Soprano
Elisabet Strid

Repertoire
Reviews
On Stage
Interviews


  BIOGRAPHY  

 

The Swedish soprano is one of the most successful interpreters of Wagner and Strauss roles.

After her successful debut at the ROH Covent Garden Opera London as SENTA in ‘Der Fliegende Holländer’ in 2024, she will sing BRÜNNHILDE at this very Opera House in the new production (2025-2027) of Der Ring des Nibelungen with Mo. Antonio Pappano and stage director Barrie Kosky.

In 2024 she is ISOLDE in ‘Tristan und Isolde’ at the Royal Opera Copenhagen , the Grand Théâtre de Genève and in a concert in the Luxembourg Philharmonic.
In 2025 she sings SENTA at the Tokyo National Opera and at the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia Valencia and returns to the Wagner Days Budapest as ELISABETH in Tannhäuser.

Recently, she was SALOME at the Bolshoi Opera in Moscow , the Royal Opera Stockholm, the Israeli Opera Tel Aviv, at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna and at the Leipzig Opera. She portrayed CHRYSOTHEMIS in ‘Elektra’ with the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, at the Royal Opera Copenhagen, the National Opera Helsinki and at the Baltic Sea Festival.

Her most sung roles include SIEGLINDE (Chicago Lyric Opera, Teatro Real Madrid, Göteborgs Operan, Norske Opera Oslo, Royal Opera Stockholm, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Budapest Wagner Days, ….) and SENTA (Michigan Opera Detroit, Leipzig Opera, Rheinoper Düsseldorf, Stuttgart State Opera, Budapest Wagner Days, Teatro Comunale di Bologna).

Other engagements brought her to the Deutsche Oper Berlin as ELS in a Christof Loy production of ‘Die Schatzgräber’, to the Semper Opera Dresden, the Opéra de Lille, the Flemish Opera Antwerp, the Cape Town Opera, to the Teatro Bellas Artes in Mexico, the National Opera Riga and to numerous festivals such as the Bayreuth Festival, the Hong-Kong Arts Festival, the Festival Opera Open it the Antique Amphitheater Plovdiv, Capital of Culture 2019, the Wiesbaden May Festival, the Wagner Festival Days in Leipzig or the Ravello Festival.

Other roles include BRÜNNHILDE in ‘Siegfried’, EVA in ‘Die Meistersinger’, FREIA and GUTRUNE or RUSALKA, LISA in ‘Pique Dame’, GIORGETTA in ‘Il Tabarro’ and ELLEN ORFORD in ‘Peter Grimes’. 2025 she will add Puccini’s TOSCA to her repertoire and sings this role at the National Opera Helsinki.

Elisabet studied singing at the Stockholm University. While still studying, she made her debut at the Vadstena Academy as ‚Brygitta’, in Carl Unander Scharin’s opera, which he had composed in 2003. First engagements brought her to the Royal Opera Stockholm and the Malmö Opera.

Elisabet Strid is also an internationally sought-after concert soloist. Her many performances include Francis Poulenc „‚Gloria“ , the 9th Symphony by Beethoven, Wagner’s Wesendonck-Lieder and ISOLDE’s ‘Liebestod’, SALOME’s final Scene with the Swedish Radio Orchestra, the Stockholm Symphony Orchestra, the OFUNAM Symphony Orchestra Mexico City, the Miskolc Symphony Orchestra, the Stuttgart Philharmonic Orchestra, the Bochum Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino…

Elisabet Strid works with renowned conductors and stage directors such as Antonio Pappano, Zubin Mehta, Andris Nelsons, Kirill Petrenko, Adám Fischer, Gustavo Gimeno, Esa Pekka-Salonen, Juraj Valcuha, Cornelius Meister, Oksana Lyniv, Dan Ettinger, Axel Kober, Ivan Anguélov, Lorin Maazel, Ulf Schirmer, Kent Nagano, Christof Loy, Frank Castorf, Stefan Herheim, Barbe & Doucet, Aron Stiehl, David Pountney, Dietrich Hilsdorf, Calixto Bieito, Dmitri Tschernjakow…

In the Yearbook 2020 of the magazine Opernwelt, she was elected best singer for her interpretation of SIEGLINDE at the GoteborgsOperan.

Her debuts as EVA in “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg”at the Budapest Wagner Days and as VENUS/ELISABETH at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, just like her return to the Lyric Opera Chicago as SIEGLINDE and her portrayal of Sieglinde in Tokyo were cancelled because of the COVID 19 pandemic. Also her engagements as CHRYSOTHEMIS in “Elektra” at the Teatro Massimo Palermo and at the Tel Aviv Opera and MINNIE in “La Fanciulla del West” at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna didn’t take place due to the pandemic.

Her first CD “Leuchtende Liebe” (Beethoven & Wagner) was released at the Oehms Classic label.

2024 she was awarded the MEDAL LITTERIS ET ARTIBUS BY H.M. THE KING OF SWEDEN "for outstanding contributions to Swedish musical life".

