Straussian soprano, RIP

Message received:

Oper Frankfurt mourns the death of dramatic soprano, Kammersängerin Danica Mastilovic, who died at the age of 89 – as her family informed – after a long illness on July 15th 2023 in Dreieich-Sprendlingen, near Frankfurt. Her favourite role was undoubtedly Strauss’ Elektra. She enjoyed enormous success in more than 200 performances of this vocally and physically exhausting role.

Born in the former Yugoslavia, she studied at the Music Academy in Belgrade before being engaged by Georg Solti to join Oper Frankfurt. The First Kapellmeister at that time, Wolfgang Rennert, looking for young singers for the new ensemble at Oper Frankfurt, discovered her in Belgrade. She came to audition in Frankfurt, unable to speak a word of German and still a student, and was given a three year contract by Intendant Harry Buckwitz. She made her debut as Tosca. It was the Austrian coach Hans Hasel who was mainly responsible for helping her learn new roles. She later went on to conquer all important roles in the youthful-dramatic fach – from Desdemona in Verdi’s Otello to Aida. In 1960 she made her first guest appearance as Tosca at the Vienna State Opera. She sang Leonore in Beethoven’s Fidelio and Abigaille in Verdi’s Nabucco in Chicago, Zurich, Verona and Buenos Aires. Other guest engagements included appearances at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, La Scala Milan and the opera houses in Munich, Hamburg and Berlin. She also sang Puccini’s Turandot in no fewer than 28 opera houses around the world. Under Christoph von Dohnányi she moved to the high, dramatic fach, singing roles including the Dyer’s Wife in Strauss‘ Die Frau ohne Schatten, Wagner’s Ortrud in Lohengrin, Senta in Der fliegende Holländer, Kundry in Parisfal, Isolde in Tristan und Isolde and Brünnhilde in Der Ring des Nibelungen. Under Michael Gielen she added the role of Kostelnicka in Janačéks Jenufa to her repertoire. She sang the Old Burya in Adolf Dresen’s Jenufa production in 1995 and 1997.

She was made a Kammersängerin at Oper Frankfurt in 1983. Later in her career she gradually took her leave from leading roles, concentrating more on character parts. In 1998/99 Danica Mastilovic’s 40 years as a Member of the ensemble at Oper Frankfurt was rounded off with the role of the Amme in Tchaikovsky’s Eugen Onegin.

Oper Frankfurt thinks warmly of Danica Mastilovic, one of the most important singer personalities in the history of Oper Frankfurt.