First he received his education as violinist at the Franz Liszt
Academy of Music. Then he studied singing under Fritz Feinhals in Berlin. Later
he went to Milano and perfected his vocal technique with Mario Sammarco and
Riccardo Stracciari. He made his debut in 1928 at the National Opera of
Budapest as count di Luna in ‘’Il Trovatore’’.
Chronology of some appearances
1928 Budapest
National Opera Il Trovatore (count di Luna/Debut)
1935-1939 Vienna
State Opera House
1936 London Covent
Garden Rigoletto (Rigoletto)
1936 London Covent
Garden Aida (Amonasro)
1936 London Covent
Garden Tosca (Scarpia)
1938 Vienna State
Opera House Aida (Amonasro)
1940-1950
Metropolitan Opera Ballo in maschera (Renato/Debut)
1958 Vienna State
Opera House
RECORDINGS FOR SALE
Decca, 1936-05-29
Masked ball (Verdi): Du allein hast das Herz mir entwendet CA 8265 377B
HMV, Milano 1940
Macbeth (Verdi): Pietà, rispetto, amore DB5366 2BA3928
Guillaume Tell (Rossini): Resta immobile DB5366 2BA3929
Sved does NOT deserve to have been forgotten. I just heard on Sirius Rradio the Metropolitan Opera's Saturday afternoon broadcast of "Un Ballo in Maschera," of 12/14/1940, with Sved as Renato. He was spectacular. It makes one thirst for more recordings of this "forgotten" artist. And for more information about his life.
ReplyDeleteI am also listening to that recording, and Sved is amazing! I had never heard of him before!
ReplyDeleteSved was younger than Lawrence Tibbett and older than Leonard Warren, and the time he sang at the Metropolitan Opera (1940-50) intersected with those of the two Titans of American baritones. Like so many of his fellow Hungarians before and after, he became a Vienna State Opera recruit and made the company his home base in the later 1930s with notable engagements in London, La Scala and Berlin. Shortly before and during WW2 the western hemisphere became his home base, and he made his Met debut on opening night of 1940, a new production of Un Ballo in Maschera (which was mothballed since 1916) with Bjoerling and Milanov, all of whom would star in the shortly subsequent legendary pirate broadcast
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