 

 
 
REPERTOIRE
Beethoven 9. Sinfonie  
Britten Peter Grimes Ellen Orford
Dvorak Rusalka Rusalka
Puccini Madame Butterfly Clo-Clo-San
  Il Tabarro Giorgetta
  Turandot Liu
Strauss Salome Salome
  Elektra Chrysothemis
Wagner Rheingold Freia
  Rienzi Irene
  Tannhäuser Elisabeth
  Walküre Sieglinde
  Siegfried Brünnhilde
  Götterdämmerung Gutrune
  Die Feen Ada
  Der Fliegende Holländer Senta
     
 
REVIEWS
 
Royal Opera Copenhagen – Tristan und Isolde - ISOLDE
The Swedish Elisabet Strid sings Isolde, giving a powerful performance on the highest level. She effortlessly manages to reach the high notes and her long solo arias are simply unbelievable. Running a marathon seems easier than making this Wagner trip.
Kulturtid
kulturtid.dk
Especially Strid brings huge emotions into her play, so that we really believe her pain.
Ung Teaterblod
ungtteaterblod.dk
Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid, singing the second Isolde of her career, proves the scope of her artistry. Her voice isn’t the hugest but it glistens in certain light and is deployed with remarkable accuracy, control and gradations of emotion. Never is she inclined to over-sing: much of her glorification is threaded onward with a sort of intense, almost introspective focus and she has a parallel ability to command the stage with little more than the direction of a gaze. Physically far shorter than her Tristan, she towers over him in will and self-belief. Even her neurosis in Act I is lined with an intriguing sense of the character’s underlying intent.
Grammophone
gramophone.co.uk
And when the ships comes in, we truly hear Wagner’s splendor as Elisabeth Strid sings Isolde’s famous aria Liebestod. For almost five hours we had been waiting for this salvation, that gives rise to a wild love flame on the tower of incandescent lamps , also stenographical in the light design of Ellen Ruges. But the waiting was absolutely worth while.
Sceneblog
sceneblog.dk
Especially Strid’s Isolde with its pride and her warmth is particularly worth mentioning.
Critique
aarsskriftet-critique.dk
That means that Strid and Register get the opportunity to enrich the sound. Isolde’s voice is sometimes sarcastically hissing, sometimes ecstatic, sometimes crystal-clear, fitting her expressive play.
Peripeti
peripeti.dk
Totally different was the performance of Elisabet Strid (Isolde),where everything was just perfect. She has a dashing scenic presence and completely goes into her role with both mimicry and gestures. Her singing is perfectly thought out and she has plenty of nuances at her disposal. She has radiantly clear metallic heights, but is also able to modify strongly, which is quite unusual for a dramatic soprano. In her ironic explanations in the first act a few verses were a little bit too deep and without vibrato , which gave them a recitative character and a few passages were almost declaimed. Yet she aways managed to return to a effortless, brilliant tone. This vocal flexibility made her performance varied and vivid. Her final singing was impeccable and free of any striving for effect.
Operapoint
operapoint.com
The musical team’s performances range between international class and master achievements... The Swedish Elisabet Strid is an amazing Isolde with a marvelous dramatic soprano voice an a powerful performance: a classical revenging tragic actress in the first act, an unconditionally loving woman in the second act and a trance-like transcendent in the third act.
Operaens Venner
operaensvenner.dk
The fact that the cast’s singing is impeccable and physically convincing in all three acts, grants the experience even more spiciness, so the opera seems a huge and uniform cosmic black hole, in which everything seems to disappear .... In her debut as Isolde, Elisabet Strid succeeds in drawing her musical phrasing at the same time softly as in soft sand and hard as if chiseled in stone..
POV International
pov.international
Royal Opera House London - Der Fliegende Holländer – SENTA
Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid’s Senta qualifies this singer, who makes her debut in this role at Covent Garden, a rising Wagner interpreter on the major stages: her vocal volume will continuing to develop, but her controlled subtlety with which she sings the highest notes is already now most impressive.
Klassik begeistert
klassik-begeistert.de
Elisabet Strid, making her Covent Garden debut, sang a steely Senta as his counterpart. The love interest feels a strange way to describe their chilly, fateful obsession, despite Wagner’s exalting music in their love duet. She was relatively untroubled by the passaggio tribulations of her big opening number, striking her high notes with clarity and purpose. There was an apt sense of the character’s own determined, obsessive dedication. Her more lyrical moments were searing, at times a little wayward in terms of tuning, and with a less defined lower register – rather than luxurious. But, it all felt like it was in service of a bracing portrait of a character. This power and brightness served her especially well in the final scene, which allowed her top notes to really gleam.
OPERAWIRE
operawire.com
Terfel still owns this role, and Elisabet Strid’s Senta soars

