Sophia Schröder (

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 ...

, 1712 – 29 January 1750) 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 ...

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 ...

, active as a concert vocalist at the royal orchestra, the '' Kungliga Hovkapellet'', at the royal Swedish court, the first of her gender to have been officially given such a position.Hovförsamlingen CI:3 1715-1766 (page 482)

Life

Sophia Schröder was born in Stockholm to German immigrants. On 26 October 1726, females were formally allowed to be employed at Kungliga Hovkapellet by a new direction from the monarch, although females had in fact unofficially been active at the Hovkapellet starting since Maria de Croll in 1702. The same year females were officially admitted, Schröder and her colleague Judith Fischer were formally employed as vocalists, and the following year, they replaced the two boys previously serving as sopranos. Together, they became historical as the first of their gender to have been officially employed in the then two-hundred-year-old history of the royal orchestra. They were additionally the first official female court singers at the Swedish court since Anne Chabanceau de La Barre. Both Schröder and Fisher had in fact been active as vocalists at the orchestra before they were officially hired. Sophia Schröder was a court singer, and performed for the royal court at various occasions as well as at the performances of the orchestra. From 1731, the royal orchestra also performed at public concerts at ''

Riddarhuset The House of Nobility ( sv, Riddarhuset) in Stockholm, Sweden, is a corporation and a building that maintains records and acts as an interest group on behalf of the Swedish nobility. Name The name is literally translated as ''House of Knights' ...

'' in Stockholm. She was a student of Anders von Düben, Casper Gottlob Grünwaldt, Frans Hindrich Meyer,

Johan Helmich Roman Johan Helmich Roman (26 October 1694 – 20 November 1758) was a Swedish Baroque composer. He has been called "the father of Swedish music" or "the Swedish George Frideric Handel, Handel." He was the leader of Swedish Opera through most of Swedish ...

Conrad Arnoldi Conrad may refer to: People * Conrad (name) Places United States * Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Iowa, a city * Conrad, Montana, a city * Conrad Glacier, Washington ...

, and Jacob Dedering. Anders von Düben gave her a high recommendation as a student in the musical science. Sophia Schröder remained unmarried and kept her position as vocalist until her death in 1750. When her colleague Judith Fisher left the orchestra after her marriage in 1740, she was replaced by Schröder's sister Gustaviana Schröder. They were followed by five more women in the orchestra during the

age of liberty In Swedish and Finnish history, the Age of Liberty ( sv, frihetstiden; fi, vapauden aika) was a period that saw parliamentary governance, increasing civil rights and the decline of the Swedish Empire that began with Charles XII's death in 1718 ...

. In 1751, two female vocalists from the royal orchestra,

Hedvig Witte Hedvig is a given name. Notable people with the name include: People *Hedvig Catharina De la Gardie (1732–1800), Swedish noblewoman of French descent *Hedvig Catharina Lilje (1695–1745), Swedish noblewoman, salonist and informal amateur-politi ...

and

Cecilia Elisabeth Würzer Cecilia Elisabeth Würzer (d. 10 April 1761), was a Swedish (originally German) singer and member of the ''Kungliga Hovkapellet'' in 1743-1761. She was one of five women to have been officially members of the Royal Orchestra in the age of liberty. ...

, performed at the burial of King

Frederick I of Sweden Frederick I ( sv, Fredrik I; 28 April 1676 – 5 April 1751) was prince consort of Sweden from 1718 to 1720, and King of Sweden from 1720 until his death and (as ''Frederick I'') also Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel from 1730. He ascended the throne f ...

References

Sources

* Anna Ivarsdotter Johnsson och Leif Jonsson: ''Musiken i Sverige. Frihetstiden och Gustaviansk tid 1720-1810'' (Music in Sweden. Age of liberty and the Gustavian age 1720–1810) (Swedish) * Leif Jonsson, Ann-Marie Nilsson och Greger Andersson: ''Musiken i Sverige. Från forntiden till stormaktstidens slut 1720'' (Music in Sweden. From Ancient times to the end of Empire)(Swedish) * Gunhild Karle (Swedish): Kungl. Hovmusiken i Stockholm och dess utövare 1697-1771 (The Music and Musicians of the Royal Court in Stockholm in 1697–1771), TryckJouren, Uppsala 2002. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Schroder, Sophia 1712 births 1750 deaths Swedish sopranos 18th-century Swedish women singers Age of Liberty people

Life

See also

References

Sources