Kari Frisell (20 August 1922 – 3 June 2022) was a Norwegian

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.

Musical career

Frisell studied under in

Oslo 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 ...

, and further in Vienna and New York. She made her concert debut in Oslo in 1946. In 1946 she also performed as Michaela in

Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', which has become on ...

's opera ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

'', staged in

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

. She also starred in the 1946 film ''

Vi vil leve ''Vi vil leve'' (We Want to Live) is a Norwegian film from 1946 directed by Olav Dalgard and Rolf Randall. The film deals with the German occupation of Norway. The film studies professor Gunnar Iversen characterizes it as "an uneven and choppy fil ...

''. She was assigned with the

Norwegian National Opera The Norwegian National Opera and Ballet ( no, Den Norske Opera & Ballett, links=no) is a Norwegian opera company and ballet company. The first fully professional company each for opera and ballet in Norway and the only such professional organisati ...

from its inaugural year in 1958 to 1971. As song pedagogue Frisell was assigned with the

Oslo Conservatory of Music 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 i ...

from 1970, and with the

Norwegian Academy of Music The Norwegian Academy of Music (Norwegian: ''Norges musikkhøgskole'', NMH) is a university-level music conservatory located in Oslo, Norway, in the neighbourhood of Majorstuen, Frogner. It is the largest music academy in Norway and offers the co ...

from 1973 to 1988. She was awarded the

Norwegian Music Critics Award The Norwegian Music Critics Award (''Den norske Musikkritikerprisen'' or ''Kritikerprisen'') is awarded by the Norwegian Critics' Association (''Norsk Kritikerlag'') and has been awarded every year since 1947. Norwegian Critics' Association (in Norw ...

for 1963/64.

Personal life and death

Frisell was born in

on 20 August 1922. She was married to painter

Jan Thomas Njerve Jan Thomas Njerve (7 June 1927 – 17 November 2014) was a Norwegian painter. He was born in Eidanger, and was married to opera singer Kari Frisell. He attended the Norwegian National Academy of Fine Arts from 1946 to 1948, and also trained ab ...

. She died in Oslo on 3 June 2022, aged 99.

References

1922 births 2022 deaths People from Oslo Norwegian operatic sopranos Academic staff of the Norwegian Academy of Music {{Norway-singer-stub