Dio ti giocondi o sposo

Torsten Ralf (1901-1954) was a gifted Swedish tenor whose quarter century career took him to major theaters on both sides of the Atlantic. The youngest of seven children (including three other singing brothers), Ralf was born in Malmö and began his working life as a telegraph assistant for Stockholm’s National Telephone Company. At the age of 20, he decided to pursue vocal studies and began working with celebrated baritone John Forsell. Disappointed with the results, Ralf left Forsell’s studio after a year and took up studies with Haldis Ingebjart. Under Ingebjart’s tutelage, Ralf developed into a fine tenor and was engaged as soloist with the Stockholm Concert Association early in 1929. Later that same year, the young tenor left his job at the National Telephone Company and moved to Berlin to pursue further studies. Ralf spent a brief period perfecting his technique with famed Wagnerian soprano Hertha Dehmlow, making his debut as Cavaradossi in Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland) in 1930. He remained in Stettin for the next two seasons, singing mainly lyric roles such as Alfredo in La Traviata, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni and Tamino in Die Zauberflöte. Ralf accepted a contract with the opera in Chemnitz, where he sang until being lured away to Frankfurt am Main in 1933.

Ralf debuted with the Vienna Staatsoper as Radames in Aïda in April of 1935. It was in Vienna that the tenor began taking on more dramatic roles…Walther in Die Meistersinger, Pedro in Tiefland, Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos, Florestan in Fidelio, the title roles in Tannhäuser, Lohengrin and Otello…and soon found himself in demand in Munich, Berlin, Zurich and Dresden. It was at the Semperoper Dresden that Ralf created the role of Apollo in the world premiere of Strauss’ Daphne in 1938. The tenor also made important debuts at Covent Garden and Copenhagen Royal Opera. He auditioned for Stockholm Royal Opera but was snubbed by artistic director John Forsell. It seems that old tensions between former teacher and pupil were not forgotten and Ralf did not sing at the Royal Opera until 1941, two years after Forsell’s departure.

Ralf returned to America in 1945 (his first visit was with older brother Einar some twenty years earlier) to accept a contract with New York’s Metropolitan Opera. His debut with the company took place on November 26, 1945 as Lohengrin. During his three seasons with the Met, the tenor sang 50 performances of eight roles, including Radames in Aïda, Walther in Die Meistersinger, Siegmund in Die Walküre, and the title roles in Tannhäuser, Parsifal, Tristan und Isolde, Otello and the aforementioned Lohengrin. Ralf also travelled to South America for appearances with Santiago’s Teatro Municipal and the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires.

Following a January 1948 performance of Die Meistersinger, Ralf travelled back to Europe for performances of Tannhäuser at Barcelona’s Teatro Liceo during the month of February. Apart from a single Covent Garden Aïda in September of that year, the tenor was conspicuously absent from the opera stage for a two year period. Although the public was never told, those closest to Ralf knew that he had been diagnosed with leukemia. Following months of treatment and recovery, Ralf returned to performing in April 1950 in Verdi’s Requiem in Stockholm. In spite of his illness, the tenor appeared onstage in Brussels, Rome, Geneva, Vienna and Stockholm, giving his final operatic performance as Tannhäuser in June of 1953. After bravely battling leukemia for several years, Torsten Ralf died in Stockholm on April 27, 1954. He was only 53.

Torsten Ralf amassed a wide ranging repertoire of nearly 30 roles including nearly all the Wagnerian heroes…Tannhäuser, Parsifal, Lohengrin, Erik in Der Fliegende Holländer and Siegmund in Die Walküre…as well as Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos, Aegisth in Elektra, The Emperor in Die Frau Ohne Schatten, Florestan in Fidelio, Don José in Carmen, Canio in Pagliacci, Dick Johnson in La Fanciulla del West and the title role in Don Carlo. The tenor also created the leads in such obscure works as Sutermeister’s Die Zauberinsel, Mohaupt’s Die Wirtin von Pinsk, Schoek’s Massimilla Doni and Heger’s Der Verlorene Sohn. Ralf’s catalogue of recordings consists of dozens of sides made for HMV and Columbia during the 1930s and ‘40s, as well as numerous live recordings from the late ‘40s to the early ‘50s. These recordings showcase a very accomplished singer with a sturdy instrument, capable of dramatic singing, yet with the ability to turn a phrase sweetly and lyrically.
Here, Ralf joins soprano Stella Roman (1904-1992) for the duet, “Dio ti giocondi, o sposo” and the monologue, “Dio! Mi potevi scagliar” from Act III of Verdi’s Otello. This recording was made during a performance at The Metropolitan Opera in New York on November 16, 1946.