Bjorling In Song

"It's interesting to hear Bjorling in this repertoire, because there are always rewards in hearing him sing."
Michael Tanner, Classic CD

The name Jussi Björling conjures up a picture of one of the giants of tenor operatic singing from the late thirties to the late fifties of this century. Because his repertoire mainly encompassed that of Italian opera, Björling is often compared with the great Italian tenors of his era; from such a comparison he emerges comfortably as one to be reckoned with in any anthology of singing.

Jussi Björling possessed the best qualities of all his contemporaries and refined those qualities with a uniqueness all his own, for as a singer he conveyed grace and dignity to all his work, virtues not often displayed by tenors. Opera was not the only genre in which he excelled, he was also a recitalist who gave unstintingly of his talents to audiences in many parts of the world. His many recordings both on 78s and LP helped maintain his global popularity, which is undiminished today.

Johan Jonatan Björling, to give him his full baptismal name, (although he was always known as 'Jussi'), was born in Stora Tuna in Sweden on 5th February 1911. He was one of the sons of Karl David Björling, a toolsmith by trade, who had earlier emigrated to the United States of America, working as a blacksmith and supplementing his earnings by boxing. He possessed an excellent tenor voice and studied at the Metropolitan Opera School, New York. He returned home where he was the recipient of a scholarship from King Oscar and undertook further study in Vienna. He married a young pianist named Ester Sund on his return to Sweden and toured the country for several years, singing opera billed as 'the Swedish Caruso!' The family settled at Stora Tuna, some hundred and fifty miles from Stockholm, where four sons were born - Olle, Jussi, Gösta and Kalle, their mother dying in childbirth at Kalle's birth in 1917. All four sons were to become singers of distinction, although Jussi was the only one to become internationally famous.

The boys received their early musical training from their father who, seeing their potential, formed the Björling Male Quartet (consisting of himself, Olle, Jussi and Gösta). In 1919 the Quartet set out on a tour of the United States which continued for two years. Several recordings were made for Columbia Records in 1920 - Jussi Björling had commenced his recording career at the tender age of nine! The Quartet returned to Sweden and toured extensively, culminating in a Command Performance for King Gustav V. The father died in 1926 and the boys tried their hands at various jobs, but Jussi had set his sights on becoming a professional singer. In 1928 he was granted an audition by Carl Martin Öhman, the Swedish tenor, who recommended him to John Forsell, the manager of the Stockholm Royal Opera, and also a baritone of international distinction. As a result he was enrolled with the Royal Conservatory of Music and later with the Royal Opera School.

In September 1929, at the age of eighteen and a half, he made his first adult recordings for His Master's Voice Swedish Division. Those recordings were of four songs - White Roses, I Dream You Are Near Me, For You Alone and Torna A Surriento, all sung in his native Swedish. The records were issued in 1930 on HMV's Swedish Plum Label.

Björling's first engagement at the Royal Opera House, Stockholm, was in a minor role in Manon Lescaut in July 1930. Less than a month later, and still only nineteen, he made his debut as a lead singer as Don Ottavio in Mozart's Don Giovanni, with John Forsell singing the role of Don Giovanni. His next role was the taxing one of Arnold in Rossini's Guillaume Tell. Over a period of five years he achieved the astonishing record of singing forty-four roles at the Royal Opera.

His international career commenced in July 1934 with a concert at the Tivoli Gardens in the Danish capital, Copenhagen, his reception warranting yearly return visits. Tours in opera and concert soon followed in Germany, Austria, Belgium, Czechoslovakia and France. In 1935 he performed the role of Radames in Verdi's Aida at the Vienna State Opera, a role not normally associated with such a young singer, but Björling performed magnificently. Within two years he was appearing at the Salzburg festival as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni and singing the tenor role in Verdi's Requiem, both under the baton of Arturo Toscanini. This was at an age when most singers would be only starting their careers! He later gave recitals in London, the United States and Argentina. In December 1937 his American operatic debut took place at Chicago in Verdi's Rigoletto, and his first performance at the Metropolitan Opera, New York, was in Puccini's La Bohème in November 1938. Excluding the years of the Second World War, he appeared extensively at the Metropolitan, Chicago and San Francisco Opera Houses for the rest of his career. He also appeared regularly at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, where his debut in 1939 was as Manrico in Verdi's Il Trovatore. He appeared at many other opera houses including La Scala, Milan (debut 1940) and returned regularly to sing at The Royal Opera, Stockholm.

