Friederike Funk

Friederike Funk, married name La Grua bzw. Funk La Grua (14 November 1796 - after 1863[1]) was a German operatic soprano and Royal Saxon Kammersinger in Dresden.

Friederike Funk
Friederike Funk

Life

Born in Meissen, the daughter of a postmaster from her hometown received her vocal training from Johann Aloys Miksch in Dresden from 1813. In May 1816, she received her first engagement at the Dresdner Hoftheater under the direction of Francesco Morlacchi. Afterwards, accompanied by her brother and at the behest of the Saxon king[2] she spent two years in Italy to perfect her voice. She received this royal scholarship through the mediation of Morlacchi.[3] In Italy she performed among others in Naples and St. Carlo and took lessons in Naples with Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli and Luigi Mosca. In the autumn of 1818, now engaged at the Italian and German Operas in Dresden, she sang the title role in Rossini's Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra, and in 1822 Agathe in Weber's Der Freischütz. In 1824, she sang Eglantine in Weber's Euryanthe. She performed among others with the singers Anna Maria Neumann-Sessi[4] and Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient[5] In 1827, after guest performances in Darmstadt, she went to Italy again, where she received an engagement in Palermo. After her marriage in Palermo to the tenor[6] Signor La Grua, she returned to Dresden in the 1830s, now under the name Friederike Funk La Grua, and worked as a singing teacher. Even after her marriage, she still performed sporadically[7] Lastly, she lived with her daughter Emmy, also a singer among others in Paris, Dresden, Vienna and Turin, as well as a singing teacher, in Paris.[8] Emmy La Grua received singing lessons from Pauline Garcia and Caroline Ungher-Sabatier.[9]

References
  1. Iris, 15 April 1863, p. 59 (Numerized).
  2. Cf. Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung of 26 June 1839, sp. 498,
  3. Cf. Karl-Josef Kutsch and Leo Riemens: Großes Sängerlexikon, 3rd vol., 4th expanded and updated ed., Munich 2003, p. 1593.
  4. Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, 8 January 1823, sp. 20 (Numerized).
  5. Marie Börner-Sandrini: Erinnerungen einer alten Dresdnerin, Dresden 1879, p. 18.
  6. See the report on a concert given by her daughter Emmy la Grua: Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, 17 January 1851, p. 26 (aid=nzm&date=18510117&query=%22La+Grua%22&ref=anno-search&page=6 Numerized).
  7. Cf. for example Allgemeiner Musikalischer Anzeiger, 16 January 1840, p. 12 (Numerized).
  8. Damen Conversations Lexikon. Published in association with scholars and women writers by Carl Herloßsohn, Adorf 1835, pp. 282–283; Marie Börner-Sandrini: Erinnerungen einer alten Dresdnerin, Dresden 1879, pp. 17–19; vgl. auch Süddeutsche Musik-Zeitung, 17 April 1854, p. 64 (Numerized).
  9. See Neue Zeitschrift für Musik, 17 January 1851, p. 26 (Numerized).

Further reading
  • Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, 26 June 1839, Sp. 497–498 (Numerized) (brief biographical summary).
  • Marie Börner-Sandrini: Erinnerungen einer alten Dresdnerin, Neue Folge, Dresden 1879 [1876], pp. 17–19 (Numerized).
  • Hans Schnoor: Dresden – 400 Jahre deutsche Musikkultur. Dresden 1948.
  • Karl-Josef Kutsch and Leo Riemens: Großes Sängerlexikon, 3rd vol. 4th, expanded and updated ed., Munich 2003, p. 1593.
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