Emilie Mechelin (8 April 1838 — 22 December 1917) was a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

operatic soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female 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 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

and

pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...

, notable among other things for being the first singing teacher of the Helsinki School of Music (later to become

Sibelius Academy The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It als ...

Early life and education

Johanna Sofia Emilie Mechelin was born to an upper-class family in

Hamina Hamina (; sv, Fredrikshamn, , Sweden ) is a List of cities in Finland, town and a Municipalities of Finland, municipality of Finland. It is located approximately east of the country's capital Helsinki, in the Kymenlaakso Regions of Finland, reg ...

, in the

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland ( fi, Suomen suuriruhtinaskunta; sv, Storfurstendömet Finland; russian: Великое княжество Финляндское, , all of which literally translate as Grand Principality of Finland) was the predecessor ...

, as the eldest of five children of ''

Valtioneuvos Valtioneuvos (Finnish for “counsellor of state”, sv, statsråd) is a Finnish title of honor awarded by the President of Finland to elder statesmen. It is one of two titles (the other being vuorineuvos) in the highest class of State of Finland ...

'' ('Councillor of State') Gustaf Johan Mechelin and Amanda Sagulin. One of Emilie's brothers is

Leo Mechelin Leopold (Leo) Henrik Stanislaus Mechelin (24 November 1839 in Hamina, Finland – 26 January 1914 in Helsinki, Finland) was a Finnish politician, professor, liberal reformer and businessman. A leading defender of the autonomy of the Grand Duchy ...

, who later became a notable economist, academic and statesman. Emilie Mechelin trained in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

in 1865-67 and 1869-70 under leading

s of the time, including

Pauline Viardot Pauline Viardot (; 18 July 1821 – 18 May 1910) was a nineteenth-century French mezzo-soprano, pedagogue and composer of Spanish descent. Born Michelle Ferdinande Pauline García, her name appears in various forms. When it is not simply "Pauli ...

. In 1873-74 she was taught in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Signe Hebbe Signe Amanda Georgina Hebbe (30 July 1837 – 14 February, 1925) was a Swedish operatic soprano and instructor. Life Signe Hebbe was born in Värnamo to the journalist Vendela Hebbe and Clemens Hebbe. Education In 1848, at the age of elev ...

. She also studied for a time in Germany.

Career

Although there was no permanent opera house in Finland at the time, Mechelin performed at the

Swedish Theatre The Swedish Theatre ( sv, Svenska Teatern) is a Swedish-language theatre in Helsinki, Finland, and is located at the Erottaja ( sv, Skillnaden) square, at the end of Esplanadi ( sv, Esplanaden). It was the first national stage of Finland. His ...

and the , in at least six productions. She also performed at the

Royal Dramatic Theatre The Royal Dramatic Theatre ( sv, Kungliga Dramatiska Teatern, colloquially ''Dramaten'') is Sweden's national stage for "spoken drama", founded in 1788. Around one thousand shows are put on annually on the theatre's five running stages. The the ...

in Stockholm, as well as touring extensively in Finland and

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

. Mechelin taught singing from early on, with her pupils including the likes of

Emma Engdahl-Jägerskiöld Emma Engdahl-Jägerskiöld ( Madsén; 26 April 1852 — 13 June 1930) was a Swedish-speaking Finnish operatic soprano, and one of the country's first internationally recognised singers, noted especially for her dramatic talents as well as her v ...

Emmy Achté Emmy Charlotta Achté née Strömer (1850–1924) was an operatic mezzo-soprano, the first prima donna of the Finnish Opera. She performed in Helsinki from 1873 to 1879, excelling in dramatic roles. She was also a voice teacher for over 40 years ...

and

Ida Basilier-Magelssen Ida Basilier-Magelssen (1846–1928) was a Finnish soprano, who sang in both concerts and opera performances. After a period with the Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm, she returned to Helsinki where she was particularly active in 1876–77, singin ...

. In 1882, Mechelin was appointed the first teacher of voice at the Helsinki School of Music (''Helsingin Musiikkiopisto''), which post she held until 1885, when she moved to

Kristiania Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

(now Oslo) and later to Stockholm to continue her teaching career. In the latter part of her career, Mechelin gave up singing almost entirely, dedicating herself instead to giving private tuition. She did still occasionally perform at concerts until the age 60, by which time her voice had changed to

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

Early life and education

Career

References

Further reading