Luise Jaide
Encyclopedia
Luise Jaide (26 March 1842 – 2 January 1914) was a German
opera
tic mezzo-soprano
who had an active career during the latter half of the 19th century. Among her signature roles were Amneris in Aida
, Azucena in Il trovatore
, Frau Reich in The Merry Wives of Windsor
, Idamante in Idomeneo
, Irmentraud in Der Waffenschmied, and Mary in The Flying Dutchman
, She is best remembered today for playing several roles in the first complete presentation of Richard Wagner
's The Ring Cycle
at the very first Bayreuth Festival
in 1876.
, Jaide studied at the Stuttgart Conservatory. She made her professional opera debut in 1859 as Pierotto in Gaetano Donizetti
's Linda di Chamounix
at the Dresden Court Theater under the name Louise Orth. Subsequent engagements took her to the Municipal Theater of Bremen
and the German Opera Theater in Rotterdam
. From 1861 to 1862 she was committed to the Staatsoper Hannover
and she performed at the Stadttheater Regensburg
from 1862 to 1865. She returned to Darmstadt in 1865, where she remained for the next twelve years, performing under the name of Louise Jaide.
In 1872 Richard Wagner heard Jaide perform in Darmstadt and was very impressed by her vocal and dramatic abilities. He invited her to take part in the first presentation of the complete Ring Cycle at the Bayreuth Festival in 1876. This was the first time that the third and fourth operas in the Ring cycle, Siegfried
and Götterdämmerung
, were heard. Jaide played Erda in Siegfried at its première on August 16, 1876, and she played Waltraute in Götterdämmerung at its première on August 17, 1876. She also sang the role of Waltraute in Wagner's Die Walküre
as part of the first complete Ring cycle on August 14, 1876.
As a guest artist Jaide appeared at the Staatsoper Stuttgart
(1873), the opera house in Wiesbaden (1874), the Vienna State Opera
(1874 and 1877), and the Oper Frankfurt (1875). From 1878 to 1879 Jaide was a member of the opera house in Bremen. From 1879 to 1889 she was committed to the opera house in Rotterdam
. From 1889 to 1890 she was a principal artist at the Vlaamse Opera
, after which she retired from the stage. After her opera career ended, Jaide dedicated herself to teaching aspiring opera singers in Darmstadt.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
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...
tic mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
who had an active career during the latter half of the 19th century. Among her signature roles were Amneris in 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...
, Azucena in 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...
, Frau Reich in The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor (opera)
The Merry Wives of Windsor is an opera in three acts by Otto Nicolai to a German libretto by Hermann Salomon Mosenthal, based on the play The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare....
, Idamante in Idomeneo
Idomeneo
Idomeneo, re di Creta ossia Ilia e Idamante is an Italian language opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The libretto was adapted by Giambattista Varesco from a French text by Antoine Danchet, which had been set to music by André Campra as Idoménée in 1712...
, Irmentraud in Der Waffenschmied, and Mary in The Flying Dutchman
The Flying Dutchman (opera)
Der fliegende Holländer is an opera, with music and libretto by Richard Wagner.Wagner claimed in his 1870 autobiography Mein Leben that he had been inspired to write "The Flying Dutchman" following a stormy sea crossing he made from Riga to London in July and August 1839, but in his 1843...
, She is best remembered today for playing several roles in the first complete presentation of Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's The Ring Cycle
Der Ring des Nibelungen
Der Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
at the very first Bayreuth Festival
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...
in 1876.
Biography
Born Luise Jaide in DarmstadtDarmstadt
Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Rhine Main Area.The sandy soils in the Darmstadt area, ill-suited for agriculture in times before industrial fertilisation, prevented any larger settlement from developing, until the city became the seat...
, Jaide studied at the Stuttgart Conservatory. She made her professional opera debut in 1859 as Pierotto in Gaetano Donizetti
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. His best-known works are the operas L'elisir d'amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , and Don Pasquale , all in Italian, and the French operas La favorite and La fille du régiment...
's Linda di Chamounix
Linda di Chamounix
Linda di Chamounix is an operatic melodramma semiserio in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti. The Italian libretto was written by Gaetano Rossi. It premiered in Vienna, at the Kärntnertortheater, on May 19, 1842.-Performance history:...
at the Dresden Court Theater under the name Louise Orth. Subsequent engagements took her to the Municipal Theater of Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
and the German Opera Theater in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
. From 1861 to 1862 she was committed to the Staatsoper Hannover
Staatsoper Hannover
Staatsoper Hannover is an opera house and opera company in Hanover. It is one of the leading opera companies in Germany.During the course of its season from September to June, Staatsoper Hannover mounts productions of a variety of operas from the standard operatic repertoire as well as 20th century...
and she performed at the Stadttheater Regensburg
Theater Regensburg
Theater Regensburg is a theatrical organization that produces operas, musicals, ballets, plays, and concerts in Regensburg, Germany...
from 1862 to 1865. She returned to Darmstadt in 1865, where she remained for the next twelve years, performing under the name of Louise Jaide.
In 1872 Richard Wagner heard Jaide perform in Darmstadt and was very impressed by her vocal and dramatic abilities. He invited her to take part in the first presentation of the complete Ring Cycle at the Bayreuth Festival in 1876. This was the first time that the third and fourth operas in the Ring cycle, Siegfried
Siegfried (opera)
Siegfried is the third of the four operas that constitute Der Ring des Nibelungen , by Richard Wagner. It received its premiere at the Bayreuth Festspielhaus on 16 August 1876, as part of the first complete performance of The Ring...
and Götterdämmerung
Götterdämmerung
is the last in Richard Wagner's cycle of four operas titled Der Ring des Nibelungen...
, were heard. Jaide played Erda in Siegfried at its première on August 16, 1876, and she played Waltraute in Götterdämmerung at its première on August 17, 1876. She also sang the role of Waltraute in Wagner's 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...
as part of the first complete Ring cycle on August 14, 1876.
As a guest artist Jaide appeared at the Staatsoper Stuttgart
Staatsoper Stuttgart
The Staatsoper Stuttgart is a German opera company based in Stuttgart, Germany.-History:The Stuttgart Staatsoper forms part of the Stuttgart State Theatre , which is a a three-branch-theatre complex and represents the largest theatre of its kind in Europe...
(1873), the opera house in Wiesbaden (1874), the Vienna State Opera
Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera is an opera house – and opera company – with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. It is located in the centre of Vienna, Austria. It was originally called the Vienna Court Opera . In 1920, with the replacement of the Habsburg Monarchy by the First Austrian...
(1874 and 1877), and the Oper Frankfurt (1875). From 1878 to 1879 Jaide was a member of the opera house in Bremen. From 1879 to 1889 she was committed to the opera house in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
. From 1889 to 1890 she was a principal artist at the Vlaamse Opera
Vlaamse Opera
The Vlaamse Opera ' is an opera company in Belgium directed by Aviel Cahn which operates in two different opera houses in two Flemish cities, the Vlaamse Opera Antwerpen at Van Ertbornstraat 8 and the Vlaamse Opera Ghent at Schouwburgstraat 3...
, after which she retired from the stage. After her opera career ended, Jaide dedicated herself to teaching aspiring opera singers in Darmstadt.