Bertha Ehnn and Charles Adams by Luckhardt (1)

Bertha Ehnn (1845-1932); Hungarian soprano/mezzo-soprano.

Her first appearances were as a concert singer in Vienna. In 1864 she made her debut on stage in Linz as Nancy in Von Flotow's "Martha". In the season 1864/65 she was engaged at the "Theater von Graz". In 1865/66 she made very successful appearances at Hannover, Nürnberg, Darmstadt and Graz. From 1866/68 she was engaged at the "Stuttgarter Hofoper". Only with great difficulty and after having paid a high penalty of 5000 Florins she could terminate this contract and join the "Wiener Hofoper" in 1868. Here in Vienna she debuted as Marguerite in Gounod's "Faust" and until the year of her retirement in 1885 she had a brilliant career. Highlights in her stage repertoire included roles such as Cherubino and the Countess in "Le nozze di Figaro", Pamina in "Die Zauberflöte", Agathe in "Der Freischütz", Orsini in "Lucrezia Borgia", Leonore in "La Favorita" and Rachel in "La Juive".


Charles Adams (1834-1900); American tenor.

He wanted to be a merchant, but when his voice was discovered he began his vocal training. At the age of 22 he sang the tenor soloist in a performance of Haydn's "Die Schöpfung" at Boston. He began his professional career with major concert tours in North America in the years 1860-62. In 1863 he came to Europe and debuted in Vienna with a Opera company led by Désirée Artôt. The season 1863/64 he was engaged at Budapest and from 1864/67 at the "Berliner Hofoper". During these engagements he made guest appearances at London (Covent Garden), Madrid (Teatro Real) and Hamburg. From 1867/76 he was engaged at the "Wiener Hofoper" where his career reached its zenith. His most memorable roles were Raoul in "Les Huguenots", Edgardo in "Lucia di Lammermoor", Dr. Faust in " Faust", the Duke in "Rigoletto", Gennaro in "Lucrezia Borgia" and also his roles in "Lohengrin" and "Tannhäuser". In 1871 he made a guest appearance at "La Scala" in Milan as Vasco da Gama in "L'Africaine". In 1876 he made a tour of guest appearances at Köln, Breslau, Rotterdam, Leipzig and Berlin. He was able to sing his roles in five different languages ( Italian, French, German, English and Spanish). In 1877 he returned to the USA. In the season 1877/78 he performed at the "Academy of Music" in New York and in 1879 he undertook a tour with the Strakosch Opera Company through the USA and Canada. From 1880 he worked as a vocal teacher in Boston.

On the photo Bertha Ehn is seen as Marguerite and Charles Adams as Dr. Faust in Gounod's opera "Faust".