Opera Scotland

Rigoletto 1959Royal Opera, Stockholm

Read more about the opera Rigoletto

The star of the first three performances was clearly the great Swedish tenor Nicolai Gedda. It is also good to see major company artists like Kerstin Meyer, Birgit Nordin, Anders Näslund and Erik Saedén in relatively short roles. By the seventies, Ingvar Wixell became a major Verdi baritone with an international career, and was an excellent performer of the title role at Covent Garden and elsewhere.

The company's guest conductor, Fausto Cleva, was a highly experienced Italian veteran with several excellent recordings to his credit. He was an excellent pianist, and before the war had also toured Scotland, indeed the whole UK, as accompanist on one of Beniamino Gigli's highly popular and extensive tours.

 

Royal Swedish Opera at the Edinburgh Festival 1959

For its first Edinburgh visit, the Royal Opera, Stockholm, brought a typically ambitious programme of Verdi, Wagner, Berg and Blomdahl.  While the Rigoletto and Walküre may have been fairly conventional,  Un ballo in maschera showed a clear attempt by the director to get as close as possible to Swedish history.  Wozzeck was a Scottish premiere, and Aniara saw the British premiere of an interesting new piece only launched in May.

The five operas given were by Wagner (Die Walküre);  Verdi (Rigoletto,  Un ballo in maschera);  Berg (Wozzeck) and Blomdahl (Aniara).

The three week performance schedule was:

Week One, w/c 24 August:  Mon 24  Ballo in maschera;  Tue 25 Rigoletto;  Wed 26 Walküre;  Thu 27  Rigoletto;  Fri 28  Walküre;  Sat 29  Ballo in maschera.

Week Two,  w/c 31 August:  Mon 31 Walküre;  Tue 1 Sep  Rigoletto;  Wed 2 Walküre;  Thu 3  Aniara;  Fri 4  Ballo in maschera;  Sat 5  Aniara.

Week Three, w/c 7 September:  Mon 7 Walküre;  Tue 8  Wozzeck;  Wed 9 Rigoletto;  Thu 10  Wozzeck;  Fri 11  Rigoletto;  Sat 12  Ballo in maschera.