Leonie Rysanek

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Austrian singer, a leading dramatic operatic soprano at major opera houses on both sides of the Atlantic, acclaimed for her interpretations of roles by Verdi, Wagner and Strauss. Born to working class parents, she was lucky to find herself in a musical family that happened to be in a musical city. Not only did she show vocal talent at a young age, her younger sister and brother did too. Although her family survived on financially shaky ground, Rysanek was able to enroll in the Vienna Academy. Her education at the academy was slowed during the war, at which time she worked in a factory. However, a couple of years later, at age 22, she made her official stage debut as Agathe in "Der Freischutz." The next year, Rysanek signed two-year contracts at the Saarbrucken State Theater and at the Munich State Opera. Her stature as a Wagnerian was affirmed by Sieglinde in "Die Walkure" at the 1951 Bayreuth Festival, with Wieland Wagner as stage director. Rysanek went on to become a regular at Bayreuth, taking on many roles. She was always one who enjoyed variety, a sticking point between her and Rudolf Bing, who wanted to bring her to the Met, but only in German operas. Eventually, Bing agreed to sign her for a mixed repertory instead of just German operas. Rysanek's Metropolitan Opera debut was scheduled for 2/25/1959, but she actually appeared twenty days earlier when the lead in "MacBeth" quit unexpectedly; Rysanek filled in. Over the years she performed 532 times at the Viennese theater and 299 times at the Met. Many words were used to describe Rysanek, but "vivid" was the most powerful of them all. She was married once to 25-year-older Rudolf Grossmann. Died of bone cancer on 3/07/1998, age 71. Link to Wikipedia biography