Regina Sarfaty (born 1934), later "Regina Sarfaty Rickless" after her marriage to Elwood A. Rickless in 1963, is an American
opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...
tic
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 ...
who had an active career during the 1950s through the 1980s. Sarfaty first rose to prominence through her work at the
Santa Fe Opera
Santa Fe Opera (SFO) is an American opera company, located north of Santa Fe, New Mexico. After creating the ''Opera Association of New Mexico'' in 1956, its founding director, John Crosby (conductor), John Crosby, oversaw the building of the fir ...
and the
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived.
The opera company, du ...
during the late 1950s. She later enjoyed international success in the 1960s and 1970s, and had a particularly lengthy career singing with the
Zurich Opera.
Biography
Born in
Rochester, New York
Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...
, Sarfaty grew up in
Brooklyn, New York
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
. She won a scholarship to
The Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...
where she matriculated in 1952 and studied voice with
Florence Kimball
Florence Page Kimball (April 26, 1888 – November 24, 1977) was an American soprano who became a celebrated voice teacher at the Juilliard School where she taught for 46 years. She taught hundreds of students, and many of her pupils had success ...
. She graduated five years later with a Bachelor of Music. While a student, she began to perform professionally in operas and concerts. In 1956 she created the role of Zinida in the world premiere of
Robert Ward's ''
He Who Gets Slapped
''He Who Gets Slapped'' ( rus, Тот, кто получает пощёчины, links=no) is a play in four acts by Russian dramatist Leonid Andreyev; completed in August 1915 and first produced in that same year at the Moscow Art Theatre on ...
'' at the Juilliard School; a role she would later perform with the New York City Opera in 1959.
Sarfaty's first major success was at the Santa Fe Opera in 1957 as Rosina in ''
The Barber of Seville
''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an ''opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was base ...
''. She gave three other performances with the company during that summer season, Suzuki in
Puccini
Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long lin ...
's ''
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 ...
'', Baba the Turk in ''
The Rake's Progress
''The Rake's Progress'' is an English-language opera from 1951 in three acts and an epilogue by Igor Stravinsky. The libretto, written by W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, is based loosely on the eight paintings and engravings ''A Rake's Progres ...
'', and Tabitha in the world premiere of
Marvin David Levy
Marvin David Levy (August 2, 1932 – February 9, 2015) was an American composer, best known for his opera ''Mourning Becomes Electra''.
''Mourning Becomes Electra'' was given its world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera in 1967. Although deemed ...
's ''
The Tower''. Sarfatay returned regularly to the SFO through 1968, portraying such roles as Clarion in
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...
's ''
Capriccio'', Dorabella in ''
Così fan tutte
(''All Women Do It, or The School for Lovers''), K. 588, is an opera buffa in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It was first performed on 26 January 1790 at the Burgtheater in Vienna, Austria. The libretto was written by Lorenzo Da Ponte w ...
'', Meg Page in ''
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare and is eulogised in a fourth. His significance as a fully developed character is primarily formed in the plays '' Henry IV, Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', w ...
'', Jane Seymour in ''
Anna Bolena
''Anna Bolena'' is a tragic opera (''tragedia lirica'') in two acts composed by Gaetano Donizetti. Felice Romani wrote the Italian libretto after Ippolito Pindemonte's ''Enrico VIII ossia Anna Bolena'' and Alessandro Pepoli's ''Anna Bolena'', both ...
'', Prince Orlofsky in ''
Die Fledermaus
' (, ''The Flittermouse'' or ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874.
Background
The original ...
'', and the title roles in ''
Regina'' and ''
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 ...
'' (conducted by
Robert Craft
Robert Lawson Craft (October 20, 1923 – November 10, 2015) was an American conductor and writer. He is best known for his intimate professional relationship with Igor Stravinsky, on which Craft drew in producing numerous recordings and books.
...
, in 1961), among others. She also sang the role of Nelly in the world premiere of
Carlisle Floyd
Carlisle Sessions Floyd (June 11, 1926September 30, 2021) was an American composer primarily known for his operas. These stage works, for which he wrote the librettos, typically engage with themes from the American South, particularly the Post- ...
's ''
Wuthering Heights
''Wuthering Heights'' is an 1847 novel by Emily Brontë, initially published under her pen name Ellis Bell. It concerns two families of the landed gentry living on the West Yorkshire moorland, moors, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and their tur ...
