Ruthild Engert-Ely

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Ruthild Engert-Ely (born October 9, 1940 in Frankfurt am Main ; † May 5, 2013 in Berlin ) was a German opera singer with the voices of mezzo-soprano and alto .

Life

Engert-Ely initially trained as a kindergarten teacher in her hometown . She then worked as a nanny in London ; then she worked there as an art dealer . She studied singing at the Hoch Conservatory in her hometown of Frankfurt am Main. Later further studies took place with Josef Metternich in Cologne .

She made her stage debut at the Osnabrück Theater as Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro . She had her first permanent engagements at the Stadttheater Koblenz (1969–1972) and at the Theater Freiburg (1972–1977). In Freiburg, the Countess was her first role in the Lortzing opera Der Wildschütz . The then Freiburg senior director Peter Brenner and the musical director Marek Janowski promoted Engert-Ely in their early years. In Freiburg she was able to work out her first major roles: Rosina in The Barber of Seville , Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier and Ottavia in L'incoronazione di Poppea . After five years in Freiburg, she moved to the State Theater in Hanover (1977–1979). There she sang Dorabella in Così fan tutte for the first time ; the composer was also one of her role debuts in Ariadne auf Naxos .

Since 1979 she was a permanent member of the Deutsche Oper Berlin (DOB), to which she had been signed by Siegfried Palm . She made her debut there in 1979 as Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro . Other (premieres) roles there included: Hansel in Hansel and Gretel (1979/80 season), Nicklausse / Muse in Hoffmanns Erzählungen (revival: September 1980), Alisa in Lucia di Lammermoor (premiere: December 1980), Cherubino ( August 1981, in the opening performance of the season 1981/82 as a substitute for Hanna Schwarz ; also in the musical new production in January 1985), high school student / groom in Lulu (premiere: February 1982), composer in Ariadne auf Naxos (house debut; March 1982) , Meg Page in Falstaff (resumption: April / May 1982; later, inter alia, also in the season 1988/89), Fenena in Nabucco ( inter alia in March 1981, further in the resumption in May 1982), Preziosilla in La forza del destino ( House debut; in October 1982, also in the resumption in January 1987), Fjodor in Boris Godunow (resumption / new staging: February 1983), Lucienne in Die tote Stadt (premiere: February 1983), Flora Bervoix in La Traviata (musical new staging: April 1984, with Julia Varady in the title role), Floßhilde in Das Rheingold (premiere: September 1984) and Götterdämmerung (premiere: September 1985), Fatime in Oberon (premiere: January 1986) and Varvara in Katja Kabanowa (premiere: March 1986; Follow-up performances in March 1987). In October 1988 she sang Waltraute in Götterdämmerung in the complete Ring cycle at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. In October 1990 she sang the role and house debut of Ortrud in Richard Wagner's opera Lohengrin . In November 1992 she sang Preziosilla again in a new musical staging of Verdi's opera La forza del destino . In November / December 1992 she took on the role of the crispy witch in Hansel and Gretel . In March 1993 she took over the role of Varvara again in the revival of the opera Katja Kabanowa , this time "with lush vibrato" in the mezzo-soprano .

She officially belonged to the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper up to and including the 1995/96 season. In the course of her career she sang roles ranging from the lyric mezzo- soprano to the dramatic mezzo-soprano. At the Deutsche Oper she also changed her subject from lyric to dramatic mezzo. Occasionally she also took on pure alto parts.

In the 1979/80 season she sang Fenena in a new Nabucco production at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein (premiere: June 1980, director: Gert Westphal ), as well as Maddalena in Rigoletto (revival: April 1980). In the 1980/81 season she was a guest at the Hamburg State Opera . There she sang in the new production of Hoffmann's Tales (premiere: May 1981; director: Jürgen Flimm ) "beautifully and expressively" the voice of the mother and the second voice in the barcarole . In the 1980/81 season, without prior rehearsals, she jumped in at the Braunschweig State Theater in December 1980 for a new production of the opera Le Nozze di Figaro as Cherubino; “The two Cherubin arias with their intensely sensitive design became the musical highlights of the evening.” In January 1984 she sang Prince Orlofsky in the Strauss operetta Die Fledermaus at the Hanover State Opera . She also made a guest appearance at the Oldenburg State Theater in 1985 as Kundry in Wagner's Parsifal stage festival (director: Michael Rothacker; with Mario Brell as Parsifal and Ks. Heinz-Klaus Ecker as Gurnemanz) and became known nationwide; this role was considered to be her special highlight. In the 1986/87 season she took on the role of Princess Eboli in Don Carlos at the Aachen Theater ; in the season 1987/88 the Lady Macbeth followed in Macbeth . In May 1989 she made a guest appearance, together with the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper, at the International May Festival at the Wiesbaden State Theater as Warvara in Katja Kabanowa ; she “enhanced the role with intense play and great mezzo tones.” In November 1991 she performed as Kundry at the Vienna State Opera . In the opening performance of the Chemnitz Opera House in December 1992 (after several years of general renovation of the house) she also appeared as Kundry. In 1999 she appeared at the Musiktheater im Revier in Gelsenkirchen as Herodias in the opera Salome .