Tim Albery’s production feels a little lukewarm in this revival but soprano Strid, in her Covent Garden debut, is a compelling presence….
Best of all, though, is Elisabet Strid, in her Royal Opera debut, as Senta, the self-sacrificing heroine who dreams of something beyond the factory but is doomed to achieve it only in death – and in this production, an anticlimactic death at that. A quietly compelling presence on stage, she sings the role in a soprano that’s golden yet grainy, all slubby silk rather than smooth satin, and the more expressive for it.
The Guardian
theguardian.com
His Senta was the magnificent Elisabet Strid, astonishingly making her Royal Opera debut. Her Sieglinde in Walküre in Gothenburg as part of Stephen Langridge’s Ring in December 2019was heart-stoppingly powerful, and her Senta exhibited similar traits. She has the gentleness but also the power to provide a great Senta, her Ballad absolutely gripping from first to last (and beautifully complemented by some finely pointed accents from the orchestra), her pitching impeccable throughout. Her voice is pure, a true soprano, but – vitally important – never shrill.
Opera Today
operatoday.com
Tim Albery’s production of Wagner’s beloved The Flying Dutchman returns to the Royal Opera House for its fourth revival in a stunning performance that once again features Sir Bryn Terfel in the title role and the outstanding Elisabet Strid as Senta….
Strid is equally stunning, with a gorgeous-sounding naturality in her voice that leads perfectly through the score. She constantly maintains the dramatic presence necessary for Senta. Whether smooth and soft or bombastic, she never ceases to amaze.
broadway WORLD
broadwayworld.com
As Senta, Elisabet Strid is both empathetic and empowered; ….
Strid’s warm, resonant soprano carries effortlessly across the opera house, not least in Senta’s famous ballade about the Dutchman, in which she savours the spiky intervals at the same time as she sculpts out her character’s yearning. While her bravery shines through she also potently conveys the nightmarish aspect of Senta’s terror as she stumbles onto her father’s ship and finds it full of desolate phantoms.
the arts desk
theartsdesk.com
Both Milling and Strid were on top form last night. Senta’s bell-like vocals, pure and lyrical, were stunning and her characterisation of Senta was truly convincing.
London-Unattached
london-unattached.com
Senta, the young woman who yearns to bring salvation to the Dutchman’s soul, is sung here by the Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid, who may, for some tastes, lack the potency of a traditional Wagnerian dramatic soprano. What she does offer, though, is an aptly searching tonal quality and a range of expression in her Ballad that one too rarely encounters. She also nails the taxing top notes both there and at the end of the opera.
The Standard
standard.co.uk
DVD Deutsche Oper Berlin - Der Schatzgräber - ELS
Daniel Johanson and Michael Laurenz are excellent as the male leads, but it’s Elisabet Strid’s portrayal of the heroine that makes this so tragically memorable.
Naxos
naxos.com
Elisabet Strid is superb in the psychologically complex role of Els, both in terms of acting and vocal artistry. Her singing of Els’s lullaby at the start of Act 3 is especially sensitive and moving.
Grammophone
gramophone.co.uk
There are still two good reasons to become acquainted with the DVD. And these reasons are both Swedish. Lennart Bromander produced „Die Schatzgräber“ with Elisabet Strid and Daniel Johansson in the roles of Els and Elis.
Tidskriften OPERA
tidskriftenopera.es
Elisabet Strid who has considerable and richly colored youthful dramatic soprano potential, that is secure in the high repertoire is an impressive Els with an appealing acting.
Der Opernfreund
deropernfreund.de
Teatro de la Maestranza Sevilla – Tristan und Isolde - ISOLDE
Elisabet Strid's (Isolde) singing was stimulating, and we take it for granted that this is a character who will continue to develop and from whom she will obtain a greater depth. Hers was a dramatic singing without any hint of stridency, without excesses, with a voice that she always kept well centred and with generous volume, never dwarfed by the orchestra. She accentuated with elegance and, at the same level, her phrasing shone, rounding off a beautiful Liebestod.
Opera Actual
operaworld.es
For the Seville production, a cast of great solvency has been chosen. Not surprisingly, this is a prodigious monument to the voice and its many qualities, taken to the highest levels of technical demand in Wagnerian writing. In this sense, the magnificent voice of the soprano Elisabet Strid in recreating the Maestranza's Isolde, the true protagonist of the action, must be highlighted. Wagner's stage presence for her extends throughout the entire first two acts, as well as to the conclusion of the third; such an exhaustive expressive and vocal exercise demands exceptional stamina and vocal strength, which the Swedish soprano successfully fulfilled. In this respect, Elisabet Strid surpassed the expectations that her already successful career had created, displaying vocal brilliance and beauty, semantic coherence and scenic dynamism. From the rage-filled diatribes of the first act to the final Liebestod moment, her musical delivery was ever-present and perfectly articulated, highlighting with wonderful diction the union between music and text that Wagner conceived. Alongside a great Isolde is needed a Tristan to match…
Opera World
operaworld.es
Royal Opera Copenhague - Elektra - CHRYSOTHEMIS
Elisabet Strid‘s Chrysothemis is overwhelming in its brilliant soprano splendor. One wonders, how this tender body succeeds in creating such an expansive power and such a sound.
Lennartr Bromander - Tidskriften Opera
