Ludwig Schnorr von Carolsfeld (2 July 183621 July 1865) was a German

Heldentenor A heldentenor (; English: ''heroic tenor''), earlier called tenorbariton, is an operatic tenor voice, most often associated with Wagnerian repertoire. It is distinct from other tenor ''fächer'' by its endurance, volume, and dark timbre, which ...

. He is best known creating the role of

Tristan Tristan (Latin/ Brythonic: ''Drustanus''; cy, Trystan), also known as Tristram or Tristain and similar names, is the hero of the legend of Tristan and Iseult. In the legend, he is tasked with escorting the Irish princess Iseult to wed ...

in Wagner's opera ''

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 ...

'' at its 1865 premiere at the Bavarian court opera in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. His career was curtailed by a serious illness which killed him at the age of 29, after only four performances in the role of Tristan.

Biography

Ludwig Schnorr von Carolsfeld was born in

, a son of the famous painter

Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (26 March 1794 – 24 May 1872) () was a German painter, chiefly of Biblical subjects. As a young man he associated with the painters of the Nazarene movement who revived the florid Renaissance style in religious ar ...

, and nephew of artist

Ludwig Ferdinand Schnorr von Carolsfeld Ludwig Ferdinand Schnorr von Carolsfeld (11 October 1788 – 13 April 1853) was a German Romantic painter, engraver and lithographer. Schnorr von Carolsfeld was born in Königsberg, the son and pupil of the artist Veit Hanns Schnorr von Carolsf ...

. Later, he became a pupil of

Kreuzschule The ''Kreuzschule'' (German for "School of the Cross") in Dresden (also known by its Latin name, ''schola crucis'') is the oldest surviving school in Dresden and one of the oldest in Germany. As early as 1300, a schoolmaster (''Cunradus puerorum re ...

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

, home of the Dresdner Kreuzchor (choir). This may have influenced his decision not to follow the family tradition of becoming a professional painter but to study singing instead, and he took voice lessons at the

Leipzig Conservatory The University of Music and Theatre "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy" Leipzig) is a public university in Leipzig (Saxony, Germany). Founded in 1843 by Felix Mendelssohn ...

. He made his début in 1858 at

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

. By 1860, he had also sung at the

Semperoper The Semperoper () is the opera house of the Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden (Saxon State Opera) and the concert hall of the Staatskapelle Dresden (Saxon State Orchestra). It is also home to the Semperoper Ballett. The building is located on the ...

in Dresden and the

Bavarian State Opera The Bayerische Staatsoper is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bayerische Staatsorchester. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under Ele ...

in Munich, appearing in Bellini's ''

Norma Norma may refer to: * Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Astronomy *Norma (constellation) * 555 Norma, a minor asteroid *Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral arm in the Milky Way galaxy Geography *Norma, Lazi ...

'' and Weber's ''

Der Freischütz ' ( J. 277, Op. 77 ''The Marksman'' or ''The Freeshooter'') is a German opera with spoken dialogue in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind, based on a story by Johann August Apel and Friedrich Laun from their 181 ...

''. He soon gained fame as an intelligent and dedicated singer, with a strong voice especially suited to operatic works 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 ...

and

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

. In 1860, Schnorr married the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

-born

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 ...

Malvina Garrigues Eugénia Malvina Garrigues (later Malvina Schnorr von Carolsfeld; 7 December 18258 February 1904), was a Danish-born Portuguese operatic soprano. Early life and education Eugénia Malvina Garrigues was born a Portuguese citizen in Copenhagen ...

, who was ten years his senior and who reduced her own appearances on stage in order to support her husband's more promising career. King

Ludwig II of Bavaria Ludwig II (Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm; 25 August 1845 – 13 June 1886) was King of Bavaria from 1864 until his death in 1886. He is sometimes called the Swan King or ('the Fairy Tale King'). He also held the titles of Count Palatine of the ...

heard the tenor as

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 ...

in 1861. This performance is said to have been one of a series that turned the king into an ardent supporter of Wagner and his music. In 1862, Schnorr and his wife met Wagner himself in Biebrich near

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

; Wagner asked them to sing passages from his new opera, ''

'', while he accompanied them at the piano. Apparently, the composer was impressed by the results. An attempt to stage the yet-to-be-performed opera in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

failed after over 70 rehearsals, not least because the resident tenor was unable to master the taxing role of Tristan. It was at Wagner's own request that Schnorr von Carolsfeld and his wife were then cast as Tristan and Isolde, King Ludwig having sponsored a renewed attempt to mount the opera. The premiere finally took place in Munich on 10 June 1865 but the work received mixed reviews, with some critics even calling it "indecent". It was given again on 13 and 19 June, and by royal command on 1 July. On 9 July Schnorr sang in ''

The Flying Dutchman The ''Flying Dutchman'' ( nl, De Vliegende Hollander) is a legendary ghost ship, allegedly never able to make port, but doomed to sail the seven seas forever. The myth is likely to have originated from the 17th-century Golden Age of the Dut ...

''.WAGNER: Munich, 1864-1865, ''Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians'', 5th ed. (1954), Vol. IX. p. 10 This proved to be his final Wagnerian performance, as he died suddenly in Dresden on 21 July, just 19 days after his 29th birthday. His mysterious and early death made him a legend, and it was often attributed by medical laymen to the enormous exertions required of a Wagnerian

. In reality, however, a chill followed by rheumatic complications had caused an apoplexic event to which the overweight tenor succumbed. Following her husband's death, Malvina retired from the stage.

Notes, references and sources

; References ; Sources * David Ewen, ''Encyclopedia of the Opera''.

External links

www.mild-und-leise.de: Biography of Malvine Schnorr von Carolsfeld
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Ludwig 1836 births 1865 deaths German operatic tenors Heldentenors Richard Wagner German untitled nobility Musicians from Munich Infectious disease deaths in Germany Deaths from meningitis People educated at the Kreuzschule 19th-century composers 19th-century German male opera singers