Stolz, Teresa (real name, Teresina Stolzová)

Stolz, Teresa (real name, Teresina Stolzová), renowned Bohemian soprano; b. Elbekosteletz, June 5, 1834; d. Milan, Aug. 23, 1902. She was born into a musical family; her twin sisters, Francesca and Ludmila, also became sopranos; they were intimate with the composer Luigi Ricci, who had a child by each of them; Ludmila later became his wife. Teresa studied at the Prague Cons. and then with Ricci in Trieste (1856), making her operatic debut in 1857 in Tiflis, where she sang regularly during the next 5 seasons; also appeared in Odessa and Constantinople. In 1863 she sang in Turin, and thereafter appeared with brilliant success in the major Italian opera centers. She was closely associated with Verdi from 1872 to 1876, leading some writers to speculate that she was his mistress. She was without question one of the greatest interpreters of Verdi’s heroines, excelling particularly as Aida and Leonora; she also sang in the premiere of his Requiem (1874). After singing in St. Petersburg (1876–77), she made her farewell appearance as a soloist in the Requiem at Milan’s La Scala on June 30, 1879. Her vocal gifts were extraordinary and her range extended from g to c#³.

Biblography

J. Šolín, T. S.ová: První a nejslavĕjší Aida (T. S.: The First and Most Celebrated Aida; Mlnik, 1944; second ed., 1946); U. Zoppi, Mariani, Verdi e la S.(Milan, 1947).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire