Amy Shuard
Encyclopedia
Amy Shuard CBE was an English operatic soprano renowned in such dramatic roles as Elektra
, Turandot
and Brünnhilde. She created both title roles in Janáček
's Káťa Kabanová
and Jenůfa
in their respective British premieres. She has been described as "the best English dramatic soprano since Eva Turner
" (her teacher).
. After studying at the Trinity College of Music
, she had lessons from Eva Turner
. In 1948 the Worshipful Company of Musicians
awarded her a prize and she toured South Africa
as the organization's representative. She returned there in 1949 to make her operatic debut, in Johannesburg
, in the title role of Verdi
's Aida
; during that season she also sang Giulietta in The Tales of Hoffmann and Venus in Tannhäuser
.
She sang at Sadlers Wells from 1949 to 1953, before undertaking more study in Milan with Rosetta Pampanini
, and then at Covent Garden
from 1954 until her death. She also sang at Bayreuth
, La Scala
, Vienna, Buenos Aires and San Francisco.
Her notable roles included the title roles in Káťa Kabanová
(in the 1951 United Kingdom premiere), Jenůfa
(in the 1956 UK premiere), Carmen
, Tosca
, Turandot
, Elektra
, Madama Butterfly
and Aida; as well as Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana
, Eboli in Don Carlos
, Tatyana in Eugene Onegin
, Magda Sorel in The Consul
, Lady Macbeth (in the first production of Verdi's Macbeth
at Covent Garden), and Kostelnička Buryjovka in Jenůfa in 1972 and 1974.
The latter part of the career saw her essay Wagnerian
roles, and she was the first English soprano to sing Brünnhilde at Covent Garden. She also sang Isolde
at Geneva, as well as Sieglinde and Kundry.
San Francisco was the only place she appeared on stage in the United States
, firstly as Brünnhilde in Die Walküre
in October 1963, then in 1966 as Elektra, 1968 as Turandot, and finally as Brünnhilde in Götterdämmerung
in 1969.
Amy Shuard was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
(CBE). She died in 1975, aged 50.
Currently available recordings include:
Elektra (opera)
Elektra is a one-act opera by Richard Strauss, to a German-language libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, which he adapted from his 1903 drama Elektra. The opera was the first of many collaborations between Strauss and Hofmannsthal...
, Turandot
Turandot
Turandot is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni.Though Puccini's first interest in the subject was based on his reading of Friedrich Schiller's adaptation of the play, his work is most nearly based on the earlier text Turandot...
and Brünnhilde. She created both title roles in Janáček
Leoš Janácek
Leoš Janáček was a Czech composer, musical theorist, folklorist, publicist and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian and all Slavic folk music to create an original, modern musical style. Until 1895 he devoted himself mainly to folkloristic research and his early musical output was influenced by...
's Káťa Kabanová
Káta Kabanová
Káťa Kabanová is an opera in three acts, with music by Leoš Janáček to a libretto by Vincenc Červinka, based on The Storm, a play by Alexander Ostrovsky. The opera was also largely inspired by Janáček's love for Kamila Stösslová...
and Jenůfa
Jenufa
Jenůfa is an opera in three acts by Leoš Janáček to a Czech libretto by the composer, based on the play Její pastorkyňa by Gabriela Preissová. It was first performed at the Brno Theater, Brno, 21 January 1904...
in their respective British premieres. She has been described as "the best English dramatic soprano since Eva Turner
Eva Turner
Dame Eva Turner DBE was an English dramatic soprano with an international reputation. Her strong, steady and well-trained voice was renowned for its clarion power in Italian and German operatic roles.-Career:...
" (her teacher).
Biography
Amy Shuard was born in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. After studying at the Trinity College of Music
Trinity College of Music
Trinity College of Music is one of the London music conservatories, based in Greenwich. It is part of Trinity Laban.The conservatoire is inheritor of elegant riverside buildings of the former Greenwich Hospital, designed in part by Sir Christopher Wren...
, she had lessons from Eva Turner
Eva Turner
Dame Eva Turner DBE was an English dramatic soprano with an international reputation. Her strong, steady and well-trained voice was renowned for its clarion power in Italian and German operatic roles.-Career:...
. In 1948 the Worshipful Company of Musicians
Worshipful Company of Musicians
The Worshipful Company of Musicians is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. Its history dates back to at least 1350. Originally a specialist guild for musicians, its role became an anachronism in the 18th century, when the centre of music making in London moved from the City to the...
awarded her a prize and she toured South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
as the organization's representative. She returned there in 1949 to make her operatic debut, in Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, in the title role of 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...
