Jussi Björling

Jussi Björling ▶ (help·info) (5 February 1911 – 9 September 1960) was a Swedish tenor and one of most highly regarded opera singers of the 20th century. Björling was one of the few non-Latin tenors to rival the Italian dominance of the opera world at that time. February 5 is the 36th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... September 9 is the 252nd day of the year (253rd in leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... In music, a tenor is a male singer with a high voice (although not as high as a countertenor). ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

Björling was born in Borlänge. He studied singing with his father, David, an accomplished vocalist, and made his debut public appearance at the age of four with the Björling Male Quartet. The group performed in concerts throughout Sweden and the United States for eleven and a half years. Borlänge is a Municipality in Dalarna County, in central Sweden. ...

Björling made his professional operatic debut as the Lamplighter in Manon Lescaut at the Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm in 1930. This was soon followed by Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni, Arnoldo in Rossini's William Tell and Almaviva in Rossini's The Barber of Seville. This in turn led to engagements in Europe and the USA. Björling made his American concert debut in a Carnegie Hall in 1937; the following year, he made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera as Rodolfo in La bohème. Manon Lescaut is an opera in four acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Domenico Oliva and Luigi Illica, based on L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by Abbé Prévost. ... The Royal Swedish Opera, as seen from the southwest The Royal Swedish Opera, or Kungliga Operan, is the national stage for opera in Sweden. ... The Old town in Stockholm from the air â–¶(?) is the capital of Sweden, located on the east coast at the entrance of lake Mälaren. ... 1930 (MCMXXX) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Don Giovanni is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte. ... Guillaume Tell (William Tell) is an opera in four acts by Gioacchino Rossini to a French libretto by Etienne de Jouy and Hippolyte Bis, based on Friedrich Schillers Wilhelm Tell. ... Gioacchino Antonio Rossini (February 29, 1792 — November 13, 1868) was an Italian musical composer who wrote more than 30 operas as well as sacred music and chamber music. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... A satellite composite image of Europe // Etymology Picture of Europa, carried away by bull-shaped Zeus. ... Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Manhattan, New York City. ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... A full house at the old Metropolitan Opera House, seen from the rear of the stage, at the Metropolitan Opera House for a concert by pianist Josef Hofmann, November 28, 1937. ... La Bohème, French for The Bohemians, is an opera in four acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, based on La Vie de Bohème by Henri Murger. ...

Björling went on to become one of the principal singers at the Metropolitan Opera during the 1940s and 1950s (with an interruption during World War II). He sang many major tenor roles in operas in the French and Italian repertoire, including Il Trovatore, Rigoletto, Aida, Un Ballo In Maschera, Pagliacci, Cavalleria Rusticana, Faust, Romeo & Juliet, La Boheme, Tosca and Manon Lescaut. Many of his recordings of these roles are still considered the best by any tenor in this repertoire. In December, 1940, Arturo Toscanini invited him to sing the tenor part in Beethoven's Missa Solemnis in New York, a recording of which exists. He also performed the Verdi Requiem under Toscanini in 1939 in Lucerne, Switzerland, and in November 1940 in New York. A full house at the old Metropolitan Opera House, seen from the rear of the stage, at the Metropolitan Opera House for a concert by pianist Josef Hofmann, November 28, 1937. ... Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Commanders {{{commander1}}} {{{commander2}}} Strength {{{strength1}}} {{{strength2}}} Casualties 17 million military deaths 7 million military deaths World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a mid-20th century conflict that engulfed much of the globe and is accepted as the largest and deadliest... 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (March 25, 1867 – January 16, 1957) was considered by many of his contemporaries — critics, fellow musicians, and the public alike — as the greatest conductor of his era. ... Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptized December 17, 1770 – March 26, 1827) was a German composer of Classical music, the predominant musical figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras. ... Ludwig van Beethovens Missa Solemnis in D Major, Op. ...

Björling was much admired for his innate musicality and his seemingly effortless technique. His main weakness was considered his limited acting abilities, but at that time operatic acting was not considered a negative. He was known as the "Swedish Caruso". His son, Rolf, a successful tenor in his own right (although not at the level of his famous father), and his grandson, Raymond are inheritors of the "sound".

On March 15, 1960, Björling suffered a heart attack before a performance at London's Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. He died of heart-related causes six months later in Sweden at the age of forty-nine. March 15 is the 74th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (75th in Leap years). ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Floral Hall of the Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House is a performing arts venue in London. ... Covent Garden is a shopping and entertainment complex in central London. ...

His name is now used with the prestigious Jussi Björling Music Scholarship at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota. Gustavus Adolphus College: Old Main Gustavus Adolphus College is a private liberal arts college founded in 1862 by Eric Norelius and was originally named Minnesota Elementar Skola. ... St. ...

External links

• The Jussi Björling Society
• Jussi Björling Museum (Swedish and English)
• Jussi Björling profile

See also: List of Swedes in music This is a list of Swedish composers, musicians and singers: Carl Michael Bellman, (1740-1795) Jussi Björling Robyn Sixten Ehrling Lisa Ekdahl Sten Frykberg (1910-1983) Agnetha Fältskog, former member of the pop group ABBA Bo Hansson Jakob Hellman Jonny Jakobsen Nils Landgren Christian Lindberg Lars Lönndahl...