Elisabeth Söderström

Elisabeth Söderström (born May 7, 1927) is a Swedish opera soprano.

Born in Stockholm, Söderström received her first musical schooling from Andrejewa von Skilonz and later went on to study at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm. She made her debut in 1947 at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre singing in one of Mozart's lesser known works "Bastien et Bastienne". From 1949 to 1980 she called the Royal Swedish Opera her home but she frequently appeared at some of the largest opera houses in the world. She was also a regular visitor to the recording studio. Between 1959 and 1964 Söderström was contracted by the Metropolitan Opera in New York to which she would return in 1983-87. Her last stage performance was in 1999 in Tchaikovsky's "The Queen of Spades" at the Metropolitan Opera.

During her long career, Elisabeth Söderström made a name for herself as a technically perfect and at the same time warm soprano with a personal style which allowed her to sing in a wide variety of different works ranging from 17th century to contemporary. Between appearances in fully staged operas, Söderström gave numerous concerts and recitals in all corners of the world.

Between 1993 and 1996 Söderström was the director of the Drottningholm Palace Theatre, the very stage where she had made her debut almost 50 years earlier.

Elisabeth Söderström has been married to Sverker Olow since 1950. She resides in Lidingö.

In 1983 under the baton of James Levine, she sang The Final Trio from Strauss' Rosenkavalier with Kathleen Battle and Frederika Von Stade at the Metropolitan's Centennial Gala.