
Nina Stemme says farewell to Isolde after 126 performances
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Nina Stemme tilted back her head after the final notes of her 126th and last Isolde performance, and her eyes filled with tears.
She was hugged by tenor Stuart Skelton and mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill as the audience in Marian Anderson Hall stood and applauded Sunday evening.
A few days earlier, Stemme thought back to April 2000, when Glyndebourne Festival general director Nicholas Snowman and opera director Nikolaus Lehnhoff walked into her dressing room in Antwerp, Belgium, asking her to sing in the English company's first-ever performance of Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde."
'I really did think they were joking,' she recalled. 'My colleague, Christopher Ventris, said, 'No. No. They're not joking. You have to be careful.'"
Stemme went home to Sweden, considered the offer with vocal coach Richard Trimborn and made her Isolde debut on May 19, 2003, at the Glyndebourne Festival with Robert Gambill as Tristan and Jiří Bělohlávek conducting. She chose to sing her final two Isoldes 22 years later with the Philadelphia Orchestra and music director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who conducted the opera for the first time on June 1 and coaxed a luminous rendition from a premier orchestra at its peak.
'I'm 62 now. I gave it to my 60s to sing these big roles and now I've dropped Elektra and Brünnhilde, and Isolde is the last daughter on stage that I'm singing," Stemme said. "I decided this years ago. This is how it works and every year that I was able to sing Isolde feels like a bonus and a privilege.'
Stemme was friends with Birgit Nilsson, one of the greatest Isoldes and Brünnhildes, who died in 2005 at age 87.
'I was on the verge to go down to her in south Sweden to study Isolde but of course me as a young singer with little kids at home, I never felt ready," Stemme said. 'At that time when we got to know each other, I was singing mostly a lyric repertoire.'
Skelton sang with Stemme in Wagner's 'Der Fliegende Holländer' at the Vienna State Opera in 2004 and his Tristan was paired with Stemme's Isolde in New York, Munich and Naples, Italy.
'It's as radiant now as it was when I first heard her sing it in Glyndebourne way back in the day,' he said. 'No one knew really who Nina Stemme was to a certain extent. Certainly I don't think anyone was ready for what she brought to Isolde even then.'
A conductor learning from the singer
Nézet-Séguin first worked with Stemme in a performance of Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra in 2007, didn't collaborate again until performances of Strauss' 'Die Frau ohne Schatten' at the Met last fall.
'The breadth of her experience with the role is just guiding all of us, me, but also the orchestra, who is playing it for the first time in understanding the flow of the piece, understanding their shades and the colors, and that is invaluable," Nézet-Séguin said of Stemme's Isolde. "It was wonderful for me to benefit from it."
Singers were on a platform above and behind the orchestra, with LED lights below setting a mood: red in the first act, dark blue in the second and light blue in the third.
Stemme wore a dark gown in the first and third acts and a shimmering silver dress in the second, while Skelton, baritone Brian Mulligan (Kurwenal), bass Tareq Nazmi (King Marke) and tenor Freddie Ballentine (Melot) were largely in black, and Cargill (Brangäne) in a lighter-colored costume. Showing sets and complicated directions weren't necessary, she conveyed Isolde's emptions with her eyes, smiles and nods. During the great second-act love duet, Stemme and Skelton clinked water canisters.
'Twenty-two years ago I could act the young princess that was in love or hated her love for Tristan,' she said. 'I have other colors to my voice now and I'm older so of course this interpretation will change. I feel more at home in the middle range and with age, of course, the top notes are not as gleaming as they used to be, but I can make up for that in other ways hopefully — on a good day.'
Stemme's future schedule includes less-taxing roles, such as Klytämnestra in Strauss' 'Elektra' and Waltraute in Wagner's 'Götterdämmerung.' She leaves behind an outstanding recording of her Isolde, made from November 2004 through January 2005 at London's Abbey Road Studios with tenor Plácido Domingo and conductor Antonio Pappano.