; during that season she also sang Giulietta in The Tales of Hoffmann and Venus in Tannhäuser
Tannhäuser (opera)
Tannhäuser is an opera in three acts, music and text by Richard Wagner, based on the two German legends of Tannhäuser and the song contest at Wartburg...
.
She sang at Sadlers Wells from 1949 to 1953, before undertaking more study in Milan with Rosetta Pampanini
Rosetta Pampanini
Rosetta Pampanini was an Italian soprano, particularly associated with Puccini roles, especially Madama Butterfly....
, and then at Covent Garden
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
from 1954 until her death. She also sang at Bayreuth
Bayreuth Festival
The Bayreuth Festival is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th century German composer Richard Wagner are presented...
, La Scala
La Scala
La Scala , is a world renowned opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the New Royal-Ducal Theatre at La Scala...
, Vienna, Buenos Aires and San Francisco.
Her notable roles included the title roles in Káťa Kabanová
Káta Kabanová
Káťa Kabanová is an opera in three acts, with music by Leoš Janáček to a libretto by Vincenc Červinka, based on The Storm, a play by Alexander Ostrovsky. The opera was also largely inspired by Janáček's love for Kamila Stösslová...
(in the 1951 United Kingdom premiere), Jenůfa
Jenufa
Jenůfa is an opera in three acts by Leoš Janáček to a Czech libretto by the composer, based on the play Její pastorkyňa by Gabriela Preissová. It was first performed at the Brno Theater, Brno, 21 January 1904...
(in the 1956 UK premiere), 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...
, Tosca
Tosca
Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900...
, Turandot
Turandot
Turandot is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni.Though Puccini's first interest in the subject was based on his reading of Friedrich Schiller's adaptation of the play, his work is most nearly based on the earlier text Turandot...
, Elektra
Elektra (opera)
Elektra is a one-act opera by Richard Strauss, to a German-language libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, which he adapted from his 1903 drama Elektra. The opera was the first of many collaborations between Strauss and Hofmannsthal...
, Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
and Aida; as well as Santuzza in Cavalleria rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana
Cavalleria rusticana is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from a play written by Giovanni Verga based on his short story. Considered one of the classic verismo operas, it premiered on May 17, 1890 at the Teatro...
, Eboli in Don Carlos
Don Carlos
Don Carlos is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French language libretto by Camille du Locle and Joseph Méry, based on the dramatic play Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien by Friedrich Schiller...
, Tatyana in Eugene Onegin
Eugene Onegin (opera)
Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, is an opera in 3 acts , by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The libretto was written by Konstantin Shilovsky and the composer and his brother Modest, and is based on the novel in verse by Alexander Pushkin....
, Magda Sorel in The Consul
The Consul
The Consul is an opera in three acts with music and libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti, his first full-length opera. Its first performance was on March 1, 1950, at the Shubert Theatre in Philadelphia with Patricia Neway as the lead heroine Magda Sorel, Gloria Lane as the secretary of the consulate,...
, Lady Macbeth (in the first production of Verdi's Macbeth
Macbeth (opera)
Macbeth is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi, with an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and additions by Andrea Maffei, based on Shakespeare's play of the same name...
at Covent Garden), and Kostelnička Buryjovka in Jenůfa in 1972 and 1974.
The latter part of the career saw her essay Wagnerian
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
roles, and she was the first English soprano to sing Brünnhilde at Covent Garden. She also sang Isolde
Tristan und Isolde
Tristan und Isolde is an opera, or music drama, in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the romance by Gottfried von Straßburg. It was composed between 1857 and 1859 and premiered in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting...
at Geneva, as well as Sieglinde and Kundry.
San Francisco was the only place she appeared on stage in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, firstly as Brünnhilde in Die Walküre
Die Walküre
Die Walküre , WWV 86B, is the second of the four operas that form the cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen , by Richard Wagner...
in October 1963, then in 1966 as Elektra, 1968 as Turandot, and finally as Brünnhilde in Götterdämmerung
Götterdämmerung
is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four operas titled Der Ring des Nibelungen...
in 1969.
Amy Shuard was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(CBE). She died in 1975, aged 50.
