Eva Gustavson
Encyclopedia
Eva Gustavson sometimes known as Eva Gustafson, was a Norwegian-American contralto
who had an active international performance career in opera
s and concerts during the 1940s and 1950s. She later embarked on a second career as a voice teacher in the United States, notably teaching for many years on the music faculty of the University of Southern California
.
on the Oslo Fjord, in Norway
. Her father, Oscar Gustavson, was a violinist-conductor at the National Theatre and later at Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
; her mother, Margit Gustavson (née Schwartz), played the piano and was an organist. Eva studied singing and dancing in her youth, becoming an accomplished tap-dancer, acrobat, and musician. She joined a traveling cabaret troupe in her late teens but was later advised to quit in order to pursue a career as an opera singer. She studied singing in Oslo with Bokken Lasson
, Soffi Schønning
and Signe Amundsen
. During the early part of World War II
, she entered the Stockholm Opera School in neutral Sweden
on a scholarship where she studied under Adelaide von Skilondz
. She was also mentored during this time by Kirsten Flagstad
. She became separated from her family for the duration of much of the war, as they were stranded by the Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
. After the War, Gustavson continued with further studies in Milan
, Italy
under the advice of Flagstad.
in 1946. In 1947 she won first prize at the UNESCO
international music competition in Paris
. In 1947-1948 she was a principle contralto at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie
and made several appearances at La Monnaie
in Brussels, Belgium. She spent the next 15 years performing lead roles in major opera house
s throughout Europe and North America. She became particularly associated with the title role in Georges Bizet
's Carmen
, a role she portrayed more than 300 times during her career in multiple languages. Her first portrayal of Carmen was in 1949 at the Royal Swedish Opera
. Her other signature roles were Amneris in Giuseppe Verdi
's Aida
and Azucena in Verdi's Il trovatore
. Although she appeared in operas and toured throughout Europe and North America, Gustavson spent much of her career performing with the Norwegian National Opera in Oslo
.
's 1949 telecast of Giuseppe Verdi
's Aïda
with the NBC Symphony, and Herva Nelli
in the title role. Richard Tucker
was Radames. In the mid-1950s she settled on the West Coast of the United States, raised a family, and continued to appear in concert, including a performance of Stravinsky’s Le Rossignol under the baton of the composer. Gustavson also taught on the voice faculty of the University of Southern California
for seventeen years. In 1977 she was honored by the King of Norway with the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. She published an autobiography entitled Shooting Star From Dovrehallen to Toscanini, and then San Pedro. Gustavson died in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California
.
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
who had an active international performance career in opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s and concerts during the 1940s and 1950s. She later embarked on a second career as a voice teacher in the United States, notably teaching for many years on the music faculty of the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
.
Background
Eva Gustavson was born in HortenHorten
is a town and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the villages of Borre, Åsgårdstrand, Skoppum, and Nykirke....
on the Oslo Fjord, in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. Her father, Oscar Gustavson, was a violinist-conductor at the National Theatre and later at Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
The Oslo-Filharmonien is a symphony orchestra based in Oslo, Norway. The orchestra was founded in 1919, and has since 1977 had its home in the Oslo Concert Hall. The orchestra consists of 69 musicians in the string section, 16 in the woodwinds, 15 in brass, 5 in percussionists, 1 harpist, and 1...
; her mother, Margit Gustavson (née Schwartz), played the piano and was an organist. Eva studied singing and dancing in her youth, becoming an accomplished tap-dancer, acrobat, and musician. She joined a traveling cabaret troupe in her late teens but was later advised to quit in order to pursue a career as an opera singer. She studied singing in Oslo with Bokken Lasson
Bokken Lasson
Caroline "Bokken" Lasson was a Norwegian concert and cabaret singer. She is known for starting the Oslo cabaret Chat Noir in 1912, and also for introducing the children's song "Tuppen og Lillemor" to the Norwegian public....