Lise Davidsen makes her Isolde debut next year
Anticipation is building for the next great Isolde. Lise Davidsen is scheduled to make her role debut on Jan. 12 at Barcelona's Gran Teatre del Liceu and then open a new production at New York's Metropolitan Opera on March 9 with Nézet-Séguin.
'She said how happy she is to in a way symbolically pass this role, pass it on to her, in a way through me,' Nézet-Séguin said of Stemme. 'That is almost like a torch that has been carried.'
'At heart," she said, "I'm still Madama Butterfly or Mimì.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


San Francisco Chronicle
16 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Aaron Rodgers says his decision to play in Pittsburgh this season was 'best for my soul'
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers doesn't need to keep doing this. He knows that. The four-time NFL MVP's decision to return for a 21st season and to do it in Pittsburgh was not about trying to prove something to himself, the New York Jets or anyone else. The game has given a lot to him. Stardom. Wealth. A title. Relationships that will last long after he decides to stop playing. The next seven months — if they are indeed the last seven months of a career that almost certainly will end with a gold jacket and a bust in the Hall of Fame — are about trying to pay it forward while finding peace in the process. Standing in front of a sea of cameras more suited for the week ahead of a conference championship game rather than what Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin calls 'football-lite' in June, the 41-year-old Rodgers made a compelling case that the coda he is trying to author in Pittsburgh is about something deeper. 'A lot of decisions that I've made over my career and life from strictly the ego, even if they turn out well, are always unfulfilling,' Rodgers said Tuesday after the first day of Pittsburgh's mandatory minicamp. 'But the decisions made from the soul are usually pretty fulfilling. So this was a decision that was best for my soul.' And one the Steelers believe is best for business, one of the reasons they put no pressure on Rodgers during the spring as he dealt with off-the-field issues that he's said included having multiple people in his inner circle battle cancer. Rodgers said those issues 'have improved a bit,' clearing the way for him to join Tomlin and a team that has bounced from one quarterback to another since Ben Roethlisberger retired at the end of the 2021 season. While Rodgers is hardly a long-term solution, he believes he has enough left to help a club that has gone nearly a decade without winning a playoff game. The path from the second Tuesday in June to late January and beyond is a long one, and Rodgers balked when asked if he could help Pittsburgh get over 'the hump." He pointed out it was simply Day 1, with all the awkwardness that comes with it. Rodgers couldn't 'stand' the new helmet he was forced to don after the model he'd worn for the last 20 years was finally banned by the league. He didn't know many of the names of the other 88 guys who joined him on the practice fields on a day All-Pro outside linebacker T.J. Watt skipped in hopes of landing a new contract. It took all of one step outside the locker room for him to immediately get lost. And yet, there was a familiarity to it all. He's known Steelers quarterbacks coach Tom Arth since Arth made a cameo appearance alongside Rodgers as a player in Green Bay in 2006. Rodgers then rattled off a list of people he's come across with Pittsburgh ties (which includes former Packers coach Mike McCarthy) and then added with a smile that he has 'a lot of Yinzers' in my life, a colloquialism for Western Pennsylvania natives. None of those names, however, convinced Rodgers that Pittsburgh was the right choice. That was all Tomlin. The two stayed in contact over the last two-plus months following Rodgers' semi-undercover visit to the team facility in March, producing what Rodgers called 'some of the coolest conversations I've had in the game." 'He's a big reason I'm here,' Rodgers said. 'I believe in him.' The feeling is mutual. Unlike last year, when there was a quarterback competition — at least in practice if not in spirit — between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, there is not one this time. While Rodgers, wearing a white jersey with the No. 8 on it and a towel unfurled over the front of his black shorts, mostly stood and watched while Mason Rudolph, rookie Will Howard and Skyler Thompson took the reps there is no mystery about who will work with the starters when Pittsburgh arrives for training camp at Saint Vincent College in late July. The last few groups of quarterbacks, from Wilson and Fields to Rudolph (during his first stint) to Mitch Trubisky to Kenny Pickett, never missed a practice or an OTA. They are also not Rodgers. 'I trust that whatever issues or learning curve things that he needs to get through will be handled during the down period of the summer for sure,' Tomlin said. Rodgers, who has worked out with recently acquired DK Metcalf in recent months, hopes some of the Steelers' skill position players can join him in Malibu, California, sometime between when minicamp opens on Thursday and they report to Rooney Hall on July 23. If they do, maybe they'll get a chance to meet Rodgers' wife. Rodgers was spotted wearing what looked like a wedding band in a picture the Steelers shared when he signed his contract. Rodgers confirmed Tuesday that he was married 'a couple months' ago but declined to get into details. The revelation, made late in his 13-minute session with reporters, hints at the many layers to Rodgers that extend far beyond the field. He's not afraid to express his views about many topics, from vaccines to politics and beyond. Yet there was none of that on Tuesday. There was only his firm belief in why he's here, and the optimism that this perhaps final chapter of his career will be rooted in joy. 'It's hard to think of anything in my life that's positive that wasn't impacted by directly or indirectly by playing this game,' he said. 'So (I) just want to give love back to the game, enjoy it, pass on my knowledge to my teammates, and try and find ways to help lead the team.' ___


Hamilton Spectator
19 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Aaron Rodgers says his decision to play in Pittsburgh this season was ‘best for my soul'
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers doesn't need to keep doing this. He knows that. The four-time NFL MVP's decision to return for a 21st season and to do it in Pittsburgh was not about trying to prove something to himself, the New York Jets or anyone else. The game has given a lot to him. Stardom. Wealth. A title. Relationships that will last long after he decides to stop playing. The next seven months — if they are indeed the last seven months of a career that almost certainly will end with a gold jacket and a bust in the Hall of Fame — are about trying to pay it forward while finding peace in the process. Standing in front of a sea of cameras more suited for the week ahead of a conference championship game rather than what Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin calls 'football-lite' in June, the 41-year-old Rodgers made a compelling case that the coda he is trying to author in Pittsburgh is about something deeper. 'A lot of decisions that I've made over my career and life from strictly the ego, even if they turn out well, are always unfulfilling,' Rodgers said Tuesday after the first day of Pittsburgh's mandatory minicamp. 'But the decisions made from the soul are usually pretty fulfilling. So this was a decision that was best for my soul.' And one the Steelers believe is best for business, one of the reasons they put no pressure on Rodgers during the spring as he dealt with off-the-field issues that he's said included having multiple people in his inner circle battle cancer. Rodgers said those issues 'have improved a bit,' clearing the way for him to join Tomlin and a team that has bounced from one quarterback to another since Ben Roethlisberger retired at the end of the 2021 season. While Rodgers is hardly a long-term solution, he believes he has enough left to help a club that has gone nearly a decade without winning a playoff game. The path from the second Tuesday in June to late January and beyond is a long one, and Rodgers balked when asked if he could help Pittsburgh get over 'the hump.' He pointed out it was simply Day 1, with all the awkwardness that comes with it. Rodgers couldn't 'stand' the new helmet he was forced to don after the model he'd worn for the last 20 years was finally banned by the league. He didn't know many of the names of the other 88 guys who joined him on the practice fields on a day All-Pro outside linebacker T.J. Watt skipped in hopes of landing a new contract. It took all of one step outside the locker room for him to immediately get lost. And yet, there was a familiarity to it all. He's known Steelers quarterbacks coach Tom Arth since Arth made a cameo appearance alongside Rodgers as a player in Green Bay in 2006. Rodgers then rattled off a list of people he's come across with Pittsburgh ties (which includes former Packers coach Mike McCarthy) and then added with a smile that he has 'a lot of Yinzers' in my life, a colloquialism for Western Pennsylvania natives. None of those names, however, convinced Rodgers that Pittsburgh was the right choice. That was all Tomlin. The two stayed in contact over the last two-plus months following Rodgers' semi-undercover visit to the team facility in March, producing what Rodgers called 'some of the coolest conversations I've had in the game.' 'He's a big reason I'm here,' Rodgers said. 