In it we find the detailed description of the remarkable career of the singer, born in Stockholm as the daughter of the coloratura soprano Maria Javor and the dramatic tenor Alexander Varnay. The pages contain much of pedagolical value; writing in great, but never dull, detail, she invites her readers to learn from the experience of a long and successful stage career, although questions of vocal technique seem less important than a deep insight into an era when the world of opera started to become more international. And the life at the Met in New York, where in 1941 Varnay made her debut as Sieglinde, substituting for Lotte Lehmann, and only a few days later tookover the role of Bruennhilde. With a strong sense of responsibility she is careful to underline her unusual situation at that time, and that this beginning is by no means something for other young singers to try to emulate. Astrid Varnay doesn't mince words on many subjects, when, for instance, she describes Rudolf Bing's ungentlemanlike method of ridding himself of older singers at the end of distinguished careers, or Herbert von Karajan's narcissistic, but for the singers not very helpful, style of conducting, at least in his Bayreuth years. Carefully she lets her satisfaction show through when she writes about her reengagement for Salzburg in 1964, after the Maestro had banned her from the list of "his" singers years before.
And, of course, Bayreuth. She remained one of the undisputed stars there for 17 summers. Her description and memories of the years there make fascinating reading: many of her readers will remember these years, will have experienced her legendary Ortrud. She sang the "Goetterdaemmerung" Bruennhilde 99 times, not only in Bayreuth, but also in Wiesbaden, or Kiel; she didn't consider herself above appearing in these theaters too.
And then the change to the character repertory: 22 performances of the "Amme" in "Frau ohne Schatten", 121 Klytemnestras, 213 Herodias, the Kostelnicka, "Besuch der alten Dame".......her artistic and personal home in Munich, the late appearances at the Met, and many anecdotes of and meetings with numerous colleagues. A rich life, stylistically formulated in modern language with the help of the New Yorker Donald Arthur. Wisdom and nobility speak out of her comments about her colleagues, and the sympathetic self-appraisal of a singer who always knew what she could do. Even today she formulates healthy opinions with a clear sense; "in 1992 the Salzburg Festival released the historic radio trasmission of the Elektra from 1964, and asked me to accept a smaller percentage of the profit than I was entitled to, the difference going to help support the Festival. Although I was happy to do so, and have nothing against helping support the current trend of the Festival, my main hope is that this recording especially will serve as an example of what great Festivals can do when the most important thing, the score, remains the basis for a production."
"Fifty-Five Years in Five Acts. My Life in Opera.
Published by Northwestern Press