With her mix of innocent naturality and cheerful madness, Elisabet Strid presents a differentiated portrayal of the downtrodden Chrysothemis,...
Peripeti
peripeti.dk
Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia/Rome - Elektra - CHRYSOTHEMIS
The blonde Elisabet Strid has chosen a gently glittering blue evening dress for Chrysothemis.
Strid‘s soprano voice effortlessly raises above the sweeping orchestra even in the forte tutti passages. Yet it always keeps Chrysothemis‘ sweetness and timidity, succeeding in credibly managing an impressive balance.
Opern News
opern.news
Excellent also Elsabet Strid’s portrayal of Chysothemis, expressing with lush sensuality her physical, vital, irrepressible need to live her female youth. There are many actresses, who bashfully hesitate to show this need. Not so Elisabet Strid. She lets it break free, especially in such sentences as :‚Ich habe ein Feuer hier in der Brust…ich brauche Kinder….‘
Giornaledellamusica.it - 20. Oktober 2022
giornaledellamusica.it
Magnificent performance of the soprano Elisabet Strid in the role of Chrysothemis, Elektra’s gentle and resigned sister.
Adnkronos, 19. Oktober 2022
adnkronos.com
The Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid shows an exemplary Chrysothemis in her portrayal as a vibrant, young woman, who longs to live her femaleness and dreams about having offspring and taking care of it with all her motherly warmth. Her singing line is clear, round and appropriately lyrical; she puts the emphasis on transmitting the entire physicality of the character with its impetuosity for life and her dream of fertility.
Adnkronos, 19. Oktober 2022
musicpaper.it
Birgit-Nilsson Museum – Festkonzert
Elisabeth Strid, one of the leading Sieglinde interpreters, next to Lise Davidsen, truly has Nilssonian qualities. Her Senta has plenty of jubilating aplomb and sentimental upswings. Yet at the same time she shows girlishly touching moments But above all in the ballad, Strid demonstrates pure naturality in her expression, which creates a singing that is going straight to the heart.
Concerti
concerti.de
Festival days at the Oper Leipzig – SENTA in Der Fliegende Holländer - ELISABETH in Tannhäuser – SIEGLINDE in Die Walküre- EVA in Die Meistersinger
And Elisabet Strid, since 2010 a regular guest in many moving role portraits (Senta, Elisabeth, Eva, Sieglinde), bade her final farewell to the opera house
Opernwelt, Werner Kopfmüller, 9/10-2022
Wagner Festtage der Oper Leipzig – Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
The Malmö-born Swedish Elisabet Strid was a strong Sieglinde, with good technique and an excellent breast voice, showing no wear marks.
Harald Lacin
www.onlinemerker.com
Like Elisabet Strid, who already gave Leipzig numerous fabulous role interpretations: Elsa and Eva, Elisabeth and Senta, Freia and Salome and now this sensational Sieglinde. This Sieglinde is young and vulnerable, yet technically undisputed in the challenges of the part. None of her tones are just satisfied with simply being beautiful, although they are. Each one of then pulls words and soul out of the network, which carries it. .. Since 2010 as “Wagner 22” started under the musical direction of Ulf Schirmer, Elisabet Strid was a regular guest in the Leipzig Opera House. In Facebook, she now said goodbye with extremely emotional words. Yet this deeply moving Sieglinde simply can’t and may not be her last engagement at the Augustusplatz!
LVZ Kultur
www.lvz.com
Opera Leipzig – Wagner Festtage – Der Fliegende Holländer - SENTA
Elisabet Strid gave a picture-like portrayal of Senta, her richly nuanced soprano voice and her authentic play. leaving no desires unfulfilled.
Der Neue Merker – Klaus Billand
www.onlinemerker.com
The explicit star of the evening was Elisabet Strid with a picture-perfect interpretation of Senta. Strid does not only have a soprano voice, which is capable to effortlessly sing the highest peaks in an extremely stable and beautifully timbred middle register. She simply is THE Senta of our time.
Online Merker
www.onlinemerker.com
Deutsche Oper Berlin – Der Schatzgräber - ELS
…the ballads by Els (touchingly austerely sung by Elisabet Strid, who is also proficient in huge expressive gestures like the passionate trumpet sound)
Eleonore Büning, OPER 6/2022
... and Elisabet Strid had no problems at all to portray the femme fatale in her little waitress apron.
Vocally however the Swedish singer left nothing to be desired. With a wonderfully lightly culminating soprano voice, which never turned shrill, even when the orchestral waves poured over her.
U.Ehrensberger, DAS OPERNGLAS 6/2022
Elisabet Strid plays a fantastically nuanced Els, seductive, callous, impassioned and ultimately pitiable.
Financial Times
www.ft.com
Elisabet Strid as Els is the star of the evening. Ringing out over the sonic masses of the orchestra, the Swedish soprano almost effortlessly succeeds in portraying a femme fatale, but also the shy girl behind the mask as well as the evil, calculating woman who at the end is broken.
RBB24
www.rbb24.de
The nuances are left to the singers, above all to Elisabet Strid, a fabulous Wagner soprano, as Els. The boldness and desperation of this self-empowering woman lays all in her voice. She has the courage to perform an outcry as well as very delicate high notes. A human, a character, not an imaginary figure, even though the direction sometimes lets her down.
Der Tagesspiegel
www.tagesspiegel.de
The soprano Elisabet Strid, also from Sweden, is able to powerfully flare up her voice, which is particularly necessary when Shreker brings them both into a Tristan-and-Isolde ecstasy. „Ein Glühen eint uns“, Els sings. Yet she seems down to earth, vigilant, intelligent. Els has dreams, she loves beautiful jewelry and she loves Els.
