Olive Fremstad
American Dramatic Soprano
1871 – 1951 A.D.

Olive Fremstad, an American dramatic soprano, born at Stockholm, Sweden, and came to America with her parents when she was twelve. She early displayed musical talent, and after singing in concert in Boston, she went abroad and studied for two years with Lilli Lehmann. In 1896 she attracted the attention of Madame Cosima Wagner, and in 1900 she began a three years’ engagement at the Royal Opera in Munich, during which she also sang at Covent Garden, London.

The turning point in her career was her American début in November, 1903, as Sieglinde at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York. Her success was overwhelming, and during the next  ten years she was one of the important stars at the Metropolitan. Mme. Fremstad’s glorious voice and splendid acting in the Wagnerian heroines have given her a foremost place among the great operatic artists of her time, and it is generally admitted that in parts demanding poetic grandeur and nobility, her interpretations have never been surpassed.

~*~

Reference: Famous Women; An Outline of Feminine Achievement Through the Ages With Life Stories of Five Hundred Noted Women By Joseph Adelman. Copyright, 1926 by Ellis M. Lonow Company.