'' in 1958 (with
Phyllis Curtin
Phyllis Curtin (née Smith; December 3, 1921 – June 5, 2016) was an American soprano and academic teacher who had an active career in operas and concerts from the early 1950s through the 1980s. She is known for her creation of roles in ope ...
) and Agave in the United States premiere of
Hans Werner Henze
Hans Werner Henze (1 July 1926 – 27 October 2012) was a German composer. His large oeuvre of works is extremely varied in style, having been influenced by serialism, atonality, Stravinsky, Italian music, Arabic music and jazz, as well as t ...
's ''
The Bassarids
''The Bassarids'' (in German: ') is an opera in one act and an intermezzo, with music by Hans Werner Henze to an English libretto by W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, after Euripides's ''The Bacchae''.
The conflict in the opera is between human ...
'' in 1968 with the SFO.
In 1958 Sarfaty made her debut with the
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through 2013 (when it filed for bankruptcy), and again since 2016 when it was revived.
The opera company, du ...
as the Widow Zimmerlein in Strauss's ''
Die schweigsame Frau
''Die schweigsame Frau'' (''The Silent Woman''), Op. 80, is a 1935 comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss with libretto by Stefan Zweig after Ben Jonson's '' Epicoene, or the Silent Woman''.
Composition history
Since '' Elektra'' and ''Der ...
''. She sang regularly with the NYCO through 1962, in roles like Angelina in ''
La cenerentola
' (''Cinderella, or Goodness Triumphant'') is an operatic ''dramma giocoso'' in two acts by Gioachino Rossini. The libretto was written by Jacopo Ferretti, based on the libretti written by Charles-Guillaume Étienne for the opera '' Cendrillon'' ...
'', Cherubino in ''
The Marriage of Figaro
''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
'', the title role in ''
Maria Golovin
''Maria Golovin'' is an English language
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancie ...
'', and Jocasta in ''
Oedipus Rex
''Oedipus Rex'', also known by its Greek title, ''Oedipus Tyrannus'' ( grc, Οἰδίπους Τύραννος, ), or ''Oedipus the King'', is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC. Originally, to the ancient Gr ...
''. She also sang in two world premieres with the company, the role of "the Mezzo" in
Hugo Weisgall
Hugo David Weisgall (October 13, 1912 – March 11, 1997) was an American composer and conductor, known chiefly for his opera and vocal music compositions. He was born in Ivančice, Moravia (then part of Austria-Hungary, later in his childhood ...
's ''
Six Characters in Search of an Author
''Six Characters in Search of an Author'' ( it, Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore, link=no ) is an Italian play by Luigi Pirandello, written and first performed in 1921. An absurdist fiction, absurdist metatheatrical, metatheatric play about th ...
'' (opposite
Beverly Sills
Beverly Sills (May 25, 1929July 2, 2007) was an American operatic soprano whose peak career was between the 1950s and 1970s.
Although she sang a repertoire from Handel and Mozart to Puccini, Massenet and Verdi, she was especially renowned for ...
) and in
Douglas Moore
Douglas Stuart Moore (August 10, 1893 – July 25, 1969) was an American composer, songwriter, organist, pianist, conductor, educator, actor, and author. A composer who mainly wrote works with an American subject, his music is generally charact ...
's ''
The Wings of the Dove
''The Wings of the Dove'' is a 1902 novel by Henry James. It tells the story of Milly Theale, an American heiress stricken with a serious disease, and her effect on the people around her. Some of these people befriend Milly with honourable ...
''.
In 1959, the mezzo-soprano sang Adele in Bellini's ''Il pirata'', opposite
Maria Callas
Maria Callas . (born Sophie Cecilia Kalos; December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American-born Greek soprano who was one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised her ''bel cant ...
, for the
American Opera Society The American Opera Society (AOS) was a New York City-based musical organization that presented concert and semi-staged performances of operas between 1951 and 1970. The company was highly influential in sparking and perpetuating the post World War I ...
, at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...
, a performance that was much later issued by
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
on Compact Discs. In 1960, she portrayed The Secretary in a film of Menotti's ''The Consul'', with
Patricia Neway
Patricia Neway (September 30, 1919 – January 24, 2012) was an American operatic soprano and musical theatre actress who had an active international career during the mid-1940s through the 1970s. One of the few performers of her day to enjoy equal ...
and
Chester Ludgin
Chester Ludgin (May 20, 1925 – August 9, 2003) was an American operatic baritone.