Frankfurter Rundschau
www.fr.de
...and the Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid were truly an ideal cast. Strid is truly convincing in great dramatic outbursts, but she also is always able to restrain her technically brilliant soprano voice for the lyrical passages.
Klassik begeistert
www.klassik-begeistert.de
CD Recording: Elisabet Strid - Leuchtende Liebe
Elisabet Strid sings the great Wagner (and Beethoven-)parts with her youthful – fresh, lyrical – passionate and touching soprano voice with a fascinating brilliance and poetic sensitivity.
Every nuance of the singer’s expressed emotions are convincing and one is delightfully inspired by her luminous love.
Ivan Anguélov produces a well-balanced carpet of sound, which is supportively accompanying without being intrusive.
With her CD Elisabet Strid proves she is prepared to rank among the great female Wagner interpreters like Ingrid Nilsson, Nina Stemme or Waltraud Meier.
Thorsten Brandl
Teatro Real Madrid – Die Walküre – SIEGLINDE
Let us now take a look at the singers and begin – utterly unusual – with Elisabet Strid, whom I had the pleasure to see her in her first “Walküre” in 2007 in Riga. Once more she was, together with Christoph Ventris, the star of the evening, both vocally and as an actress. Strid’s vocal brilliance and warmth and her perfect diction, combined with her facial expression that seems perfectly natural and suitable for every moment, could be a general instruction for the interpretation of Sieglinde. Incomparable, how she reveals he is her brother, right from the beginning of the tale. And then the enormous tension, she keeps up in the triangular relationship.
Der neue Merker 03/2020 Klaus Billand
(...). Outstanding Elisabet Strid, with a well-projected voice, spotless heights, a very good actress, always committed and with the expressiveness of a despised wife and a sister in love.
Plathea Magazine
www.plateamagazine.com
Königliches Opernhaus Göteborg – Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
Elisabet Strid proved to be an outstanding Sieglinde, whose passionate presentation in the 2nd act showed a perfect vocal commitment and a performance that reached the outermost limits of complete insanity.
Das Opernglas 2/2020 B.Barrett
Semperoper Dresden - Tannhäuser – ELISABETH
A Dresden Wagner Celebration in the Strauss Anniversary Year Fantastic „Tannhäuser“ revival at the Semperoper.
To that, a sublime ensemble, a celebration of beautiful voices, even more: the encounter of a splendid singer group. Singing and scenic presence in the drama of the story fluently merged... Elisabet Strid is a truly youthful Elisabeth, joyous and yet dynamically graded in her development from brilliant exultation in the Great Hall Aria unto her dramatic, existential commitment to Tannhäuser. Her lonely farewell with its intense prayer in the third act was of a touching tragedy.
MUSIK IN DRESDEN
www.musik-in-dresden.de
Staatsoper Stuttgart – Der Fliegende Holländer – SENTA
Undoubtedly, the real star of the evening was Elisabet Strid (Senta)… the Swedish soprano turns her role into something tremendously captivating. She charms and amazes at the same time. A rich soprano voice with dense, clear heights, that effortlessly manages all the peaks. Sensitive tones, a colorful voice and a perfect scenic performance, that takes everyone in the audience with her into a journey to the realm of spirits.
Klassik begeistert
www.klassik-begeistert.de
Also here, Senta’s ballad is the musical core, because the Swedish soprano knows how to communicate the intensity of her famous ballad to thr audience with an almost direct ardor.
… Thunderous final applause – especially for Elisabet Strid’s touching Senta.
Online Merker
www.onlinemerker.de
Rheinoper DüsseldorF – Pique Dame - LISA
With a youthful, glowing voice , convincingly swaying between joy and sorrow, the Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid allows a deep insight in the young girl’s soul, which is torn between two worlds.
Opernwelt 7/2019 – Josef Oehrlein
The fact that Hermann of all things falls in love with this uptight nymphet without any sex appeal, is rather surprising. Elisabet Strid, however, makes this sight her own and scenically and vocally blooms as Hermann seems to finally uncocoon her and then making her tragically fall in the end.
A.Laska - Das Opernglas 7/8 2019
Rheinoper Düsseldorf-Duisburg – Die Walküre – SIEGLINDE
The Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid as Sieglinde is a self-confident, strong twin sister, who longs to free herself from her clutches and feels a strong affinity to her twin brother. Elisabet Strid’s clear soprano voice has a delightful timbre and the vocal sustainability is in all registers present. Once again she presented a first class performance. In exactly the right moment Elisabet Strid develops vocal beat and a dynamic introduction of tones, like in the final scene with „Nicht sehre dich Sorge um mich: einzig taugt mir der Tod….“. With impressing ease, she catches the tonal change of the music’s character – even in the high registers, to brilliantly express her high emotions „Rette mich, Kühne! Rette mein Kind! Schirmt mich, ihr Mädchen, mit mächtigstem Schutz“ with sublime delight. In „O hehrstes Wunder. Herrlichste Maid Dir Treuen dank‘ ich heiligen Trost. Für ihn, den wir liebten, rett‘ ich das Liebste: meines Dankes Lohn lache dir einst Lebe wohl Dich segnet Sieglindes Weh‚“ music and singing melt into a perfect unity, which touches the audience deep inside.
Opernmagazin
www.opernmagazin.de
Teatro Communale di Bologna - SALOME
Salome, like the Moon, is one and multiple; preserving its dark side, it always shows us the same face, but different every time, depending on its light, on the eyes that are contemplating it.

