Rado, Elizabeth

Born in the city of Mostar on the territory of Austria-Hungary (now Bosnia and Herzegovina ). She took the first singing lessons from her adoptive mother, Maria Rado. In the 1920s she moved to Vienna, where she performed with concerts and sang in opera. In the early 1930s she began teaching singing and vocals, becoming one of the most respected and famous teachers in Austria, as well as a mentor to many famous singers. Sometimes she performed at concerts, but eventually completed her career as a singer, turning to vocal pedagogy.

From 1950 to 1966, Rado taught at the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts , gaining the status of the legendary vocal teacher ^[1] . Her talent as a teacher and serious attitude to the matter was noted by Dr. Ernst Reichert, a specialist in the work of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. At one point, Rado immediately had 83 students who sang in operas in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Among the well-known students, baritone Eberhard Wechter ^[2] , tenors Fritz Uhl , Waldemar Kment ^[3] , Werner Krenn , mezzo-soprano Gertrude Jan , bass-baritone Heinz Cholecek ^[1] , soprano Dorit Hanak , Herbert Prikopa , Lilian Bennigsen , and also Americans Keith Engen , George Fury , Emil Belcourt , Frederick Guthrie , Joseph Myers (in the post-war years they came to Vienna to study opera singing due to the excellent quality of education and cheaper prices) and many others. Among the actors, students of Rado stands Michael Heltau ^[4] . All students noted the high skill of Elizabeth Rado.

Elizabeth Rado lived in the 4th district of Widen in the same building with her student Waldemar Kmentt, the famous Austrian opera tenor ^[5] .

• Alexander Rausch: Radó, Elisabeth . In: Oesterreichisches Musiklexikon . Online-Ausgabe, Wien 2002 ff., ISBN 3-7001-3077-5 ; Druckausgabe: Band 4, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien 2005, ISBN 3-7001-3046-5 .