Maralin Niska
Maralin Niska (November 16, 1926 – July 9, 2016) was an American operatic soprano. Well known as a singing-actress, she was a mainstay of the New York City Opera during the 1960s and 1970s. She was also a regular performer at the Metropolitan Opera from 1970 to 1977.
Early life, education, and early career
Born in
San Pedro, California, Niska earned a Bachelor of English Literature from the University of California, Los Angeles and began her professional life as a second grade public school teacher for seven years. She then returned to school to study voice at the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California and U.C.L.A.[1] She studied under Louise Mansfield, Lotte Lehmann, Vladimir Rosing, and Ernest St. John Metz. She performed extensively in southern California during the 1950s, including performances with the USC Opera, UCLA Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Redlands Bowl and other regional companies. Her extensive national and international career began at the opening of the Metropolitan Opera National Company as Susannah in the Carlisle Floyd
work in Indianapolis in 1965. After retiring from the stage, she lived in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and was married to William Mullen.
New York City Opera
The soprano was first heard at the
The Makropoulos Case (with Harry Theyard and Chester Ludgin, directed by Corsaro), Susannah (with Treigle), Tosca (with José Carreras), Don Giovanni (as Donna Anna, conducted by Bruno Maderna), Don Giovanni (now as Donna Elvira, with Richard Fredricks and Richard Stilwell alternating in the name part), Ariadne auf Naxos (as the Composer, staged by Sarah Caldwell), Médée (in the Italian version), Manon Lescaut, Salome (conducted by Julius Rudel), Idomeneo (as Elettra), a double-bill of Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci (in which she sang both Santuzza and Nedda), La voix humaine, La fanciulla del West, Die Fledermaus (as Rosalinde), and Maria Stuarda (as Elisabetta). In all she sang 29 leading roles with the company,[2]
the most of any singer in its history.
Metropolitan Opera
Niska debuted at the
Wolf Trap Farm Park, in Don Giovanni, in which she portrayed Donna Elvira opposite James Morris, Rockwell Blake, Roberta Peters, Donald Gramm, and John Macurdy
. The soprano sang with various other companies in America, as well.
Videography
- Puccini: La bohème (Scotto, Pavarotti, Wixell, Monk, Plishka, Tajo; Levine, Melano, 1977) [live] Deutsche Grammophon
References
- ^ F. Paul Driscoll (October 2016). "Obituaries: Soprano Maralin Niska dies at eighty-nine". Opera News.
- ^ "Maralin Niska, Lyric Soprano at New York City Opera Who Won Hearts, Dies at 89" by William Grimes, The New York Times, July 13, 2016
- The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia, edited by David Hamilton, ISBN 0-671-61732-X
External links
- Maralin Niska in "Dunque è proprio finita ... Addio, dolce svegliare" from La bohème on YouTube, with Renata Scotto, Luciano Pavarotti, and Ingvar Wixell(1977)
- Maralin Niska, Oberon's Grove, August 18, 2006
- A favorite Niska role [1]
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