Mathilde Mallinger by Luckhardt

as Elsa in "Lohengrin" by Wagner

MATHILDE MALLINGER
(Mathilde Lichtenegger)
17 February 1847 – 19 April 1920
Croation Soprano

Studied singing with Giovanni Battista Gordigiani at the Prague Conservatory and with Richard Loewy in Vienna. Debut at Munich Hofoper in 1866 as Norma in “Norma” by Bellini. She created the role of Eva in the world premiere of Richard Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg on 21 June 1868. Mallinger left Munich to join the roster of principal artists at the Berlin State Opera in 1869-1882. sang in the Berlin premieres of Lohengrin (Elsa, 1869), Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (1870) and Giuseppe Verdi's Aida (Aida, 1874). She also portrayed Ingeborg in the world premiere of Bernard Hopffner's Frithjof (11 April 1871) and sang in the premiere of Wilhelm Taubert's Cesario oder Was ihr wollt (13 November 1874). Other roles she sang included Leonore in Fidelio, Agathe in Der Freischütz, Sieglinde in Die Walküre, Valentine in Les Huguenots and several Mozart heroines, including Pamina, Donna Anna and Countess Almaviva. She made a number of guest appearances at the Vienna State Opera and the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg. Although she retired from the opera stage in 1882, she continued to perform as a concert singer up through 1895. She worked as a celebrated singing teacher in Prague and then taught at the Eichelberg'schen Konservatorium in Berlin up until her death.