Björling's extensive recordings, his guest appearances in opera, and his concert tours to many parts of the world ensured his world-wide acclaim. Unfortunately, in the last years of his life a heart complaint, complicated by alcoholism, made his appearances in opera and on tour rather risky for impresarios. At Covent Garden on 15th March 1960, an attack almost cancelled the performance of La Bòheme but, following medical attention, Björling performed the strenuous role of Rodolfo, and was awarded a standing ovation. His last performance was in Stockholm on 20th August 1960. Jussi Björling died in his sleep on 9th September 1960, at his home on the island of Siarö, near Stockholm, the result of a massive heart attack. He was less than fifty years of age and few singers could equal his recording career of some forty years, from the age of nine to shortly before his death. He was universally mourned and many of his colleagues, including Victoria de Los Angeles, Licia Albanese and Robert Merrill, paid glowing tributes to their former partner.

The recordings of songs made between 1931 and 1937 give an excellent portrait of the young Jussi Björling. Never renowned for his mastery of foreign languages, these records, with one exception, are sung in his native Swedish and show him very much at his ease, with none of the inhibitions which singing in a foreign language sometimes betrayed. The songs are a curious mixture of Swedish traditional and popular songs, dance tunes, Italian/Neapolitan songs, and operetta arias. There is a wonderful outpouring of sound which one might expect from a young man who has just commenced his career, but surprisingly the voice sounds mature and yet natural and without the mannerisms one tends to expect from Italian tenors of that era. There is an ethereal quality to the singing which surely comes from his Scandinavian background.

The first two songs are from the special 78 issued in Sweden to celebrate the marriage of Princess Ingrid of Sweden to Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark on 24th May 1935. Little Princess is an appreciation of the Princess whereas The Wedding Waltz commemorates the forthcoming wedding.

The remaining songs are in chronological order. Six songs from 1930 include Leoncavallo's Mattinata, two Peterson-Berger songs about the woods and forests of Sweden, Toselli's Serenade, Arthur's Today and Elgar's melody Salut d'amour, sung to words reflecting flowers and love, entitled Violets. These show the youthful tenor, still aged less than twenty, pouring out his soul in melody with a power and resonance worthy of an older singer and yet showing an admirable restraint throughout. The next recording session was in 1931 and includes a traditional Swedish song, Tantis serenad, a Neapolitan song Carmela, and two popular songs of the day, Love Me And The World Is Mine and The Sunshine Of Your Smile, although the Swedish title is Say Goodnight To Me.

In 1932 his recordings included Viennese operetta arias by Lehár and Kálmán. The arias from the Lehár operetta Das Land des Lächelns are Dein ist mein ganzes Herz (which Björling was to remake many years later as one of the guests in the Decca Gala recording of Die Fledermaus, the early version being much more idiomatic) and Von Apfelblüten einen Kranz. These are followed by a Swedish song, Close Your Eyes and the Kálmán aria Heut' nacht hab' ich geträumt von dir from Das Veilchen von Montmartre. Björling excelled at this time in Viennese operetta and his records were very popular. The drinking song Bachanal comes from a group of three recordings made in 1933. The 1936 recordings included a song, of Danish origin, Summer Nights, which commemorates the long Nordic summer nights, and the Spanish song Ay, Ay, Ay.

In January 1937 he recorded two patriotic songs, Sweden, from Stenhammer's Ett Volk (One Folk) and Thou Blessed Country which allowed him to give full vent to his patriotism, the songs being sung with all the full-blown fervour that he could muster when the occasion demanded. Two further recordings from that year were Enrico Caruso's composition Dreams of Long Ago, and the Swedish Sing about your Longing.

The singer had now achieved an international reputation, the record buying public were clamouring for more and more of his records, and HMV transferred him to their International Red Label Series and recorded him in Italian. The last item on this programme features one of his first Red Label records, di Capua's O Sole Mio, a version which bears comparison with the more well-known ones by eminent Italian singers.

The young man portrayed in these early recordings became, in later years, one of the world's favourite singers. Even in his days of international fame he usually included some Swedish songs in his concert programmes, but it is doubtful if Jussi Björling ever surpassed the ardour of these records from his youth.
© 1996 Theo Mortimer