Olga Simzis
Olga Simzis (1887,
Odessa, Russian Empire – ?) was an operatic soprano who was active in the United States, Italy and Latin America from 1906 to 1941. She created the role of Ermyntrude in Pietro Mascagni's opera Isabeau in its world premiere conducted by the composer at the Teatro Coliseo in Buenos Aires in 1911.[1] She also sang the role of Gilda in some scenes of one of the first complete recordings of Giuseppe Verdi's Rigoletto (made in 1916–1917 by La voce del padrone with the company of La Scala under the direction of Carlo Sabajno), where she substituted the first-cast soprano Ayres Borghi-Zerni.[2]
Olga Simzis was born in
Santiago de Chile. After the marriage Simzis's career was relegated to appearances in different minor opera houses of Latin America, where she performed in a wide variety of operatic parts (including Iris in Pietro Mascagni's opera of the same title and Minnie in Puccini's La fanciulla del West
). She probably left the stage in 1941. Her death is undocumented.
References
- UPNE
- ^ McCants, Clyde T. (2009). Rigoletto, Trovatore, and Traviata: Verdi's Middle Period Masterpieces on and Off the Stage, p. 107. McFarland
- San Francisco Call-Bulletin (22 September 1907). "Six Unmated Prime Donne", p. 34
External links
- Olga Simzis on La Voce Antica