Description

KARL AAGAARD ØSTVIG (SOMETIMES GERMANIZED TO OESTVIG) (OSLO, 17 MAY, 1889 – OSLO, 21 JULY, 1968)

 

 

 

 

He received his education in Germany, studying under W. Kloed, Ludwig Wüllner, and Fritz Steinbach in Cologne. He made his debut in 1914 at the Court Opera of Stuttgart, where he appeared on September 26, 1915, as Giovanni de Salviati in the premiere of Max von Schillings’s opera Mona Lisa. He remained with the Stuttgart Opera until 1919 before joining the Vienna State Opera, where he performed until 1926.

In Vienna, he sang the role of the Emperor in the premiere of Richard Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten on October 10, 1919. He was celebrated as a partner of the renowned soprano Maria Jeritza, achieving great success in productions such as Korngold’s Die tote Stadt (1921) and Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos. In 1924, he toured with the Vienna State Opera ensemble, making guest appearances in Amsterdam, where he performed Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos. Richard Strauss himself considered him one of the finest interpreters of this role.

In 1926, he had a conflict with the Vienna State Opera when he sought to perform in an operetta at the Vienna Carl Theatre. The opera management forbade this, prompting him to end his engagement with the company. From 1927 to 1930, he was associated with the Städtische Oper in Berlin. He also made guest appearances in Basel (1917), Munich (1919), Budapest, Hamburg (1926), and, in 1933, again at the Städtische Oper in Berlin.

From 1923 onward, he embarked on extensive concert tours, achieving great acclaim in Europe and North America. His second wife, soprano Maria Rajdl (1900–1972), later joined him in Oslo, where they worked as pedagogues. Starting in 1932, he lived in Oslo, serving as a teacher and opera director. Following the Nazi occupation of Norway, he assumed the management of the Oslo opera house in 1941. After the war, he was temporarily arrested as a collaborator but subsequently lived a secluded life in Oslo.

His daughter, Lillemari Østvig, became a noted concert soprano and was the child of his marriage to Maria Rajdl.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1914-1919 Stuttgart Court Opera

1915 Stuttgart Court Opera Mona Lisa (Giovanni de Salviati)

1919 Vienna State Opera Frau ohne Schatten (Emperor)

1919-1926 Vienna State Opera

1921 Vienna State Opera Toten Stadt

1924 Vienna State Opera Ariadne auf Naxos

1925 Vienna State Opera

1927-1930 Berlin Städtischen Oper

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

1. Ich liebe dich (R Strauss) 70666 1944ar Grammophon, Berlin 1922
2. Lohengrin (Wagner) In fernem Land 72827 B22097 Grammophon, Berlin 1922
3. Lohengrin (Wagner) Mein lieber Schwan! 72828 B22098 Grammophon, Berlin 1922
4. Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) Am stillen Herd 72825 904½as Grammophon, Berlin 1922
5. Meistersinger von Nurnberg (Wagner) Fanget an! 72830 B22100 Grammophon, Berlin 1922
6. Meistersinger von Nurnberg (Wagner) Morgenlich leuchtend 72829 B22099 Grammophon, Berlin 1922
7. Walküre (Wagner) Winterstürme wichen dem Wonnemond 72826 905½as Grammophon, Berlin 1922
8. Zueignung (R Strauss) 70665 1943ar Grammophon, Berlin 1922