Anne Sofie von Otter explained

Anne Sofie von Otter
Birth Date:1955 5, df=y
Birth Place:Stockholm
Occupation:Mezzo-soprano singer
Alma Mater:Guildhall School of Music and Drama

Anne Sofie von Otter (born 9 May 1955) is a Swedish mezzo-soprano. Her repertoire encompasses lieder, operas, oratorios and also rock and pop songs.

Early life

Von Otter was born in Stockholm, Sweden. Her father was Göran von Otter, a Swedish diplomat in Berlin during World War II.[1] She grew up in Bonn, London and Stockholm. She studied in Stockholm and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where her teachers included Vera Rózsa.[2] In 1982, she won second prize in the ARD International Music Competition.

From 1983 to 1985, she was an ensemble member of the Basel Opera, where she made her professional operatic début as Alcina in Haydn's Orlando paladino. She made her Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, début in 1985 and her La Scala debut in 1987. Her Metropolitan Opera début was in December 1988 as Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro.[3]

Career

Her recording of Grieg songs won the 1993 Gramophone Record of the Year, the first time in the award's history that it had gone to a song recording. In 2001, she released her album with Elvis Costello, For the Stars,[4] for which she won an Edison Award. She was awarded the Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Solo in 2015 for her album of French songs, Douce France. She is a regular recital and recording partner with Swedish pianist Bengt Forsberg.[5] [6] [7]

In 2006, von Otter sang the Evangelist in the premiere of Sven-David Sandström's Ordet – en passion. Other work in contemporary music has included singing the role of The Woman in Senza Sangue of Péter Eötvös.[8] In other media, she appeared in the film A Late Quartet.[9]

In 2007, she released an album of music written by composers imprisoned in the Nazi ghetto of Theresienstadt concentration camp (also known as Terezin) before their transportation to the death camp of Auschwitz. She collaborated on this project with Christian Gerhaher (baritone) and chamber musicians. She has stated that the material has special personal meaning for her as her father had attempted unsuccessfully during the war to spread information that he had received from SS officer Kurt Gerstein about the Nazi death camps.[10]

In 2016, von Otter sang Leonora in the world premiere of Thomas Adès' The Exterminating Angel, and again in 2017 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. She created the principal role of Charlotte in Sebastian Fagerlund's 2017 opera Autumn Sonata, based on the 1979 film by Ingmar Bergman at the Finnish National Opera in Helsinki conducted by John Storgårds.[11]

Family life

Von Otter was married to Benny Fredriksson until his suicide on 17 March 2018.[12] [13] He was an actor and managing director of The Stockholm House of Culture, including the Stadsteater (Stockholm City Theatre). The couple had two children. She lives in the capital Stockholm.

Awards and honours

Discography

Selective charting albums

(Peak positions in Sverigetopplistan, the Swedish national record chart)

YearAlbumPeak positions
SWE
[17] 		AUS
[18] 		GER
[19] 		NED
[20] 		NOR
[21]
1993Grieg Songs (DG)46
1994Speak Low25
1999Home for Christmas1672
2001For the Stars
(Anne Sofie von Otter meets Elvis Costello)		2581598033
2006I Let the Music Speak1363
Noël
(Anne Sofie von Otter & Bengt Forsberg)		59
2007Terezín / Theresienstadt
(Anne Sofie von Otter / Bengt Forsberg)		56
2010Ombre de mon amant32
Love Songs
(Anne Sofie von Otter / Brad Mehldau)		34
2013Douce France58

Recordings

Lieder and songs

Complete operas

Aria recordings

Oratorios, symphonies, etc

Other music

External links

Notes and References

  1. Paldiel, Mordecai, Saving the Jews: Amazing Stories of Men and Women Who Defied the "Final Solution". Schreiber Publishing, p. 45 (2000).
  2. News: Super von trouper . The Guardian . Stephen Moss . 5 August 2005 . 22 June 2016.
  3. News: Reviews/Music; Figaro Among Towering Columns. The New York Times. Donal Henahan. Donal Henahan. 17 December 1988. 22 June 2016.
  4. News: Worlds of Mezzo and Pop Star Meet Somewhere in Between; Anne Sofie von Otter: Fresh Start. The New York Times. Neil Strauss. Neil Strauss. 21 May 2001. 22 June 2016.
  5. News: Music Review: Von Otter, From Lieder to Blues. The New York Times. Anthony Tommasini. Anthony Tommasini. 9 May 1998. 22 June 2016.
  6. News: Vibrant Singing at the Nice Price. The New York Times. Anthony Tommasini. Anthony Tommasini. 19 April 2005. 22 June 2016.
  7. News: Resilience of the Human Spirit, in Song . The New York Times . Steve Smith . 4 May 2009 . 22 June 2016.
  8. News: Review: A Peter Eotvos Premiere and Schubert at the New York Philharmonic. The New York Times. Anthony Tommasini. Anthony Tommasini. 10 May 2015. 22 June 2016.
  9. News: The Strings Play On; The Bonds Tear Apart. The New York Times. Stephen Holden. Stephen Holden. 1 November 2012. 22 June 2016.
  10. News: A Different Aria . Forward . David Bartal . 17 September 2007 . 22 June 2016.
  11. Dammann, Guy. The Brilliant Sound of Gnawing Anxiety. Financial Times, Friday 15 September 2017, p. 10.
  12. News: High-Profile Death Prompts Backlash Against #MeToo in Sweden. The Irish Times. 30 July 2018.
  13. Web site: Famed Swedish Opera Singer Blames #MeToo for Her Husband's Suicide: 'You Can Break a Person'. MSN. 30 July 2018.
  14. Encyclopedia: Anne Sofie von Otter. Nationalencyklopedin. 22 April 2019.
  15. Web site: Rolf Schock Prize Laureates . Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences . 22 April 2019 .
  16. Web site: Anne Sofie von Otter. Upmc.fr. 18 January 2018.
  17. Web site: Discography Anne Sofie von Otter. swedishcharts.com. 27 October 2022.
  18. 295.
  19. Web site: Discographie von Anne Sofie von Otter. offiziellecharts.de. de. 27 October 2022.
  20. Web site: Discografie Anne Sofie von Otter. dutchcharts.nl. nl. 27 October 2022.
  21. Web site: Discography Anne Sofie von Otter. norwegiancharts.com. 27 October 2022.
  22. News: Various: Douce France – review . The Observer . Fiona Maddocks. Fiona Maddocks . 9 November 2013 . 22 June 2016.
  23. News: Classical Recordings: Anne Sofie von Otter Sinks Her Teeth Into the Baroque. The New York Times. Anne Midgette. Anne Midgette. 16 January 2005. 22 June 2016.
  24. News: Brad Mehldau/Anne Sofie von Otter: Love Songs – Review. The Guardian. John Fordham. John Fordham (jazz critic). 18 November 2010. 22 June 2016.

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