In 1982 Engert-Ely sang for the first time at the Bayreuth Festival . From 1982 to 1989 she was part of the permanent ensemble of the Bayreuth Festival. There she took on the following roles: 1. Knappe in Parsifal (1982–1985), the alto solo in Parsifal (1984/1985), Grimgerde in Die Walküre (1983), Schwertleite in Die Walküre (1985/1986) and in 1989 Venus in Tannhäuser (director: Wolfgang Wagner ; musical direction: Giuseppe Sinopoli ).

Engert-Ely has often made guest appearances in other European countries and overseas. In 1988 she sang the role of Kundry in Parsifal at the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto . She also performed in Italy at the Teatro Regio in Turin (1987; as Klytämnestra in Elektra ), at the Teatro Giuseppe Verdi in Trieste (February 1988; "impressive" as a composer), at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice (1988; as a composer), in Genoa (June 1988 as Fricka in Die Walküre ; 1997 as Türkenbaba in The Rake's Progress ), at La Scala in Milan (1990; as Magdalene in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg ) and several times at the Teatro Bellini in Catania (April / May 1992 as Octavian in Der Rosenkavalier , with Renata Scotto as Marschallin in her role debut; 1994 as Venus; 1998 as Clytemnestra).

She has also made guest appearances at the Teatro Real in Madrid , at the Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon , in Paris (February 1989; as Magdalene in the Palais Garnier ), in Montpellier (February 1993 as Ortrud, 1995), in Nice (1993 as Clairon in Capriccio ; 1995 as Klytämnestra) and in Amsterdam (September 1993 as Kundry; June 1995 as Magdalene). She has made several guest appearances at the Flemish Opera (De Vlaamse Opera) in Antwerp and Gent : 1990 as Kundry in Parsifal (Gent), 1991 also as Kundry in Parsifal (Antwerp), 1994 as Ortrud (Gent), 1996 as Kundry (Gent / Antwerp) ), 1996 as Principessa in Suor Angelica and Zita in Gianni Schicchi (both in Antwerp).

In the United States she made guest appearances in Charleston (June / July 1987 and 1990; as Kundry in Parsifal ), at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City (April 1990; as Fricka in Die Walküre ), at the Washington Opera (1997; as Klytämnestra ) and several times at the Hawaii Opera in Honolulu (1999 also as Klytämnestra; 2002 as Herodias in Salome ). In May 1994 she sang Venus im Tannhäuser at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires .

Engert-Ely also appeared as a concert and lieder singer. In June 1986 she appeared in a concert by the Berliner Philharmoniker under the musical direction of Heinrich Hollreiser ; Engert-Ely took over the alto parts in the Coronation Mass by Mozart and in the Mass in C major op. 86 by Ludwig van Beethoven . In October 1988 she sang the alto part in Handel's Messiah in a staged performance in the DOB "with an expressive, warm mezzo-soprano who only lacked the otherwise pleasantly round sound at the bottom" . In November 1988 she took over the mezzo-soprano part in the Verdi Requiem with the Berliner Philharmoniker in the Berliner Philharmonie. In November 1991 she sang in the Verdi Requiem in a performance of the Bochum Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Eberhard Kloke in the Audimax of the Ruhr University Bochum , in which "her well-seated mezzo-soprano with the ability to make dramatic attacks was impressively employed". At song recitals she interpreted songs by Robert Schumann , Gustav Mahler , Richard Strauss , Franz Schreker and Alexander Zemlinsky, among others . She also gave singing lessons.

Engert-Ely was married to the musicologist Norbert Ely . Since her marriage she has also appeared under the name Ruthild Engert-Ely. Engert died in Berlin at the age of 72 after a serious illness .

repertoire

Engert-Ely sang a wide repertoire on stage, which included baroque music , operas from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to Giuseppe Verdi , but especially works from the turn of the century, the 20th century and classical modernism .

Her other stage roles included: Dorabella in Così fan tutte , Brangäne in Tristan and Isolde , Waltraute in Götterdämmerung , Hansel, and later also Gertrud / witch in Hansel and Gretel and Charlotte in the opera The Soldiers (1983, Deutsche Oper Berlin; season 1987 / 1988 in Paris).

Audio documents

There are several audio documents with the voice of Ruthild Engert-Ely; However, their main roles are not adequately documented on sound carriers.

