Great Historical Singers (Christa Ludwig)

    Christa Ludwig is a mezzo-soprano who graced the operatic and concert stages for nearly fifty years.  She was born in 1928 to two famous opera singers in Berlin.  Christa Ludwig studied with her mother for years and made her operatic debut as Prince Orlovsky in "Die Fledermaus." Ludwig's first husband was the late Austrian bass-baritone Walter Berry.  This powerful duo was featured on several great recordings. Afew of them were the recording of "Cosi fan Tutte", with Karl Bohme conducting, various Mahler songs with Leonard Bernstein at the piano, "Die Frau Ohne Schatten" with Bohme conducting, and "Blue Beard's Castle" with Kertesz conducting.  These are great recordings which show Ludwig's great range, musicality and versatility.  Christa Ludwig was a highly intelligent singer who was able to sing lieder, opera, oratorio, and even musical theatre.  She sang until she was in her mid sixties, with her final performance as Klytemnestra in "Elektra", by Richard Strauss.      My first time hearing Christa Ludwig was on Herbert Von Karajan's recording of "Der Rosenkavalier" by Richard Strauss. I was blown away.  Soon after that, I received videos of "Die Walkure" and Götterdämmerung from Wagner's Ring Cycle.  These videos were made around 1990, so Ludwig was over 60 in them.  She sounds very youthful in them, because she always sang with her true instrument.  As Ludwig got older, she sang heavier roles such as Ulrica, Carmen, Mistress Quickly, and Lady Macbeth, and she did so with her true voice which had matured very naturally.  Ludwig's longevity can be attributed to the fact that she sang in a natural and lyrical manner.  I highly recommend listening to the live recording of Ludwig as Lady Macbeth in Verdi's opera "Macbeth." Her portrayal of Lady Macbeth is chilling, and sung brilliantly.  Sherill Milnes sings the title role of Macbeth in this recording, and he and Ludwig are a great combination.     I decided to write about Christa Ludwig, and introduce her to people because she was so versatile.  Above all she was a true artist.  I cannot name one recording I have heard with Ludwig in which she does not sing with conviction.  She sang convincingly in several genres, and that is impressive.  She even recorded Leonard Berstein's "Candide" with Bernstein himself conducting.  She was a great Bach soloist and lieder performer in French, German and Russian.  She was a performer to be reckoned with, when she was performing.