Biography
Chester Ludgin was a native of Brooklyn, New York. He made his professional debut in 1956 with The Experimental Opera Theatre of America (affiliated wi ...
, conducted by
Werner Torkanowsky
Werner Torkanowsky (born on 30 March 1926; died on 20 October 1992) was a successful German Conductor (music), conductor in both the concert hall and opera house.
He was born in Berlin, Germany, and raised on a kibbutz in Israel, coming to the Uni ...
. The film was not seen until 2004, when it was published on DVD by VAI.
Sarfaty made her European debut as Octavian in ''
Der Rosenkavalier
(''The Knight of the Rose'' or ''The Rose-Bearer''), Op. 59, is a comic opera in three acts by Richard Strauss to an original German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal. It is loosely adapted from the novel ''Les amours du chevalier de Faublas'' ...
'' in 1960 at the
Glyndebourne Festival
Glyndebourne Festival Opera is an annual opera festival held at Glyndebourne, an English country house near Lewes, in East Sussex, England.
History
Under the supervision of the Christie family, the festival has been held annually since 1934, ...
, returning there twenty four years later to portray Adelaide in ''
Arabella
''Arabella'', Op. 79, is a lyric comedy, or opera, in three acts by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, their sixth and last operatic collaboration.
Performance history
It was first performed on 1 July 1933 at the Dr ...
''. She sang Carmen for her debut with the
Frankfurt Opera
The Oper Frankfurt (Frankfurt Opera) is a German opera company based in Frankfurt.
Opera in Frankfurt am Main has a long tradition, with many world premieres such as Franz Shrek's ''Der ferne Klang'' in 1912, '' Fennimore und Gerda'' by Frede ...
in 1963, also singing Octavian with the company that season. Appearances at other major
opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets.
While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...
s soon followed, including 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 ...
and the
Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August S ...
. In 1969 she sang Carmen at the
Opéra National de Paris
The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be k ...
.
Sarfatay joined the roster of principal singers at
Zurich Opera in the early 1960s and remained active there up through the late 1970s. In Zurich she was particularly admired for her portrayal of Countess Geschwitz in
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( , ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sma ...
's ''
Lulu
Lulu may refer to:
Companies
* LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer
* Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer
* Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia
* Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, a C ...
''. She also appeared in the world premiere of
Rudolf Kelterborn
Rudolf Kelterborn (3 September 1931 – 24 March 2021) was a Swiss musician and composer.
Life
Born in Basel, Kelterborn studied in Basel, Detmold, Salzburg, and Zürich, among other places, with the composers Walther Geiser, Willy Burkhard, Bor ...
's ''
Die Befreiung Thebens'' in Zurich in 1963.
Sarfaty continued to appear in operas into the mid 1980s. In 1981 she sang Mrs Herring in ''
Albert Herring
''Albert Herring'', Op. 39, is a chamber opera in three acts by Benjamin Britten.
Composed in the winter of 1946 and the spring of 1947, this comic opera was a successor to his serious opera ''The Rape of Lucretia''. The libretto, by Eric Cr ...
'' at the
Grand Théâtre de Genève
Grand Théâtre de Genève is an opera house in Geneva, Switzerland.
As with many other opera houses, the Grand Théâtre de Genève is both a venue and an institution. The venue is a majestic building, towering over Place Neuve, official ...
. One of her last appearances was at the
Baltimore Opera
The Baltimore Opera Company (BOC) was an opera company in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A., based at the Baltimore Lyric Opera House.
On 12 March 2009, the 58-year-old opera company announced plans to pursue Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation, the re ...
in 1984 as Madame Croissy in ''
Dialogues of the Carmelites
' (''Dialogues of the Carmelites''), FP 159, is an opera in three acts, divided into twelve scenes with linking orchestral interludes, with music and libretto by Francis Poulenc, completed in 1956. The composer's second opera, Poulenc wrote the ...
''.
Sources
Biography of Regina Sarfaty at operismo.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarfaty, Regina
American operatic mezzo-sopranos
1934 births
Living people
Musicians from Rochester, New York
Musicians from Brooklyn
Singers from New York City
Juilliard School alumni
20th-century American singers
20th-century American women singers
Classical musicians from New York (state)
21st-century American women