In April 1987 she sang the role of Schwertleite in a complete recording of the opera Die Walküre under the musical direction of James Levine at Manhattan Center in New York City . The recording was released by Deutsche Grammophon . In June 1987 she sang Nurse Filipievna in a complete recording of the opera Eugene Onegin , which was recorded in the Lukaskirche in Dresden ; her partners were Mirella Freni (Tatjana) and James Levine (conductor). The recording was released for the first time (still on record ) in 1988 by Deutsche Grammophon. In a complete recording of the opera Der fierige Engel by Sergei Prokofjew , she took on the roles of fortune teller and abbess; the recording was also released on CD in 1990 by Deutsche Grammophon.

There are also live and radio recordings of the Bayreuth Festival. Some of these were published on CD. At Philips , a recording of the CD appeared on Parsifal from the Bayreuth Festival Hall in 1985. Engert-Ely is in Bayreuth in their roles (first squire and alto solo) to hear.

A recording of the Bayreuth Tannhäuser performance from 1989 with Engert-Ely as Venus was released on DVD .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ In reference works, including in Kutsch / Riemens, 1946 was often given as the date of birth. Engert-Ely's correct date of birth was not officially known until her death.
  2. ↑ Ruthild Engert-Ely ( Memento from November 11, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Obituary in: Der Tagesspiegel
  3. ↑ a b c d In Bayreuth first Grimgerde, in Berlin Cherubino Obituary in: BZ from May 14, 2013; Retrieved May 18, 2013
  4. ↑ a b c d Ruthild Engert ( Memento of the original from April 19, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Short biography (archive of the Orchestra Berliner Musikfreunde eV); last accessed on May 18, 2013 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.obm-ev.de
  5. ↑ Ingrid Wanja: ENTIRE BERLIN REPERTOIRE . Performance reviews. In: Orpheus . Edition 12/13. December 1990, p. 19
  6. ↑ Ingrid Wanja: NEW STUDYING . Performance review. In: Orpheus . Edition January 1, 1993, p. 18
  7. ↑ Bernd Hoppe: OVERRIPE . Performance review. In: Orpheus . Issue May 5, 1993. Page 20.
  8. ↑ Iris Bünsch: LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN . Performance review. In: Orpheus . Issue 7/8. July / August 1981, pp. 558-560; there to Engert page 560.
  9. ↑ Gerhard Eckels: THE WEDDING OF FIGARO . Performance review. In: Orpheus . Edition February 2, 1981, p. 103
  10. ↑ On DVD recordings of the "Ring"  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . The Festspiele.de forum; Posted on October 12, 2009@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / forum.festspiele.de  
  11. ↑ Hartmut Jakobi: INTERNATIONAL MAY FESTIVAL . Performance and concert reviews. In: Orpheus . Edition November 13, 1989. Festival booklet. Page 1059/1060.
  12. ^ Index of roles by Ruthild Engert in: Chronik der Wiener Staatsoper 1945-2005 , p. 385. Löcker Verlag, Vienna 2006. ISBN 3-85409-449-3
  13. ↑ Ruthild Engert-Ely . Vita (official website of the Bayreuth Festival )
  14. ↑ Maria Saltecchi: LEVEL FULL . Performance review. In: Orpheus . Issue June 6, 1988. Page 472/473.
  15. ↑ De Vlaamse Opera Antwerp 1991 ( Memento of the original from November 10, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Occupation Parsifal 1991 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.hpj.be
  16. ↑ Ruthild Engert-Ely . Roles and Performances Directory; Metropolitan Opera New York. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  17. ↑ Berliner Philharmoniker ( Memento from July 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) (concert program 1985/1986 season)
  18. ↑ IW (= Ingrid Wanja): RECOVERED REGIONAL ACTIVITIES . Concert review. In: Orpheus . Issue December 12, 1988. p. 947
  19. ↑ IW (= Ingrid Wanja): PHILHARMONIC KLÄNGE . Concert review. In: Orpheus . Issue January 1, 1989. p. 33
  20. ↑ Thomas Tillmann: SACRAL BORING . Performance review. In: Orpheus . Issue January 1, 1992. p. 19.
  21. ↑ In memory of Ruthild Engert . (Report of death Deutsche Oper Berlin ; official website; accessed on May 18, 2013)
  22. ↑ The Valkyrie (CD) . Cast and production details
  23. ↑ Eugene Onegin ( Memento of the original dated November 1, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Discography @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.operone.de
  24. ↑ The fiery angel ( Memento of the original from December 11, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Discography @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.operone.de
  25. ↑ Tannhäuser and the Singers' War on the Wartburg ( Memento of the original from April 15, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Discography @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.operone.de
personal data
SURNAME Engert-Ely, Ruthild
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Engert, Ruthild (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German opera singer (mezzo-soprano)
DATE OF BIRTH October 9, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH Frankfurt am Main
DATE OF DEATH May 5, 2013
Place of death Berlin