Sack (real name, Weber), Erna

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Sack (real name, Weber), Erna

Sack (real name, Weber), Erna , German soprano; b. Berlin, Feb. 6, 1898; d. Mainz, March 2, 1972. She studied in Prague and with O. Daniel in Berlin. She made her operatic debut as a contralto at the Berlin Städtische Oper (1925), then turned to coloratura soprano roles and sang in Bielefeld (1930–32), Wiesbaden (1932–34), and Breslau (1934–35); subsequently, in 1935, joined the Dresden State Opera, where she was chosen to create the role of Isotta in Strauss’s Die schweigsame Frau; appeared with the company as Zerbinetta under Strauss’s direction during its visit to London’s Covent Garden in 1936. In 1937 she sang opera in Chicago and made a concert tour of the U.S.; also appeared in opera in Milan, Paris, Vienna, Salzburg, and other major European music centers. After World War II, she made an extensive world tour as a concert singer (1947–52); again gave concerts in the U.S. (1954–55). In 1966 she settled in Wiesbaden.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire