Irene von Chavanne

Irene von Chavanne was an Austrian contralto who first intended to be a pianist, until her teacher recognised her voice; her training, funded by the Empress Elisabeth, took her from Johannes Ress in Vienna to Désirée Artôt de Padilla in Paris and finally to Dresden. She made her debut there at the Court Opera in 1885 as Orsini in Lucrezia Borgia and remained for the rest of her career, retiring in 1915 as an honorary member of the company. She created Wigelis in the premiere of Strauss's Feuersnot in 1901 and Herodias in the premiere of Salome in 1905, and later sang Clytemnestra in Elektra; her wider repertoire included Amneris, Azucena and Dalila.