Elisabeth Söderström most human character in the drama." Born in Stockholm, Söderström received her first musical schooling from Adelaide von Skilondz and later studied at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm. She made her debut in 1947 at the Drottningholm Palace Theatre singing in one of Mozart's lesser-known works "Bastien et Bastienne". From 1949 to 1980 she called the Royal Swedish Opera her home but she frequently appeared at some of the largest opera houses in the world. She was also a regular visitor to the recording studio. Between 1959 and 1964 Söderström was contracted by the Metropolitan Opera in New
The Mandarin's Son The Mandarin's Son The Mandarin's Son ("Сын мандарина" in Cyrillic; "Syn mandarina" in transliteration) is comic opera in one act by César Cui, composed in 1859. The libretto, which includes spoken dialogue, was written by Viktor Krylov. No small influence for this work came from the French composer Daniel Auber, particularly his "Le cheval de bronze", which had a similar setting, and was being performed in Saint Petersburg at the time. Cui dedicated this opera to his bride, Mal'vina Bamberg. (They had married the previous year.) The orchestration is credited to Mily Balakirev. The first performance of "The Mandarin's Son"