Nanny Larsén-Todsen (2 August 1884 – 26 May 1982) was a Swedish dramatic soprano, renowned for her performances in works by

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

and counted as one of the most notable Wagnerian sopranos of the 20th-century, from the generation before Frida Leider and

Kirsten Flagstad Kirsten Malfrid Flagstad (12 July 1895 – 7 December 1962) was a Norwegian opera singer, who was the outstanding Wagnerian soprano of her era. Her triumphant debut in New York on 2 February 1935 is one of the legends of opera. Giulio Gatti-Casaz ...

. She was particularly popular at the

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival () is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of stage works by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived and promoted the idea of a special ...

as Brunnhilde and

Isolde Iseult ( ), alternatively Isolde ( ) and other spellings, is the name of several characters in the legend of Tristan and Iseult. The most prominent is Iseult the Blonde, or Iseult of Ireland, the wife of Mark of Cornwall and the lover of Trista ...

Biography

Active at the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera () is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the centre of Sweden's capital, Stockholm, in the borough of Norrmalm (borough), Norrmalm, on the eastern si ...

1906–25, at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; officially , ) is a historic opera house in Milan, Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as (, which previously was Santa Maria della Scala, Milan, a church). The premiere performa ...

1923–24, the

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

1925–27, and Bayreuth in 1927–31, she also made guest appearances at most of the major European opera houses."Nanny Larsén-Todsen", ''

Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians ''Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians'' is a major reference work in the field of music, originally compiled by Theodore Baker, PhD, and published in 1900 by G. Schirmer, Inc. The ninth edition, the most recent edition, was published in ...

'', 5th edition edited Nicolas Slonimsky (1958) Her last appearance was at the

Paris Opera 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 kn ...

in 1937, as Isolde. She received

Litteris et Artibus Litteris et Artibus is a Swedish royal medal established in 1853 by Charles XV of Sweden, who was then crown prince. It is awarded to people who have made important contributions to culture, especially music, dramatic art and literature. The ob ...

in 1920, was elected into the

Royal Swedish Academy of Music The Royal Swedish Academy of Music (), founded in 1771 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in ...

in 1924, and made Hovsångerska in 1925. Living in Stockholm following her retirement from the stage, Larsén-Todsen taught singing.

Recordings

*1928: Richard Wagner: ''

Tristan und Isolde ''Tristan und Isolde'' (''Tristan and Isolde''), WWV 90, is a music drama in three acts by Richard Wagner set to a German libretto by the composer, loosely based on the medieval 12th-century romance ''Tristan and Iseult'' by Gottfried von Stras ...

'' (abridged); Nanny Larsen-Todsen (as Isolde), with Anny Helm (Brangäne), Gunnar Graarud (Tristan),

Rudolf Bockelmann Rudolf Bockelmann (born 2 April 1892 in Bodenteich, died 9 October 1958 in Dresden) was a German dramatic baritone and Kammersänger. He built an international career as an outstanding Wagnerian singer but damaged his reputation during the 1930 ...

(Kurwenal], Ivar Andrésen (König Marke), Joachim Sattler (Melot), Gustav Rödin (ein junger Seemann) and Hans Beer (Ein Hirt). Bayreuth Festival Orchestra & Chorus, conducted by Karl Elmendorff. Originally issued by the

Columbia Graphophone Company Columbia Graphophone Co. Ltd. was one of the earliest gramophone companies in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1917 as an offshoot of the American Columbia Phonograph Company, it became an independent British-owned company in 1922 in a managem ...

in 1929 on 20 discs (Columbia L 2187–206), this was recorded (without audience) in the

Bayreuth Festspielhaus The ''Bayreuth Festspielhaus'' or Bayreuth Festival Theatre (, ) is an opera house north of Bayreuth, Germany, built by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner and dedicated solely to the performance of his stage works. It is the venue ...

with the approval of

Siegfried Wagner Siegfried Helferich Richard Wagner (6 June 18694 August 1930) was a German composer and conductor, the son of Richard Wagner. He was an opera composer and the artistic director of the Bayreuth Festival from 1908 to 1930. Life Siegfried Wagner ...

during the late summer of 1928. There were several CD reissues: Naxos CD 8.110200-02 (3 CDs) , Grammofono 2000 AB 78925-26 (2 CDs) , Preiser PSR 90383 (2 CDs)

References

*''

Barometern ''Barometern OT'' is a local newspaper published in Kalmar, Sweden. It is the leading paper in its circulation area. History and profile ''Barometern'' was established in 1841. The paper was published by the Tidningen Barometerns AB from 1903 t ...

'', 1 August 1974. * Göransson, Roland, "Hagbyflickan som blev firad operastjärna", 1999 ''Södermörekrönikan''. Kalmar: Södermöre hembygdsförening. 1987– . Libris 662,229. * ''Sohlmans musiklexikon'' (''The Sohlman Music Dictionary'') * Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), ''The Oxford Dictionary of Opera'', 782 pages,

External links

Postcard portrait of Nanny Larsen-Todsen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Larsen-Todsen, Nanny 1884 births 1982 deaths Swedish operatic sopranos Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music Litteris et Artibus recipients 20th-century Swedish women opera singers