, Soffi Schønning
Soffi Schønning
Soffi Schønning was a Norwegian operatic soprano.Schønning was born in Kabelvåg. She studied under Borghild Langaard in Christiania, and under Mme. Louisa Cappiani in London . She made her professional opera debut in 1924...
and Signe Amundsen
Signe Amundsen
Signe Amundsen Finsland was a Norwegian operatic soprano. She studied singing in her native country with the soprano Mimi Hviid before making her professional debut at the Gamle Logen in Oslo in 1920...
. During the early part of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, she entered the Stockholm Opera School in neutral Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
on a scholarship where she studied under Adelaide von Skilondz
Adelaide von Skilondz
Adelaide Andrejewa von Skilondz was a Russian operatic coloratura soprano. She was born in Saint Petersburg, where she studied singing and began her career in 1904. In 1909 she sang the role of the Queen of Shemakha in the Saint Petersburg premiere of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's opera The Golden...
. She was also mentored during this time by Kirsten Flagstad
Kirsten Flagstad
Kirsten Målfrid Flagstad was a Norwegian opera singer and a highly regarded Wagnerian soprano...
. She became separated from her family for the duration of much of the war, as they were stranded by the Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
. After the War, Gustavson continued with further studies in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
under the advice of Flagstad.
Career
Gustavson made her professional opera debut in OsloOslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
in 1946. In 1947 she won first prize at the UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
international music competition in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. In 1947-1948 she was a principle contralto at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie
Opéra Royal de Wallonie
The Opéra Royal de Wallonie ' is an opera house in Liège, Belgium, one of four situated in that country.- External links :*...
and made several appearances at La Monnaie
La Monnaie
Le Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie , or the Koninklijke Muntschouwburg is a theatre in Brussels, Belgium....
in Brussels, Belgium. She spent the next 15 years performing lead roles in major opera house
Opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...
s throughout Europe and North America. She became particularly associated with the title role in Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet
Georges Bizet formally Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer, mainly of operas. In a career cut short by his early death, he achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, became one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertory.During a...
's Carmen
Carmen
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
, a role she portrayed more than 300 times during her career in multiple languages. Her first portrayal of Carmen was in 1949 at the Royal Swedish Opera
Royal Swedish Opera
Kungliga Operan is Sweden's national stage for opera and ballet.-Location and Environment:...
. Her other signature roles were Amneris in Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
and Azucena in Verdi's Il trovatore
Il trovatore
Il trovatore is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play El Trovador by Antonio García Gutiérrez. Cammarano died in mid-1852 before completing the libretto...
. Although she appeared in operas and toured throughout Europe and North America, Gustavson spent much of her career performing with the Norwegian National Opera in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
.
Immigration
In 1949 Gustavson immigrated to the United States. That same year she gave one of her most memorable performances, the role of Amneris in Arturo ToscaniniArturo Toscanini
Arturo Toscanini was an Italian conductor. One of the most acclaimed musicians of the late 19th and 20th century, he was renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orchestral detail and sonority, and his photographic memory...
's 1949 telecast of Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
's Aïda
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
with the NBC Symphony, and Herva Nelli
Herva Nelli
Herva Nelli was an Italian-born operatic soprano.-Biography:Named after the French socialist Gustave Hervé, she was born in Florence, where she attended a convent school...
in the title role. Richard Tucker
Richard Tucker
Richard Tucker was an American operatic tenor.-Early life:Tucker was born Rivn Ticker in Brooklyn, New York, into a family of Romanian immigrants from Bessarabia. His father, Shmul Ticker, and mother Fanya-Tsipa Ticker had already adopted the surname "Tucker" by the time their son entered first...
was Radames. In the mid-1950s she settled on the West Coast of the United States, raised a family, and continued to appear in concert, including a performance of Stravinsky’s Le Rossignol under the baton of the composer. Gustavson also taught on the voice faculty of the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
for seventeen years. In 1977 she was honored by the King of Norway with the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. She published an autobiography entitled Shooting Star From Dovrehallen to Toscanini, and then San Pedro. Gustavson died in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California
San Pedro, Los Angeles, California
San Pedro is a port district of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. It was annexed in 1909 and is a major seaport of the area...
.