Kathryn Meisle (October 14, 1899—January 17, 1970) was an American operatic

contralto A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type. The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically b ...

. Kathryn Meisle was born in Philadelphia.''Press Matter for Kathryn Meisle'', Calvin Franklin and Wolfsohn Musical Bureau, New York, efore 1935 Her grandfather, Matthew Müssle, originally from

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos (river), Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the ...

, Germany, settled in Philadelphia in 1848. After naturalization in 1856 he changed his surname to Meisle. As a child, her father urged her to take piano lessons, sometimes taking multiple lessons a week. When she was fifteen, she was heard by a choir director who offered her a position. Thereafter she commenced vocal study. One of her vocal teachers was

Enrica Clay Dillon Enrica Clay Dillon (June 22, 1885 – October 9, 1946) was an American opera singer, opera director, and voice teacher. Life and career Born in 1885 in Denver, Colorado,''Social Security Applications and Claims Index'', 1936-2007. Date: Oct 194 ...

. In 1917 she married Calvin M. Franklin (born 1887), an agent who became her manager. She made her professional debut as a soloist with the

Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall. History Em ...

conducted by Emil Oberhoffer in 1918. She made her operatic debut as Erda in the opera ''

Siegfried Siegfried is a German-language male given name, composed from the Germanic elements ''sig'' "victory" and ''frithu'' "protection, peace". The German name has the Old Norse cognate ''Sigfriðr, Sigfrøðr'', which gives rise to Swedish ''Sigfrid' ...

'' by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

on November 18, 1923, at the

Chicago Civic Opera The Civic Opera Company (1922–1931) was a Chicago company that produced seven seasons of grand opera in the Auditorium Theatre from 1922 to 1928, and three seasons at its own Civic Opera House from 1929 to 1931 before falling victim to financia ...

. Among the radio shows on which Meisle appeared was the Atwater Kent Radio Hour, which was heard Sunday nights. Meisle earliest appearances on the show appear to date from 1927. Meisle sang at the inauguration of

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

in 1937."Kathryn Meisle, 75, Sang With Met," ''New York Times'' (Jan. 19, 1970), p. 47. Meisle made her

San Francisco Opera San Francisco Opera (SFO) is an American opera company founded in 1923 by Gaetano Merola (1881–1953) based in San Francisco, California. History Gaetano Merola (1923–1953) Merola's road to prominence in the Bay Area began in 1906 when he ...

debut as Amneris in ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 December ...

'' on October 1, 1926. She sang with the company in the years 1926-1927, 1929, 1932-1933, 1935-36, performing the roles of Azucena in ''

Il trovatore ''Il trovatore'' ('The Troubadour') is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto largely written by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play ''El trovador'' (1836) by Antonio García Gutiérrez. It was García Gutiérrez's mos ...

'', Brangäne in ''

Tristan und Isolde ''Tristan und Isolde'' (''Tristan and Isolde''), WWV 90, is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the 12th-century romance Tristan and Iseult by Gottfried von Strassburg. It was compose ...

'', The Witch in '' Hansel und Gretel'', Ortrud in ''

Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in Germany, German Arthurian literature. The son of Percival, Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which fi ...

'', Erda in ''

Das Rheingold ''Das Rheingold'' (; ''The Rhinegold''), WWV 86A, is the first of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was performed, as a single opera, at the National ...

'' and ''

'', Fricka in ''

Die Walküre (; ''The Valkyrie''), WWV 86B, is the second of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was performed, as a single opera, at the National Theatre Munich on ...

'' and Waltraute in ''

Götterdämmerung ' (; ''Twilight of the Gods''), WWV 86D, is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four music dramas titled (''The Ring of the Nibelung'', or ''The Ring Cycle'' or ''The Ring'' for short). It received its premiere at the on 17 August 1876, as p ...

''. In 1927 she sang with the Los Angeles Grand Opera, appearing as Amneris as well as Giovanna in ''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play ''Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had cont ...

'' and Suzuki in ''

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...

''. Amneris was again her debut role on June 25, 1929, for the

Cologne Opera The Cologne Opera (German: Oper der Stadt Köln or Oper Köln) refers both to the main opera house in Cologne, Germany and to its resident opera company. History of the company From the mid 18th century, opera was performed in the city's court th ...

. She made her

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

debut as Amneris in Aida on February 28, 1935. Her Met career was brief, with a total of eleven performances from 1935 to 1938 in the roles of Azucena, Fricka, Erda and Waltraute. Kathryn Meisle

From her earliest years as a professional singer through 1940, Meisle gave numerous recitals across the country. In 1940, her husband Calvin Monroe Franklin was involved in a car accident. He never recovered and died on July 23, 1941, in Philadelphia. At the time of his death he was secretary of Columbia Concerts Corporation and vice-president of the

Arthur Judson Arthur Leon Judson (February 17, 1881 – January 28, 1975) was an artists' manager who also managed the New York Philharmonic and Philadelphia Orchestra and was also the founder of CBS. He co-founded the Handel Society of New York with entreprene ...

concerts service. Meisle appeared in the 1946 Decca recording of Jerome Kern's

Roberta ''Roberta'' is a musical from 1933 with music by Jerome Kern, and lyrics and book by Otto Harbach. The musical is based on the novel ''Gowns by Roberta'' by Alice Duer Miller. It features the songs " Yesterdays", "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", "Let ...

. Her

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

obituary stated that she had taught voice "in recent years." Meisle died in New York City on January 17, 1970. She was survived by her brother Layton Meisle (1904-1989)."Meisle Family Tree," ''Ancestry.com'' (access by subscription).
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References

External links

Kathryn Meisle scrapbooks
in the Music Division of the

New York Public Library for the Performing Arts The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, is located in Manhattan, New York City, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side, between the Metro ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meisle, Kathryn 1899 births 1970 deaths American operatic contraltos Singers from Philadelphia 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers Classical musicians from Pennsylvania