Bahr-Mildenburg, Anna von |
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BORN 29 Nov 1872, Wien - DIED 27 Jan 1947, Wien BIRTH NAME Bellschan von Mildenburg, Anna GRAVE LOCATION Salzburg: Kommunalfriedhof, Gneiser Strasse 8 (Gruppe 22, Nummer 22-23 (Ehrengrab) ) |
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Anna von Bahr-Mildenburg was the daughter of the army officer Theodor Bellschan von Mildenburg and his wife Anna, born Butsch. Her grandfather Fidelis Butsch (b.1805) was an opera singer. She grew up in Vienna, Klagenfurt, and Gorizia. In Klagenfurt Karl Weidt gave her piano lessons and in Gorizia Helene Rieckhoff-Pessiack was her piano teacher. She also took singing lessons in Gorizia. Against the wishes of her parents, she broke off her engagement to a lieutenant and left for Vienna. In Vienna she took singing lessons with Rosa Papier and Johannes Ress and later privately with Gustav Mahler and Cosima Wagner. She debuted in Hamburg 1895 as Brünnhilde in "Die Walküre". At that time, she had an affair with Mahler, who was musical director in Hamburg. Possibly this was a reason for Mahler's departure to Vienna. In 1897 she appeared for the first time at the Bayreuth festival as Kundry in "Parsifal". Although their affair had ended in 1897, she followed Mahler to the State Opera in Vienna where they worked together although they were on less intimate terms. She sat for the painter Gustav Klimt for his "Judith I" (1901). She met the writer Hermann Bahr in September 1904 in Bayreuth. They started a liaison and married on 24 August 1909. Together with Bahr she wrote "Bayreuth und das Wagnertheater" (1910). In 1910 she was the first Klytemnästra in "Elektra" in England at Covent Garden. In 1913 she moved to Schloss Arenberg in Salzburg with Bahr. Anna Bahr-Mildenburg performed successfully in Vienna until 1916. In 1906 and 1910 she appeared at Covent Garden in London. In 1921 she became a professor of singing at the Academy of Music in Munich and she also worked as a singing teacher in Berlin. Among her pupils were Lauritz Melchior and Maria Müller. From 1922 to 1927 she appeared at the Salzburg Festival. Her last appearance was in Augsburg in 1930, where she was Klytemnästra in "Elektra" once more. Only one recording of her voice is known, a part from "Oberon" by Carl Maria von Weber from 1904. In 1934 Hermann Bahr died and in addition to her own work she researched her husband's estate. In 1937 she retired from the Munich Academy because she reached the age limit. Towards the end of 1937 she defended herself against claims that she was Jewish. She continued working as lecturer in opera courses and in 1940 and 1942 she gave courses for the German Music Insitute of Foreigners in the Mozarteum in Salzburg. In 1942 the Goethe Medal for Art was presented to her by Baldur von Schirach. Because she was never joined the NSDAP or held an official function in the nazi era she did not have to undergo denazification proceedings. In the winter of 1945/1946, she ran a course at the University of Vienna. In January 1947 she suddenly died in her apartment. She was buried with her husband at the Kommunalfriedhof in Salzburg. Family • Husband: Bahr, Hermann (1909-1934) Related persons • performed with Berg, Smaragda • worked as a model for Klimt, Gustav • cooperated with Mahler, Gustav • had a love affair with Mahler, Gustav • was teacher of Müller, Maria • was painted by Sargent, John Singer |
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 The grave of Hermann Bahr and Anna Bahr-Mildenburg at the Kommunalfriedhof, Salzburg. Picture by Androom (29 Aug 2009) |
 The grave of Hermann Bahr and Anna Bahr-Mildenburg at the Kommunalfriedhof, Salzburg. Picture by Androom (29 Aug 2009) |
Sources • Anna von Mildenburg - Wikipedia |
