Vera Schwarz

Vera Schwarz(10 July 1888 - 4 December 1964) was an Austriansoprano,known primarily for her operetta partnership withRichard Tauber.

Life

Vera Schwarz was born inZagreb,the daughter of Hungarian-Croatian aviation pioneerDavid Schwarz.She studied in Vienna with Philipp Forstén and gave her debut in 1908 at theTheater an der Wien.From 1908 to 1912 she was a member of theGrazer Oper,and from 1911 to 1913 she sang at theJohann Strauss Theaterin Vienna.^[1]After performing inKarlsbadshe came to theHamburger Stadttheaterin 1914. From 1918 to 1922 she was an ensemble member of theStaatsoper Unter den Lindenin Berlin.

Vienna

From 1921 to 1930 Schwarz appeared often as a guest in Vienna, performing the title roles ofToscaandCarmen,Eva inDie Meistersinger von Nürnberg,Sieglinde inDie Walküre,Countess inThe Marriage of Figaroand Rachel inLa Juive,receiving the title "Kammersängerin" ". It was during this time that she taught her Vienna Staatsoper colleagueLeo Slezak's daughter (andWalter Slezak's brother), Margarete. In her bookDer Apfel fällt nicht weit vom StammMargarete Slezak recounts their meeting: "I paid Vera Schwarz a visit, and asked her to test my voice. Frau Schwarz found it would be worthwhile to train my voice, and promised me, while keeping this strictly secret from my family, to give me lessons. She lived with her mother, a delicate yet unbelievably energetic lady. Mama Schwarz missed no performance of her daughter. She sat in the middle of the parquet and influenced the audience's applause particularly loudly. While doing so she would turn left and right claiming loudly:" Charming, magnificent! Who is this God-gifted singer? ". One time an acquaintance sat behind, unseen by her. He bent forward and said for everyone to overhear:" But, gnädige Frau, surelyyouwould know that! "^[2]

Partnership with Richard Tauber

From 1929 to 1933 Schwarz was a member of the Metropol-Theater Berlin ensemble, returning in 1931 to 1933 to the Staatsoper Unter den Linden. She became well known asRichard Tauber's operetta partner, and sang often in this genre, almost always with Tauber.^[3]She appeared with Tauber in the Berlin Premiere of Lehar's operetta Paganini in January 1926 at theDeutsches Künstlertheater[de],and in a new production at theTheater des Westensin April 1930, both conducted by the composer. She and Tauber appeared, again under the composer's baton, in the October 1929 premiere ofDas Land des Lächelnsat theMetropol Theaterin Berlin.

Schwarz and Tauber had first appeared together inCarmenat theBerliner Staatsoperin May 1921, and were often to appear together in operas such asDie Tote Stadt,Un Ballo in Maschera,Tosca,andDie Fledermausat theWiener Staatsoper.It was here they last appeared together inDas Land des Lächelnsin February 1938.^[4]

International activity

She appeared in the opera houses of Amsterdam, Budapest, London, Munich, and Paris, where she performedToscain 1928 at the Opéra-Comique Paris. In 1929 she sang Octavian inRosenkavalierat theSalzburger Festspiele.One of her last roles was as Verdi's Lady Macbeth at the 1939Glyndebourne Festival.

Persecution and emigration

Having Jewish paternal grandparents, Schwarz was forced to leave Germany in 1933, singing in Vienna, giving a world premiere of a work by Salmhofer^[5]in 1935, and appearing as late as 1938 with Tauber in Lehar'sDas Land des Lächelns.A few months after this performance, she emigrated first to England (where she sang Lady Macbeth inGlyndebourne), then to the United States, where she appeared in Chicago and in San Francisco, but concentrated mostly on concert appearances (including concerts at the Los Angeles German-Jewish club)^[6]), and teaching in New York,^[7]and in Hollywood. Here she coachedRisë Stevens^[8]andMarni Nixon.^[9]

Later life

Schwarz returned to Vienna in 1948, teaching and giving masterclasses in the Salzburg Mozarteum. She died in Vienna in 1964 and was cremated atFeuerhalle Simmering,where also her ashes are buried (Abt. MH, Nr. 359).

In 2011, a street in Vienna's 23rd district was namedVera-Schwarz-Gassein her honour.^[10]

References

^Karl Josef Kutsch,Leo Riemens:Großes Sängerlexikon.Bd 4. 3. Auflage. Verlag K.G. Saur, München 1999, S.3178f.
^Margarete Slezak:Der Apfel fällt nicht weit vom Stamm.R. Piper, 1953. p. 46 (translated here from the original German)
^Richard Traubner,Operetta: A Theatrical HistoryRoutledge, 2003,ISBN 978-0-415-96641-2,p. 244
^Daniel O'Hara, Richard Tauber Chronology,"Richard Tauber [1891-1948] A New Chronology"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on March 4, 2016.RetrievedFebruary 24,2016.
^Herbert F. Peyser,SALMHOFER OPERA IN VIENNA,NY Times article, January 12, 1936, p. 6
^Hannes Heer,Jürgen Kersting,Verstummte Stimmen. Die Vertreibung der Juden "und politisch Untragbaren" aus den Dresdner Theatern 1933 bis 1945,Metropol, 2011,ISBN 978-3-86331-032-5,p. 68
^Stewart HamiltonOpening Windows: Confessions of a Canadian Vocal Coach, Dundurn, 2012,ISBN 978-1-4597-0512-8,p. 76
^John Pennino,Risë Stevens: A Life in Music,Baskerville Publishers, 2005,ISBN 978-1-880909-75-1
^Marni NixonI could have sung all night,Billboard, 2006,ISBN 978-0-8230-8365-7,pp. 32-33
^Vienna new street names online information:"Neue Straßennamen (Benennung einer Verkehrsfläche)"(in German). Archived fromthe originalon September 19, 2013.RetrievedAugust 3,2013.

External links

Medien von und über Vera Schwarzin theGerman National Librarycatalogue
Vera SchwarzatIMDb
Vera SchwarzinAustria-Forum(in German)(at AEIOU)
Stimmportrait aus ihrem Opernrepertoire(Preiser CD PR89708)
Schwarz singing Marietta's song (Korngold)onYouTube

[1] Karl Josef Kutsch,Leo Riemens:Großes Sängerlexikon.Bd 4. 3. Auflage. Verlag K.G. Saur, München 1999, S.3178f.

[2] Margarete Slezak:Der Apfel fällt nicht weit vom Stamm.R. Piper, 1953. p. 46 (translated here from the original German)

[3] Richard Traubner,Operetta: A Theatrical HistoryRoutledge, 2003,ISBN 978-0-415-96641-2,p. 244

[4] Daniel O'Hara, Richard Tauber Chronology,"Richard Tauber [1891-1948] A New Chronology"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on March 4, 2016.RetrievedFebruary 24,2016.

[5] Herbert F. Peyser,SALMHOFER OPERA IN VIENNA,NY Times article, January 12, 1936, p. 6

[6] Hannes Heer,Jürgen Kersting,Verstummte Stimmen. Die Vertreibung der Juden "und politisch Untragbaren" aus den Dresdner Theatern 1933 bis 1945,Metropol, 2011,ISBN 978-3-86331-032-5,p. 68

[7] Stewart HamiltonOpening Windows: Confessions of a Canadian Vocal Coach, Dundurn, 2012,ISBN 978-1-4597-0512-8,p. 76

[8] John Pennino,Risë Stevens: A Life in Music,Baskerville Publishers, 2005,ISBN 978-1-880909-75-1

[9] Marni NixonI could have sung all night,Billboard, 2006,ISBN 978-0-8230-8365-7,pp. 32-33

[10] Vienna new street names online information:"Neue Straßennamen (Benennung einer Verkehrsfläche)"(in German). Archived fromthe originalon September 19, 2013.RetrievedAugust 3,2013.

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