The Kammersängerin Hilde Zadek is dead. As the Vienna State Opera announced, Zadek died on Thursday at the age of 101 years in Karlsruhe. Zadek was one of the greatest sopranos of the 20th century. At the Vienna State Opera she was an honorary member.
"With her has now left us another state opera icon of the 20th century, a major artist who represented the post-war ensemble of the State Opera as few, a legendary teacher who shaped generations," said State Opera Director Dominique Meyer. "We will miss Hilde Zadek - our sunshine, as I was allowed to call her."
39 roles in 37 different operas
Hilde Zadek was born on 15 December 1917 in Bromberg (province of Poznań, today Bydgoszcz) and spent her childhood and youth in Szczecin. She first trained as a pediatric nurse in Berlin. In 1935 the Jewish Zadek had to emigrate to Palestine. At the Conservatory in Jerusalem, she completed a music and singing education.
She made her debut on 3 February 1947 as Aida in a performance of the Vienna State Opera in the Theater an der Wien and quickly became an important pillar of the ensemble. Between 1947 and 1971 Hilde Zadek sang 39 roles in 37 different operas. Among her most glittering games were Tosca and Ariadne in Richard Strauss' "Ariadne auf Naxos" alongside the Aida. In 1971, she said goodbye to the stage. Since then she has worked as a singing teacher in Austria and internationally and, among other things, until 1978 headed the vocal department at the Vienna Conservatory.