Sigrid Onégin

Sigrid Onégin (June 1, 1889 - June 16, 1943) was a Franco-German operatic contralto who enjoyed an international career prior to World War Two. She was born in Stockholm, Sweden to a German father and a French mother.

She first sang professionally under her maiden name, Lilly Hoffmann. After her marriage to Russian pianist and composer Eugene Onégin (1883–1919), she sang briefly as Lilly Hoffmann-Onégin before settling on Sigrid Onegin, the name she became famous by.

She studied in Frankfurt, Munich, and Milan. She also took lessons from singers Lilli Lehmann and Margarete Siems. Her operatic debut came at Stuttgart in October 1912 where she appeared as "Carmen".Slonimsky, Nicolas, et al. "Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of 20th Century Classical Musicians" 1997 Schirmer Books] She joined the Stuttgart Opera in 1912 and the Munich Opera in 1919. In the 1920s, she spent two seasons at the Metropolitan Opera and one at Covent Garden, singing Amneris ("Aida") as well as a variety of Wagnerian roles. In the 1930s, she sang at Salzburg and Bayreuth, but she was most widely sought after for her concert performances.

Onegin is said to have had the finest contralto voice since Ernestine Schumann-Heink. It was celebrated for the richness of its tone, its flexbility and its remarkable technique.Shawe-Taylor, Desmond, et al: "Onegin [Onégin; née Hoffmann] , (Elisabeth Elfriede Emilie) Sigrid [Lilly] ", "Grove Music Online" ed. L. Macy (Retrieved on March 25, 2008), ] She also possessed a remarkably wide vocal range.

Onegin made her last concert appearance in the United States in 1938 and died in Magliaso, Switzerland in 1943. She made a number of recordings during her prime which have been reissed on CD.

Created roles

*Created role of Dryad in "Ariadne auf Naxos" ["Onegin, Sigrid" The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera. John Warrack and Ewan West. Oxford University Press, 1996. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Retrieved March 26, 2008) ]

Other notable roles

*Orfeo (Gluck's "Orfeo ed Euridice")
*Eboli ("Don Carlos")
*Fidès ("Le prophète")
*Erda ("Das Rheingold", "Siegfried")
*Lady Macbeth ("Macbeth")
*Fricka ("Das Rheingold", "Die Walküre")
*Waltraute ("Die Walküre", "Götterdämmerung")
*Brangäne ("Tristan und Isolde")
*Amneris ("Aida")

Notes and references