave danger. Both she and her sister went into hiding and managed to survive the war. They returned to their flat in the Wolkenkrabber (skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
) building on the Daniël Willinkplein (Victorieplein) in Amsterdam, where she remained until her death at age 90.
In 2000, Michael Oliver
Michael Oliver (writer, broadcaster)
Michael Oliver was a BBC broadcaster, writer and journalist on classical music. He presented BBC Radio 3's Music Weekly programme , and also was a presenter of BBC Radio 4's Kaleidoscope...
wrote in the International Opera Collector: "You might describe Julia Culp as a connoisseur’s singer. Her voice was not large, her compass not wide. She never sang in opera; striking dramatic gesture were not her line. What she excelled in were the singer’s rather than the vocal actress’s virtues: sustained legato line, remarkable breath control, subtle colour, immaculate care for words…. But ‘connoisseur’s singer’ does not mean that only connoisseurs can appreciate her; one becomes a connoisseur by listening to her."
Sources
- Biography of Julia Culp at DutchDivas.net, featuring discography and sound clips
- Biography Julia Culp at the website of Amsterdam's Jewish Historical Museum
- Biography of Julia Culp at joods-leven.net