''Julie'' Mathilda Berwald (14 October 1822 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 ...

– 1 January 1877) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

concert A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variety a ...

and opera singer. Julie Berwald was born to the concert singer

Mathilda Berwald Mathilda Charlotta Berwald, née ''Cohen (surname), Cohn'' (9 March 1798 in Helsinki in Finland – 3 May 1877 in Stockholm),svar.ra.seHedvig Eleonora döda/ref> was a Finnish and Swedish people, Swedish concert singer. She was later appointed offi ...

and the musician

Johan Fredrik Berwald Johan Fredrik Berwald (4 December 1787 – 26 August 1861) was a Swedish violinist, conductor and composer. He was a cousin of Franz Berwald and August Berwald. Biography Berwald appeared as an infant prodigy on violin as early as age six, tourin ...

. She and her sisters Fredrique and

Hedvig Eleonora Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein-Gottorp (23 October 1636 – 24 November 1715) was Queen of Sweden from 1654 until 1660 as the wife of King Charles X Gustav. She served as regent during the minority of her son, King Charles XI, from 1660 until 1672, ...

were trained as singers by their mother, and performed with her at their fathers public concerts. They toured as concert singers in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

(1842),

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(1844) and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

(1847). The three siblings were a popular singing trio. Between 1847 and 1852, she was engaged as an opera singer at the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera ( sv, Kungliga Operan) is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the center of Sweden's capital Stockholm in the borough of Norrmalm, on the eastern side ...

in Stockholm; from 1848 contracted as a 'Premier Actress'. During her years at the Opera, she became one of the greatest stars of the Swedish opera. In 1851, she also performed in Copenhagen to great acclaim. Nils Arfwidsson said about her: :"... daughter of the royal orchestra conductor by the same name and fostered within the theatre, she gained fame as a society singer already as quite young. In the late 1840s she decided to perform on stage, where she became the most noted person displayed on the operatic stage after

Lind Lind is a surname of both Swedish and Estonian origin. In Swedish, it is the word for the linden tree. In Estonian, it is the word for bird. Geographical distribution As of 2014, 36.1% of all known bearers of the surname ''Lind'' were residents ...

and prior to Michal. Julia Bervald had a beautiful figure, a well shaped though somewhat lifeless face, a pleasant manner. Her by nature beautiful soprano had been much trained, and there was much correctness, much grace in her performance although, as with her entire being, something cool and sober. She was not very good, or at least not very spectacular, in glowing tragic parts, but there was also here grace, softness and a certain intensity in her performance. "Nils Arfwidsson,
Teaterbilder från fordom
', 1885 In 1852, she married

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

Georg Gustaf Knut Åkerhielm and retired from the stage. Her marriage met with no resistance from the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...

, indicating a change in attitude towards singers and actresses, who were long looked down upon socially. Julie Berwald was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, as member no. 337 on 16 December 1853.

References

*
Svenskt biografiskt handlexikon
', 1906 Herman Hofberg, *

', 1864 Johan Leonard Höijer * Gustaf Hilleström, Kungl. Musikaliska Akademien, Matrikel 1771-1971 * Sten Broman, Franz Berwalds stamträd, 1968 * Lars Löfgren (2003) Svensk teater {{DEFAULTSORT:Berwald, Julie 1822 births 1877 deaths Singers from Stockholm Swedish Jews Swedish nobility 19th-century Swedish women opera singers Swedish operatic sopranos