And so it changes, in new veils, with the arrival of Elisabet Strid, who arrives unexpectedly to Bologna just three days before the debut, replacing the colleague who was initially scheduled for the performances of 16 and 19 February. The Swedish soprano is still little known in Italy - where, if I’m not mistaken, had not yet performed - but it takes her only a few moments to put her personal seal and impose herself, showing her absolute mastery of the role, not fearing at all to step into the production on the eve of the first night. In fact, the natural easiness with which she moves through the stage and the score is bewitching: Salome is not a turbulent and mischievous Lolita, Salome shows her innocence, even the disoriented candor in the materialism of a palace that has transmitted a distorted view of her world but has not perverted the soul. Salome is pure, but confused, incapable of understanding and experiencing her own feelings.

The loss of innocence, so well embodied by Elisabet Strid in the Dance of the Seven Veils, is a trauma from which she escapes longing for an alien dream, a sublimated embrace with the idea of ​​a different, true and lost love, destroyed by her own inexperience. The dichotomy between the realistic body and the symbolic colossal head, which emerges from the deep erasing blood and necrophilia in Lavia’s show, finds perfect correspondence in the interpretation of the Swedish soprano. The painful ecstasy of the final monologue is clear, even explicit but never vulgar: it is the akmé, the moment of maximum splendor of a portrait that emerges from the first entrance of the princess and develops in every gesture, in hers curious looking, in the way of sitting decomposed, opening the legs or crouching, in the bright singing that does not cringe in front of the burdensome defiances, but knows how to adapt intelligently and deliver all the nuances and needs of the role.

