Listen to Roger Pines's tribute to Christa Ludwig
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Christa Ludwig
The German mezzo-soprano Christa Ludwig (1928 – 2021) triumphed at Lyric in roles for which she gained international renown (Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro, Dorabella in Così fan tutte, the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier), but also in two operas she sang very rarely, if at all, in other houses: Mefistofele (as Elena) and La forza del destino (as Preziosilla). A fixture for decades at the Vienna State Opera, she brought her lustrous, wide-ranging voice and exceptional acting talent to the Met and the Salzburg Festival, while also forging a spectacularly successful concert and recital career.
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Così fan tutte at Lyric, 1959: Christa Ludwig (second from right) with Léopold Simoneau, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, and Walter Berry.
Photo by Nancy Sorensen.
Elisabeth Schwarzkopf (Fiordiligi) and Christa Ludwig (Dorabella) in Così fan tutte, 1959.
Photo: Nancy Sorensen
Christa Ludwig (The Marschallin) and Yvonne Minton (Octavian) in Der Rosenkavalier, 1970.
Photo: David H. Fishman
Christa Ludwig's roles at Lyric
Main photo: Christa Ludwig as The Marschallin in Act III of Der Rosenkavalier, 1970. Photo by David H. Fishman.