FAMOUS CROATS 2013 - MILKA TRNINA

MILKA TRNINA (1863 – 1941)
 
Milka Trnina (or Ternina) was born in Vezišće (Moslavina) on 19 December 1863. She was Croatian opera artist (soprano), the greatest among a number of distinguished singers whom Croatia gave to the world in the 19^th and 20^th century. She was celebrated as one of the greatest singers of her time, with beautiful, powerful and carrying voice and perfect singer's technique, of gracious scenic appearance, noble face and - especially pointed out - unique, magic acting. In the history of world opera art, known as “legendary Ternina“, she is still referenced in all encyclopaedias.
Born as miller's daughter, she became world famous due to her great talent, her God-given voice, diligence and excellent education.  As a girl, she came into the house of a relative and writer Janko Jurković in Zagreb, where she received her first music lectures from Ida Wimberger. Then she left for Vienna to study at the Academy with Joseph Gänsbacher, at that time the best teacher of singing. Already as a student she sang at concerts in Vienna, Zagreb, and in Varaždinske Toplice since 1879 and her first opera performance was in Zagreb, the role of Amelia in A Masked Ball (G. Verdi) in 1882.
  
There followed permanent engagements in leading opera houses in Germany and in Austria: Leipzig (1883 – 1884), Graz (1884 – 1886), Bremen (1886 – 1889) and Munich (1889 – 1899). In Munich she was honoured with the title „ royal Bavarian chamber singer“, words that are written also on her tomb at the Zagreb cemetery Mirogoj. She sang also in Bayreuth, Prague, Moscow, Zürich, Zagreb and USA and was most admired in the Royal Opera Covent Garden in London and in Metropolitan Opera in New York.
In London and in New York she participated in their premiers of the Puccini's opera Tosca, in 1900 and in 1901. She sang in 1903 the role of Kundry in New York, in the first performance of Wagner's Parsifal outside Bayreuth. She was the second best paid star in the history of Metropolitan Opera: the mezzo-soprano Emma Calvé was earning 1800 American dollars and Trnina 1250 dollars per performance; the earnings of Enrico Caruso, her partner in Tosca, have never come close to those of Trnina. During her career from 1882 to 1906, when she had to withdraw from stage for facial nerve disorder, she sang 64 roles in 59 operas composed by 34 authors. In some operas, especially by Mozart and Wagner she sometimes alternated in two roles. Although she performed in most diverse operas of Italian, German, and French style, she was best known by her interpretations of Wagner's heroines and drew special attention when performing in Mozart's operas.
Trnina was unique in tragic as well as in comic roles. Modern composers tried to persuade her to perform in the first nights of their operas and to those who succeeded, great success was always granted. For this reason some of those operas have later never been staged and were forgotten since there was no more that ingenious artist to “carry” the performance. Her colleagues on stage were always the greatest opera stars of the period when opera art was at its peak. Also conductors at those performances were the best of the time, all of whom immensely admired her. 
Trnina paid special attention to her excellently studied and made, gorgeous costumes; the best were created by Percy Anderson in London. Trnina never recorded her singing on records; there exist only badly damaged life recordings from Metropolitan Opera from the beginning of the 20th century on phonograph cylinders.
After she had withdrawn from public life, she dedicated herself to quite, charitable activities. In Zagreb, Trnina attended music life and followed life and work of young singers at the Music Academy with great interest. She recognised only one pupil - a great Zinka Kunc Milanov, to whom she said: „You will be my successor“.
Milka Trnina has not become silent until today, since the most beautiful falls of Plitvice Lakes that always whirr and babble are named after her. Let us end this text with the words  of Milka Trnina: „Artist's life is hard and laborious; if I could come to live once again, and if I would have the choice I would never choose another profession.“
 
                                                                                                                                  Ivan Mirnik