Soprano Elisabeth Söderström Dies at 82
The versatile and internationally renowned Swedish singer Elisabeth Söderström died on November 20. She was a fitting successor to her country’s long line of opera stars that includes Jenny Lind, Nicolai Gedda, and Birgit Nilsson. Söderström’s interpretations brought serious theater to the opera stage, and she was best known for roles that required a great deal more than mere beautiful singing.
In her 1979 memoirs, she recalled a performance of Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier in which she sang the trouser role of Octavian opposite the Marschallin of Birgit Nilsson. In an orchestral moment, Nilsson whispered, “Don’t get me pregnant!”
Söderström was director of the Drottningholm Opera from 1991 to 1997, retiring on the 50th anniversary of her debut there. She is survived by her husband and three sons.
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/music-obituaries/6629452/Elisabeth-Soderstrom.html
Scottish Widow Wills Millions to Met
Mona Webster, who fell in love with the Metropolitan Opera’s Saturday matinée radio broadcasts, had promised the company a major bequest in her will, according to the New York Times. When she died in August of 2009, she proved true to her word. She bequeathed approximately $7.5 million to the Met and a similar amount to the United Kingdom’s Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. She gave smaller amounts to the British Royal Opera and to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
The daughter of a lighthouse keeper on the Isle of Man, Webster enjoyed the opera broadcasts so much that she eventually made trips to New York for performances. She described opening night of the 2000 Met season as the most wonderful evening of her life.
www.nytimes.com/2009/11/11/arts/music/11opera.html?_r-1&th&emc=th_
Musicians Now Audition for Symphony Jobs Online
Instrumentalists wishing to apply for positions with the Southbank Sinfonia, Britain’s best known ensemble for emerging professionals, can now audition online from their home countries, thus saving the cost of travel to the United Kingdom. This feat is made possible by TelePresence video technology from Cisco Systems which gives the viewers a life-sized high-definition picture of the proceedings. The Sinfonia chose their players from over 300 applicants.
Phil Smith, vice president and chief executive of Cisco for the UK and Ireland, says his company is thrilled to continue working with the orchestra and allowing it to overcome barriers of time, distance, and cost. If an orchestra in the UK is using this technology, can opera companies in the U.S. and Europe be far behind?
newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2009/prod_111809.html
Washington National Opera Cuts Jobs
Washington D.C.’s opera company will be cutting back on both salaried positions and productions for the 2010-2011 season, according to the Washington Post. Financial straits have caused the company to make far fewer expenditures in the near future. Last season they presented seven operas; this season they are giving six, and next season they plan on presenting five operas.
Because of a downturn in donations, Executive Director Mark Weinstein will now put all his energy into fundraising and strategic financial planning. Eight full-time positions have been eliminated. For the remaining staff members, salaries have been frozen and there is a schedule of furloughs. Executive Committee Treasurer Harry L. Gutman thinks that these adjustments will reduce the company’s budget from its current $32 million to $26.5 million.
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/30/AR2009113004073.html
weblogs.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/classicalmusic/2009/11/cutbacks_reshuffling_expected.html
