About the Book
First published to wide acclaim in Sweden (1995) and in Germany (1997), the autobiography of opera legend Birgit Nilsson (1918-2005) is finally available in an English translation. From her humble roots in rural Sweden to her artistic triumphs in Stockholm, Bayreuth, Milan, and the Metropolitan Opera House, this candid and utterly charming memoir reveals the personality behind one of the great voices of the past century. Gracefully weaving together the private and professional, Nilsson chronicles her idyllic childhood in Vastra Karup, the early recognition of her unique natural abilities, and her first tentative steps into a wider artistic world. After achieving national acclaim in Verdi's Lady Macbeth, she went on to establish herself as the dominant Wagnerian soprano of her generation, appearing at the Bayreuth and Munich Festivals, and the Vienna and Bavarian State Opera Houses, creating, along the way, definitive performances of Sieglinde, Brunnhilde, and Isolde. The book details her rise to international stardom with behind-the-scenes recollections of her phenomenal triumph as Turandot at La Scala in 1958 and her headline-making Met premier in Tristan und Isolde the following year.
Nilsson's long and illustrious career (she performed until 1984), her celebrated professional and personal relationships, her friendships and rivalries, are all recounted with a down-to-earth wit and an engagingly odd admixture of ego and selfeffacement. She tells it all: the legendary quips, the often prickly relationships with Met impresario Rudolph Bing and conductor von Karajan, the infamous story of the stalker "Miss N," and the touchingly rendered relationship with her beloved husband, Bertil Niklasson.
What emerges from these pages is a diva in the old mold: a giant voice matched by an oversize personality, a professional who expected the same level of perfection from others that she demanded of herself, and a woman who loved and lived life with joy and good humor . . . and oh, that voice.
Includes 56 photographs and a discography.
Review :
"Nilsson was a diva in the best sense of the word, a true professional who expected the same degree of perfection from others that she demanded of herself. Her thoroughly entertaining, earthy memoirs are must reading for those curious about the personality possessed of that radiant voice."--John Stearne "Booklist" (6/1/2007 12:00:00 AM)
Expertly translated by Popper, the thematically organized narrative conveys the singer's humanity... Nilsson's fame as one of the major international stars of the post-World War II opera scene makes this title essential.--John Stearne "Library Journal" (6/1/2007 12:00:00 AM)
Nilsson includes all the relevant facts and figures as she outline her life. She also reveals herself as a slyly humorous lady and talks about her feelings about music and colleagues.--John Stearne "American Record Guide" (6/1/2007 12:00:00 AM)
This is an engaging book. We come to know this formidable but warm-hearted woman so well that on next playing a record of hers we are sure to be "on her side" as never before... it may not be reading for the objective professional critic, but it can be highly recommended to everyone else.--John Stearne "Gramophone" (6/1/2007 12:00:00 AM)
Booklist"
Gramophone"
Library Journal"
" . . . readable, entertaining and often constructive."--Opera Canada
"A lively, frank, and entertaining account of a major career."--Opera-Opera
"Birgit Nilsson's remarkably candid, straightforward autobiography immediately invites readers to join her exciting life in opera. . . . If you enjoy an easy-to-read, informative and entertaining autobiography of one of the twentieth century's most eminent sopranos, then grab this book, a pleasure to recommend."--The Opera Journal
"Expertly translated by Popper, the thematically organized narrative conveys the singer's humanity... Nilsson's fame as one of the major international stars of the post-World War II opera scene makes this title essential."--Library Journal
"First published in Nilsson's native Sweden in 1995, a decade before her death, the celebrated soprano's autobiography was intensely acclaimed after its 1997 translation into German. Finally translated into English from that edition, it's worth the wait. Despite the double translation, the book still vibrates with Nilsson's voice. Although copious photographs show her looking like a diva from central casting, her authorial persona is the opposite of what you'd expect: Warm, down-to-earth, joshing, never afraid to poke fun at herself, Nilsson is a delightful writer. La Nilsson, a welcome antidote to such attention-grabbing memoirs as fellow diva Regine Crespin's, shows a star who knew how to keep drama where it belonged: onstage."--Atlantic Monthly
"From her roots in rural Sweden to her artistic triumphs in Stockholm, Bayreuth, Milan, and at the Metropolitan Opera, this candid memoir reveals the personality behind one of the great voices of the past century."--OPERA America Newsline
"Nilsson includes all the relevant facts and figures as she outline her life. She also reveals herself as a slyly humorous lady and talks about her feelings about music and colleagues." --American Record Guide
"One of the most entertaining operatic autobiographies ever . . . stories, anecdotes, and Nilssonisms abound . . . I can't imagine any opera-lover, Wagnerite or not, passing up La Nilsson: My Life in Opera."--Wagner Notes
"This is an engaging book. We come to know this formidable but warm-hearted woman so well that on next playing a record of hers we are sure to be "on her side" as never before... it may not be reading for the objective professional critic, but it can be highly recommended to everyone else."--John Stearne, Gramophone
Birgit Nilsson s remarkably candid, straightforward autobiography immediately invites readers to join her exciting life in opera. . . . If you enjoy an easy-to-read, informative and entertaining autobiography of one of the twentieth century s most eminent sopranos, then grab this book, a pleasure to recommend. The Opera Journal"
Nilsson was a diva in the best sense of the word, a true professional who expected the same degree of perfection from others that she demanded of herself. Her thoroughly entertaining, earthy memoirs aremust reading for those curious about the personalitypossessed ofthat radiant voice. Booklist"