Recordings
Amy Shuard made only a few studio recordings, but there are many live recordings of her performances. A complete list can be found here.Currently available recordings include:
- Hector BerliozHector BerliozHector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation. He specified huge orchestral forces for some of his works; as a...
: The TrojansLes TroyensLes Troyens is a French opera in five acts by Hector Berlioz. The libretto was written by Berlioz himself, based on Virgil's epic poem The Aeneid...
, under Rafael KubelíkRafael KubelíkRafael Jeroným Kubelík was a Czech conductor and composer.-Early life:Kubelík was born in Býchory, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary, today's Czech Republic. He was the sixth child of the Bohemian violinist Jan Kubelík, whom the younger Kubelík described as "a kind of god to me." His mother was a Hungarian...
, with Jon VickersJon VickersJonathan Stewart Vickers, CC , known professionally as Jon Vickers, is a retired Canadian heldentenor.Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, he was the sixth in a family of eight children. In 1950, he was awarded a scholarship to study opera at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto...
, Blanche ThebomBlanche ThebomBlanche Thebom was an American operatic mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, and opera director. She was part of the first wave of American opera singers that had highly successful international careers. In her own country she had a long association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City which...
, Lauris ElmsLauris ElmsLauris Margaret Elms AM OBE is an Australian contralto, renowned in opera and lieder.She was born in Springvale, Victoria, the daughter of Harry Britton and Jean Elms and trained with Katherine Wielaert in Melbourne. She first sang with the National Theatre Opera Company in 1952 in The Consul. ...
, Joan CarlyleJoan CarlyleJoan Carlyle is a Welsh opera singer .After studying singing with Madame Nicklass Kempner, Joan Carlyle auditioned for the Royal Opera House and was put under contract by music director Rafael Kubelík and made her debut in 1955.She became one of the principal English-speaking singers who emerged at...
and others - Giuseppe VerdiGiuseppe VerdiGiuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
: MacbethMacbeth (opera)Macbeth is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi, with an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave and additions by Andrea Maffei, based on Shakespeare's play of the same name...
, under Francesco Molinari-PradelliFrancesco Molinari-PradelliFrancesco Molinari-Pradelli was a prominent Italian opera conductor. He studied piano and composition at Bologna, and graduated from the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Rome in 1938. He made his debut at La Scala in 1946 and his Covent Garden debut in 1956...
, with Tito GobbiTito GobbiTito Gobbi was an Italian operatic baritone with an international reputation.-Biography:Tito Gobbi was born in Bassano del Grappa and studied law at the University of Padua before he trained as a singer. Giulio Crimi, a well-known Italian tenor of a previous generation, was Gobbi's teacher in Rome...
, Forbes RobinsonForbes RobinsonPeter Forbes Robinson was a British bass, born in Macclesfield, best known for his performances in works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Giuseppe Verdi, and Benjamin Britten.- Career :...
and others - Verdi: RequiemRequiem (Verdi)The Messa da Requiem by Giuseppe Verdi is a musical setting of the Roman Catholic funeral mass for four soloists, double choir and orchestra. It was composed in memory of Alessandro Manzoni, an Italian poet and novelist much admired by Verdi. The first performance in San Marco in Milan on 22 May...
, under Carlo Maria GiuliniCarlo Maria GiuliniCarlo Maria Giulini was an Italian conductor.-Biography:Giulini was born in Barletta, Italy, to a father born in Lombardy and a mother born in Naples; but he was raised in Bolzano, which at the time of his birth was part of Austria...
, with Richard LewisRichard LewisRichard Lewis may refer to:* Richard Lewis , Welsh defendant a.k.a. Dic Penderyn* Richard Lewis , British religious leader* Richard Lewis , British religious leader...
, Anna ReynoldsAnna ReynoldsAnna Reynolds is a British novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. She is the author of Tightrope and Jordan, which was voted "Best Play of 1992" at the Writers Guild Awards, and co-author of The Winding Sheet, a film that won a Silver Hugo at the Chicago Film Festival...
and David WardDavid WardDavid Ward may refer to:*David Jenkins Ward, American politician*David Ward *David Ward , British Liberal Democrat politician, MP for Bradford East*David S...
. - She appears on Volume 5 of The Record of SingingThe Record of SingingThe Record of Singing is a compilation of classical-music singing from the first half of the 20th century, the era of the 78-rpm record.It was issued on LP by EMI, successor to the British company His Master's Voice — perhaps the leading organization in the early history of audio recording.The...
.