Marton, Eva

Marton, Eva, outstanding Hungarian soprano; b. Budapest, June 18, 1943. She studied with Endre Rosler and Jenõ Sipos at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest. She made her formal operatic debut as the Queen of Shemakha in Le Coq d’or at the Hungarian State Opera there in 1968, remaining on its roster until joining the Frankfurt am Main Opera in 1971. She then became a member of the Hamburg State Opera in 1977. On Feb. 23, 1975, she made her U.S. debut in N.Y. as a soloist in the world premiere of Hovhaness’s folk oratorio The Way of Jesus, and then made her first appearance at the Metropolitan Opera there as Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg on Nov. 3, 1976. After singing at the Bayreuth Festivals (1977–78) and at Milan’s La Scala (1978), she scored a notable success as the Empress in Die Frau ohne Schatten at the Metropolitan Opera in 1981; thereafter she was one of its most important artists, appearing as Elisabeth in Tännhauser (1982), Leonore in Fidelio (1983), Ortrud in Lohengrin (1984), Tosca (1986), and Lady Macbeth (1988). She first sang Turandot at the Vienna State Opera in 1983, and appeared as Elektra there in 1989. In 1987 she made her debut at London’s Covent Garden as Turandot, and in 1990 she returned there as Elektra. In 1992 she appeared as Turandot in Chicago and as the Dyer’s Wife at the Salzburg Festival. She was engaged as Turandot at the San Francisco Opera in 1993. In 1997 she sang Elektra at the Washington (D.C.) Opera. She sang the Kostelnicka in Jenůfa at the Hamburg State Opera in 1998. On Oct. 7, 1999, she portrayed Turandot at the reopening of the restored Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. Her appearances as an oratorio and lieder artist were also well received.

Bibliography

C. Wilkens, E. M. (Hamburg, 1982).

—Niciolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire