Opera on the Move in the Nordic Countries during the Long 19th ...

84 Ingela Tägil
tria and England during her entire active period. In 1845 The Illustrated
London News reported:
Jenny Lind has a voice of extraordinary compass, its only defect being a
deficiency of volume in the medium portion of the register. 2
The voice defect went back to her early youth, when she was threatened
with losing her voice completely due to vocal strain. In 1841 she consulted
Manuel García the younger (1805–1906), one of the great singing teachers
of the time. Her voice was extremely tired, and this was not the first time
she had nearly lost it. Such a loss had happened during her early teenage
years. Apparently, the damage that her voice suffered in her youth never
really healed. Later, as she matured and sang more demanding roles at the
Royal Theatre 3 in Stockholm, her technique was deficient, and she strained
her voice once again.
In September 1830 Jenny Lind became a pupil at the school associated
with the Royal Theatre. Her study at the drama school would continue to
1837. Like all children at the school, she was put to work as a child actress.
Sometimes she also participated in concerts. The school was designed for
three forms of theatre: dramatic theatre, ballet and opera. After a few years
of study, the school determined which career was the most suitable for the
pupil in question. Jenny was taught singing by the voice teacher Isak Berg,
facial expressions by the actress Carolina Bock and dance by the premiere
ballerina Sophie Daguin.
On the 29 th of November 1830 Jenny made her debut as the character
Angela in the play Edwinski and Floreska or The Polish Mine. 4 By the end of
the year she had played this part another four times (KTA L1A, Daily posters,
1830). After the premiere, she acted frequently, but only in speaking
roles. In 1831 she performed eleven times in four pieces, of which three
were new to her, and during 1832 she acted a total of six times and participated
in at least two of the Royal Theatre’s concerts. During 1833 and 1834,
she acted 20 times per year, and in 1835 she performed at the theatre 26
times, as well as in one concert. In 1836 she performed 17 times (KTA L1A,
Daily posters, 1831–1836). During these years, the Stockholm press paid
her tribute. The journal Heimdall was interested in the young student and
wrote about her on several occasions. On 24 April 1832, Heimdall noticed
her for the first time:
2 The Illustrated London News, 11 October 1845.
3 Kungliga Teatern
4 Edwinsky och Floreska or Polska Gruvan.