Duett from: Die Hochzeit des Figaro

Josie Petru (b. 19 March 1876, Osijek, Croatia; d. 22 November 1907, Davos, Switzerland), contralto. Josie Petru became a member of the Vienna Court Opera in 1902. On 23 January 1905, she sang the part of Erda in the restaging of Wagner’s Das Rheingold, which featured sets and costumes by Alfred Roller. The full cast of the production featured Demuth as Wotan, Weidemann as Donner, Schmedes as Loge, Haydter as Alberich, Mildenburg as Fricka, Gutheil-Schoder as Freia, Elizza as Woglinde and Kittel as Flosshilde. Petru was also much in demand as a singer of works in Italian and French until her career was cut short by an incurable illness. Berta Kiurina (b. 18 February 1882, Linz; d. 3 May 1933, Vienna), soprano. Berta Kiurina was a member of the Vienna Court Opera (later the State Opera) from 1905 to 1922. She made her debut at the Court Opera under Mahler in the first performance of Leo Blech’s opera Das war ich (That was Me) on 28 February 1905.