Gueden, Hilde
Gueden, Hilde
Gueden, Hilde, noted Austrian soprano; b. Vienna, Sept. 15, 1917; d. Klosterneuburg, Sept. 17, 1988. She studied with Wetzelsberger at the Vienna Cons., then made her debut in operetta at the age of 16. She made her operatic debut as Cherubino in 1939 in Zurich, where she sang until 1941. After appearing in Munich (1941-42) and Rome (1942-46), she sang at the Salzburg Festival (1946); subsequently was a leading member of the Vienna State Opera until 1973. She first appeared at London’s Covent Garden with the visiting Vienna State Opera in 1947; her Metropolitan Opera debut followed in N.Y. on Nov. 15, 1951, when she appeared as Gilda; she continued to sing there until 1960. In 1951 she was made an Austrian Kammersangerin. She maintained a wide-ranging repertoire, singing roles from Mozart to contemporary composers such as Britten and Blacher; she also was a fine operetta singer. She particularly excelled as Despina, Sophie, Zerbinetta, and Daphne.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire