Elisabeth Feuge (Soprano)

Born: August 15, 1902 - Dessau, Germany
Died: July 4, 1942 - Munich, Germany

The German soprano, Elisabeth Feuge, was the daughter of a famous singer married couple. Her father, Oscar Feuge (1861-1913), worked for many years as tenor at the Hoftheater of Dessau, and her mother, Emmy Feuge Gleiss (1863-1923), was active at the same theatre as coloratura soprano and sang among other things at the Bayreuth Festival. She was trained by her mother.

Elisabeth Feuge made her debut in 1921 in Dessau. In 1923 she joined the Munich State Opera, whose member she remained up to her death. She completed her training in Munich with Hans Bußmeye and made guest appearances at the State Operas of Dresden and Stuttgart, at the Vienna State Opera, where in 1929 she sang Pamina in Zauberflöte, at the Théâtre de la Monnaie Brussels (1935), and at the Stadttheater of Graz (1938). At the Salzburg Festival of 1934 she sang Donna Anna in Don Giovanni. In 1932 she appeared as a guest in Amsterdam and in Hague.

Already 1924 Elisabeth Feuge participated in Munich in the premiere of the opera Don Gil von den grünen Hosen by Walter Braubnfels, in 1927 in E. Wolf-Ferrari’s Das Himmelskleid, in 1931 in Jaromir Weinberger’s opera Die geliebte Stimme, in 1934 in the premiere of Vittorio Giannini’s opera Lucedia. High points of her stage repertoire were Agathe in Freischütz, Elsa in Lohengrin, Eva in Meistersingern, Irene in Rienzi by R. Wagner, Gutrune in Götterdämmerung, Minneleide in Rose vom Liebesgarten by H. Pfitzner, Diemuth in Feuersnot by R. Strauss, Octavian in Rosenkavalier, Frau Storch in Intermezzo by R. Strauss, Silla in Palestrina by H. Pfitzner, Micaela in Carmen and Ilia in Mozart’s Idomeneo. She was a highly outstanding concert and oratorio soloist. Later she worked at the Munich Opera also as assistant chief play director. She had soprano voice of high stylistic projecting ability, particularly as an interpreter of Wagner and R. Strauss roles.

Only one recording of Elisabeth Feuge exists on Parlophon label. 30 years after her death a complete Matthäus-Passion (BWV 244) (radio broadcast from Leipzig 1936) was issued on Bellaphon and Rococo.

Source: Operissimo Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (May 2004)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (May 2004); Manfred Krugmann (Photos 02-07, July 2011)

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Hans Weisbach

Soprano

BWV 244

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