Her interpretation is just perfect, round, deserving the convinced ovation of the public,…. The character developed by Elisabet Strid is intensely erotic, not barbaric, not perverse; so the barbaric violence never gives up the vivid rhythmic accuracy and subtle nuances that Valčuha controls and unravels, always remembering that Salome is not Elektra, that the nightmare of eros, unlike that of revenge, gently insinuates between the ambiguous rays of the moon. And, without any metaphor, it is expressed in an excellent performance, which is heard in one breath by savoring the beauty of the timbre and phrasing, the intriguing definition of the themes, skillfully framed, with clean articulation, letting the drama emerge with force and incisiveness.
L´Ape musicale
www.apemusicale.it
Elisabet Strid’s Salome is a mixture of Enfant terrible and Femme fatale, sung with a clear and by all means clearly articulated soprano voice, which not only gave proof of her Wagner experience. She also sang the role with huge emphasis, consistingly vocally adjusting to every particular challenge of Jochanaan and later Herodes. After an enormous vocal exertion and a dance, which dance figures, fantasy and dynamic were really worth while seeing - obviously she was dancing for Jochanaan rather than for Herodes – she still had the demanding high notes in the final. It was fascinating to observe the gazes she gave Herodes, after having tried in a most coquettish way to get close to Jochanaan. Strid’s facial expressions are the young singer’s exceptional quality. She is sure to have a great career ahead of her.
Online Merker
www.onlinemerker.com
Israeli Opera Tel Aviv – SALOME
It is not a premiere of the year, it is rather a premiere of the century – there has not been a better “Salomé” at any opera house (at least out of those I have seen, and they are not few by far). Plus, certainly, the heavenly singing of Salomé. The title character, who, according to Richard Strauss, was a “16-year-old with the voice of an Isolde capable of overpowering a big orchestra” was sung by a young Swede, Elisabet Strid, small and fragile, with almost a childish body, for whom the extreme tessitura was not a big deal. Her voice was incredibly easily gliding between the most challenging bends of Salomé’s part – here a filigree silver light, there a dark-register flicker, there a blast-it-all blue flame when uttering an ecstatic final “I kissed thy mouth, Jokanaan.” Each register yielding a gamut of finest dynamic inflexions and inner expressiveness: not a psychotic princess but a naïve and stubborn Lolita with silver hair heeding the Baptist’s prophecies, a bored nymphet, а lewd monster with a heavenly voice and feline plastique. (Elisabet Strid, by the way, is a well-recognised Wagnerian singer who has already sung Brünhilde, Sieglinde, Senta, and her namesake Elisabeth from “Tannhäuser.”)
Lina Goncharsky
www.culbyt.com
In the singing cast, Elisabet Strid (Salomé) takes most of the burden. She hardly leaves the stage throughout the opera. Even when she is silent she has to react, to indicate what is happening to her internally. Moreover, in the last half hour, she keeps singing as if it were one long aria. She does it in style, fully aware of the approach to the idiom of this opera, a beautiful soprano with not only the vocal abilities required by the role but also top dramatic skills. What a pleasure!
Shmuel Ben-Tovim, PLAYS TO SEE
www.playstosee.com
Budapest Wagner Days – Der Fliegende Holländer - SENTA
But right from the start Daland’s daughter, portrayed by the blonde Swede Elisabet Strid, particularly stood out. At the beginning acting like a teenage girl, one soon notices this striking young girl is driven by a real adventurous spirit and is fascinated by everything mysterious. But above all, this young lady really sings splendidly. Her rich soprano voice is warm in the middle registers, effortlessly manages the high registers, lets them shine and, if needed, float freely – similar to Birgit Nilsson or Nina Stemme. Inevitably, star qualities are due to follow. That also goes to her detailed, fresh play between total dedication to her visions and a perky and charming play with her friends, her father Daland and the “stranger” . Her ballad with 3 stanzas with the effortless high registers in an impeccable German are just as captivating as her dialogue with the Dutchman. Even there, her adventurous spirit and the will to ally with him shows in her eyes.
Online Merker
www.onlinemerker.com
Opernhaus Leipzig – Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
Vocally, the Swedish singer Elisabet Strid is the ideal Tannhäuser Elisabeth. A youthful-dramatic picture-perfect voice, blessed with perfect high notes, dramatic penetrative power, smooth legato arcs and an exemplary diction. This artist, which I have already heard as Siegfried Brünnhilde has gone through a tremendous development. Strid isn’t just a wonderful singer with a great future as highly dramatic soprano. She is also a first-class actress. Surely there aren’t many colleagues, that would have put up with what she had to endure as Elisabeth. Strid however, presents a perfectly credible figure and fascinates as a thoroughbred stage professional.
Online Merker, Dr. Ingobert Walenberger
www.onlinemerker.com
Some of the actor-singers, especially Elisabet Strid as Elisabeth, fill the gaps on their own. …One thing is absolutely clear: no matter whether she plays Venus or Elisabeth: Beito directs this woman as Wagner would have done it…. Outstanding her portrayal of the seduced, broken, desperate, violated woman, driven to madness in a (men’s) world, where there is no place for her. Effortlessly, Elisbet Strid, as warm but yet crystal-like, assertive but yet fragile Elisabeth outshines the choir and the orchestra without any virulence. Her” aria of the hall” quivers with hope and exuberance, the beauty of her singing is open for emotional truthfulness.
LVZ
www.lvz.de
Deutsche Oper am Rhein – Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
Such a wonderful voice : Elisabet Strid as Sieglinde. Brightly and powerfully she sings herself to the highlight of the „hehrsten Wunders“. The incredibly emotional and unbending artist belongs to the great hopes in the Wagner repertoire.
Der neue Merker – Johann Schwaz
Likewise Elisabet Strid’s Sieglinde : intense and beautiful in sound, round and firm tones and brilliant in the high registers.
Opernwelt 3/2018 Michael Struck-Schloen
And this Sieglinde is an absolute highlight: the Swedish singer Elisabet Strid endures her destiny with every fibre of her body, with every vibration of her marvellous, nuanced voice, leaving a fabulous impression, both vocally and actingly. She almost merges with her character and totally convinces her audience. Correspondingly inspired, Strid was celebrated.
Oper! Das Magazin – März 2018 – Christoph Schulte im Walde
...with vocal emphasis Elisabet Strid tells Sieglinde’s agony.
Orpheus 2/2018 Christoph Zimmermann
One can perfectly understand that the vocally multidimentional Siegmund, Corby Welch, doesn’t want to leave his Sieglinde, Elisabet Strid. Her nuances are quite astonishing, sometimes perfectly bright and clear, sometimes dark and mysterious: a completely riven soul. In Hilsdorf’s production she rules the roots, not only vocally...
Frankfurter Allgemeine
www.faz.net
At his side as Sieglinde is the Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid. This singer is a real godsend. Seldom one has heard a female Wagner part so perfectly clear sung. Moreover, Strid has a voice, which perfectly meets all the demands of the role from the pianos onto the huge moments in the second act. Scenically she filled the role with plenty of verve and energy, from which many a collegue could learn something.
Der Opernfreund
www.deropernfreund.de