'I believe in him.' The feeling is mutual. Unlike last year, when there was a quarterback competition — at least in practice if not in spirit — between Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, there is not one this time. While Rodgers, wearing a white jersey with the No. 8 on it and a towel unfurled over the front of his black shorts, mostly stood and watched while Mason Rudolph, rookie Will Howard and Skyler Thompson took the reps there is no mystery about who will work with the starters when Pittsburgh arrives for training camp at Saint Vincent College in late July. The last few groups of quarterbacks, from Wilson and Fields to Rudolph (during his first stint) to Mitch Trubisky to Kenny Pickett, never missed a practice or an OTA. They are also not Rodgers. 'I trust that whatever issues or learning curve things that he needs to get through will be handled during the down period of the summer for sure,' Tomlin said. Rodgers, who has worked out with recently acquired DK Metcalf in recent months, hopes some of the Steelers' skill position players can join him in Malibu, California, sometime between when minicamp opens on Thursday and they report to Rooney Hall on July 23. If they do, maybe they'll get a chance to meet Rodgers' wife. Rodgers was spotted wearing what looked like a wedding band in a picture the Steelers shared when he signed his contract. Rodgers confirmed Tuesday that he was married 'a couple months' ago but declined to get into details. The revelation, made late in his 13-minute session with reporters, hints at the many layers to Rodgers that extend far beyond the field. He's not afraid to express his views about many topics, from vaccines to politics and beyond. Yet there was none of that on Tuesday. There was only his firm belief in why he's here, and the optimism that this perhaps final chapter of his career will be rooted in joy. 'It's hard to think of anything in my life that's positive that wasn't impacted by directly or indirectly by playing this game,' he said. 'So (I) just want to give love back to the game, enjoy it, pass on my knowledge to my teammates, and try and find ways to help lead the team.' ___ AP NFL:
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Princess Catharina-Amalia Hospitalized After Horseback-Riding Incident
Princess Catharina-Amalia sustained injuries after falling off her horse, the Dutch royal palace shared The princess will undergo surgery, the palace said Her mother, Queen Maxima, reportedly left an engagement at The Hague early because of her daughter's accidentPrincess Catharina-Amalia, the eldest daughter of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, has been hospitalized following a horseback-riding incident, the Dutch royal palace confirmed. In a statement posted to the palace's website on Tuesday, June 10, officials shared that the 21-year-old heir to the Dutch throne suffered a fall. "The Princess of Orange broke her upper arm today after falling from her horse. She will undergo surgery at the UMC Utrecht," an English translation of the statement read. "More information will follow as soon as it becomes clear what the possible consequences are for official obligations and other agreements." While the palace did not provide additional information, both Hello! and the Daily Express reported that Princess Amalia's mother Queen Maxima left early from her engagement with the MIND Us Foundation at the Noordeinde Palace in The Hague on Tuesday. The princess is a longtime equestrian, and the palace's official website features photos of Princess Amalia riding her horse Mojito, and notes that she "enjoys horse riding, tennis and singing" in her free time. Princess Amalia isn't the only high-profile royal to suffer a horse-related incident in recent years. Princess Anne was hospitalized in June 2024 with a concussion thought to be caused by impact with a horse on her Gatcombe Park estate. Anne, 74, said she could not remember "a single thing" about the incident one month after her hospitalization. While reflecting on her injuries during a trip to South Africa earlier this year, the Princess Royal told the Press Association that the experience taught her 'every day is a bonus," per the BBC. Can't get enough of PEOPLE's Royals coverage? to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more! 'It just reminds you, shows you — you never quite know, something [happens] and you might not recover,' she said, adding, 'You're jolly lucky … if you can continue to be more or less compos mentis [of sound mind], and last summer I was very close to not being. Take each day as it comes, they say." She later made an emotional return to the hospital where she was treated after the incident, and thanked staffers who cared for her. When she and her family take part in Trooping the Colour on Saturday, June 14, the Princess Royal is expected to ride on horseback alongside Prince William and Prince Edward. Read the original article on People