Nicolai Gedda facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Nicolai Gedda
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Nicolai Gedda, 1959
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Harry Gustaf Nikolai Gädda
11 July 1925 |
| Died | 8 January 2017 (aged 91) |
Harry Gustaf Nikolai Gädda, known as Nicolai Gedda, was a famous Swedish opera singer. He was a tenor, which means he was a male singer with a high voice. Born on July 11, 1925, he started his singing career in 1951. He sang in operas until he was 77 years old, making his last recording in June 2003.
Nicolai Gedda was very good at languages. He performed operas in French, Russian, German, Italian, English, Czech, Swedish, and even Latin! In 1958, he was the first to play the part of Anatol in the American opera Vanessa at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. He made about 200 recordings, making him one of the most recorded opera singers ever. People loved his singing for its beautiful sound, his amazing control, and how well he understood the music.
Contents
Growing Up
Nicolai Gedda was born in Stockholm, Sweden. He was raised by his aunt and his adoptive father, Michail Ustinov. Michail was a singer in a choir and worked in a Russian Orthodox church.
Nicolai grew up speaking both Swedish and Russian. From 1929 to 1934, his family lived in Leipzig, Germany, where he learned German. When he was five, he sang in a group at the church. His family moved back to Sweden in 1934. At school, he learned English, French, and Latin. After school, he taught himself Italian.
Nicolai first worked as a bank teller in Stockholm. He had to help his parents with money. One day, he told a customer, who was from the Royal Opera House Orchestra, that he was looking for a good singing teacher. The customer suggested Carl Martin Öhman, a famous tenor who had also discovered another great singer, Jussi Björling. Öhman was very impressed with Nicolai and taught him for free at first. After a few months, Nicolai got a grant and a scholarship, which helped him pay for his lessons. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music and Opera School in Stockholm from 1950 to 1952.
Opera Performances
Nicolai Gedda first sang at the Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm in November 1951. He was part of a singing group in an opera called Der rote Stiefel. In April 1952, when he was 26, he had a huge success in a main role in Stockholm. He played Chapelou in Le postillon de Lonjumeau. A song from this opera, "Mes amis, écoutez l'histoire", is known as one of the hardest songs for a tenor because it needs a very high note!
A famous music producer named Walter Legge heard Nicolai sing and was very impressed. Because of this audition, Nicolai got to record three operas and other music. In 1953, he sang for the first time at La Scala, a famous opera house in Italy. The next year, he made his debut at the Paris Opera in France. He sang many important roles there, like Huon in Oberon and Tamino in The Magic Flute. He also sang Alfredo in La traviata and the Duke of Mantua in Rigoletto.
Nicolai lived in France for a while and often performed at the Aix-en-Provence Festival. A magazine called Diapason said he was the best French tenor of his time. He helped bring back interest in French grand opera because he could sing difficult roles like Arnold in Guillaume Tell and the main parts in Berlioz's operas.
In 1957, Nicolai sang in the U.S. for the first time in Pittsburgh. Later that year, he made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, singing the main role in Gounod's Faust. He sang 28 different roles there over 26 years! He was also the first to sing Anatol in the new opera Vanessa by Samuel Barber. Nicolai Gedda was the very last singer to perform on the stage of the 'old Met' opera house before it closed.
He also sang at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, starting in 1954. He played the Duke in Verdi's Rigoletto. He returned many times for other famous operas like La damnation de Faust and Benvenuto Cellini.
Nicolai Gedda only sang in one opera by Wagner, which was Lohengrin in Stockholm in 1966. Critics said his singing was "overwhelmingly beautiful."
He made over 200 recordings, covering many different styles of music. Some of his roles were very challenging, like Arnold in Rossini's Guillaume Tell. He was also known for singing in lighter operas, like the fun operettas by Strauss and Lehár.
Nicolai Gedda also had a small part in a 1952 film called Eldfågeln, where he sang a Swedish folk song. He continued to sing well into his late 70s. In 2001, he recorded a role in Puccini's Turandot, and in 2003, he recorded a role in Mozart's Idomeneo.
Art Songs and Concerts
Besides opera, Nicolai Gedda also performed in concerts and sang art songs. Art songs are classical songs for a singer and a piano. He had a huge collection of French, German, Scandinavian, and Russian art songs. He often performed with pianist Jan Eyron for over 25 years. His amazing language skills and musical understanding made him perfect for this type of music. He also sang and recorded religious music, including Russian church music.
Awards and Recognition
Nicolai Gedda received many awards for his talent:
- In 1965, he became a Swedish Court Singer.
- In 1966, he joined the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.
- In 1968, he received the Swedish royal medal Litteris et Artibus.
- In 1976, he won the Gold Medal for the Promotion of the Art of Music.
- In 2007, he received the Caruso prize.
- In 2010, he was given the Legion of Honor, which is the highest award in France.
He was also a visiting professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London and became an Honorary Member in 1994.
Life Outside Music
Outside of music, Nicolai Gedda had many hobbies. He was a keen sportsman and loved painting and sculpture. He also enjoyed reading books by famous writers in their original languages. He had a special love for visiting zoos and even said he would like to have a "complete menagerie" (a collection of animals) at home if he didn't have to travel for his job.
Nicolai Gedda was married three times. His first marriage was to Nadine Sapounoff-Nova (1953–1961), his second to Anastasia Caraviotis (1965–1991), and his last to journalist Aino Sellermark, starting in 1997.
He wrote his first memoir, Gåvan är inte gratis (The gift is not free), in 1977 with the help of Aino Sellermark. This book was later translated into English as Nicolai Gedda: My Life and Art.
Nicolai Gedda passed away on January 8, 2017, at the age of 91, after a heart attack at his home in Switzerland. His family announced his death a month later.
Images for kids
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Nicolai Gedda at the Korsholm Music Festival, 1987.
See also
In Spanish: Nicolai Gedda para niños
