MARIA REINING

The Viennese-born soprano Maria Reining (1903-1971) originally had planned a career in banking but began studying singing in her native city after the age of 25. Making her début at the Staatsoper as a soubrette in 1931, the soprano later moved to Darmstadt (1933-35) before joining the Staatsoper in Munich in 1935 for two years. Returning to Vienna, she would continue singing regularly at the Staatsoper until 1958. She appeared at the Salzburg Festival between 1937 and 1941 as Eva (Meistersinger) under Toscanini, Euryanthe, Elisabeth (Tannhäuser) and the Countess (Figaro). She returned to that festival in 1947 in the title-rôle of Arabella in 1947, followed two years later as the Marschallin, a rôle she would repeat in 1953. Her overseas appearances were restricted to Covent Garden in 1938 singing Elsa (Lohengrin) and in Chicago later that same year as Eva and Butterfly. Her Marschallin graced the Parisian stage in 1949, the year in which she appeared in New York at the City Center Opera, again in the Rosenkavalier rôle and as Ariadne. She was an admired artist with a wellschooled voice allied to an elegant and aristocratic stage manner.

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