Also Elisabet Strid has a great vocal identity. Touchingly, she presents the character’s burden of passion.
Online Merker
www.der-neue-merker.de
Lyric Opera Chicago - Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
The impressive soprano Elisabet Strid, as Sieglinde, sang with radiant, focused sound and poignant expressive shadings.
New York Times
www.nytimes.com
Elisabet Strid as a marvellous Sieglinde, radiant in the upper register, telling lower down and emotionally searing.
Finacial Times
This “’Ring’ for the theater” is further blessed with casting that only an alignment of the planets could provide. Director David Pountney guides his golden-voiced actors into genuine physicality equal to outsized passions, eschewing “park-and-bark.” Brandon Jovanovich (Siegmund), and Elisabet Strid (Sieglinde), embody the new opera-singing-actor for which a fresh audience clamors. When we needn’t step out of the moment to wonder if a singer will reach the high note, the characters can be real. When these actors are also so comfortable in their bodies that they can live what is on the page, including the bits where no one is singing, those precious jewels where the composer fleshes out the characters, their audience will be left jonesing for the next episode.
Newcity Stage
www.newcitystage.com
Elisabeth Strid proved electrifying in her company debut as the doomed Sieglinde. At times one wanted a bit more vocal heft in this role but the Swedish soprano sang with remarkable commitment and dedication throughout. Dramatically she powerfully conveyed the abducted gril’s haunted unhinged qualities.
Chicago Classical Review
www.chicagoclassicalreview.com
Leipzig Opera - Salome - SALOME
In Elisabet Strid they found a Salome, who perfectly hits the temper of a nymphet. Young and rebellious, she knows exactly how to reach her goal. The Swedish soprano has a beautiful, intensely focussed voice with brilliant colors, taking a stand in every situation in a sensual and seductive way.
Der Neue Merker, 07/2017
A soprano which has both youthfulness and reciliency, a „youthful Isolde“ as Strauss should have wanted it, who is vocally able to cap the final with fine piani. Altough this is her first Salome, Strid already shows some fine interpretation points. This soprano could be „ the future Salome“.
Der Opernfreund
www.deropernfreund.de
Visually, the Swedish soprano Elisabet Strid is the ideal cast for the role… She impresses with a youthful soprano voice, still gentle in the high registers.
Frankfurter Rundschau
www.fr.de
Like Elisabet Strid as Salome who dominates the stage right from the beginning. She is girlish, bored, naïve and monstrous, pure and depraved. All this also shows in her beautiful voice, which never shows the impositions of the gigantic part. In each register she disposes of an entire dynamic and tuneful range and she knows how to use it. A huge, impressive incredibly mature role debut...
LVZ
www.lvz.de
In the title role of Salome was the Swedish jugendlich dramatisch soprano Elisabet Strid making her role debut. Her 'blond' Scandinavian soprano and youthful looks made a great impact as the psychotic princess. From her first, hyperactive entry she convinced as the teenager with attitude manipulating all those around her to get her way. Strid has already sung the Siegfried Brünnhilde in this house and her voice is at the lyric end of the dramatic spectrum. She uses the text vividly with a pure legato, and is able to hone down her sizeable voice to an almost child-like whiteness for phrases such as “Ich bin nicht hungrig, Tetrarch”.…..Strid's voice fully encompassed the extremes of the last scene from silvery filigree in phrases such as “und wenn ich dich ansah, hörte ich geheimnisvolle Musik”, the darker register of “Liebe its grösser als das Geheimnis der Tod” through to the final ecstatic outburst “Ich hab' ihn geküsst, Jochanaan”.…..Strid received a great ovation and will surely go on to sing the role elsewhere
Bachtrack
www.bachtrack.com
Ravello Festival Italien – BRÜNNHILDE in Siegfried/SIEGLINDE in Die Walküre
Elisabet Strid ha rivelato grande estensione e duttilità nell’affrontare sia il ruolo di Sieglinde che quello di Brünnhilde; il soprano svedese è stato così limpidamente wagneriano, dall’incantare perfino maggiormente in quei frangenti in cui il compositore ha momentaneamente “tradito” i principi del suo Musikdrama a vantaggio della melodia quasi di ascendenza belliniana.
Corriere della Sera, July 2017
Leipzig Opera - Siegfried - BRÜNNHILDE
Elisabet Strid, who will also sing Elisabeth in "Tannhäuser" and Salome at the Leipzig Opera, wisely divides the role. She's not at all a vocal heroine, who welcomes sun, light and day with a trumpet-like voice. As she starts singing, she really is the daydreaming maiden, who - with a clear, almost youthful but still relatively restrained voice - is trying to understand what has happened to her. In the long run she cannot escape Siegfried's impetuous passion. Her voice gains brilliance and flow. The audience can hardly resist the lover's hymne. Standing ovations.
Christoph Suhre - Der Neue Merker 04/2017
www.der-neue-merker.eu
De Vlaamse Opera Antwerpen - König Kandaules - NYSSIA
‘Elisabet Strid is a lyrically flowing, sooftly timbred Nyssia with powerfel attacks in the dramatic passages.'
Regine Müller / Opernwelt May 2016
Wagner Fest Budapest - Der Fliegende Holländer - SENTA
'Frantic applause for Elisabet Strid's splendid interpretation of Senta. The entire part is brilliantly and vividly performed and souvereignly sung. The applause increases into cheers also for Strids acrobatic action on the scaffold.'
Manfred Zweck ORPHEUS September/Oktober 2015
Wagner Days Budapest - Der Fliegende Holländer - SENTA
'The young Swedish Elisabet Strid sings and plays a fulminant Senta and strongly performs the ballad with a convincing vocal mark. The truely difficult high peaks cause her not the slightest problem. Since I have seen her 2007 in Riga in her first Wagner role, Sieglinde, she has made enormous progress. She definitively now is a remarkable emerging talent in the Wagner repertoire. As Freia in the present Bayreuth 'Ring' she also celebrates great triumphs.
Klaus Billand, June 2015, Der neue Merker
www.der-neue-merker.eu
Opera House Leipzig - Siegfried - BRÜNNHILDE
Absolutely marvellous the love duet with the lyrical Elisabet Strid, a real young woman, awakening to love. Although Strid is not highly dramatic in every inch, her voice is perfectly audible. Her singing is so wonderful and the few dramatic high notes at the end also are perfect. That's why this unusual casting concept works perfectly.
Dr. Ingobert Waltenberger
www.der-neue-merker.eu
But perhaps the most important musical event of the festival was the role debut of Elisabet Strid, who sang Brünnhilde in 'Siegfried'. I have never heard such a lyric almost coloratura approach to this role, with all the notes in place, fine coloring, and significant power, even over the thundering orchestra. She's also glamorous and knows how to act. ...to my ear, she is the finest and freshest Siegfried Brünnhilde now singing and one of the most distinctive ever. What a discovery!
classicalvoiceamerica.org
Elisabet Strid was the Brünnhilde of the evening. Opticallo a real feast for the eyes- vocally a real pleasure! However she should not throw herself so vehemently into the highly dramatic parts. Though her fresh, youthful voice allows such exultation notes, it should be handled with care. It would be a pity if such a precious material would dry out too soon.
Der Neue Merker, Christopher Suhre 05/2015
'The true relevation of the evening was Elisabet Strid's Brünnhilde. Her still lyrical sounding voice has enough power and brilliance to turn the extreme high vocal lines in the awakening scene into something absolutely thrilling. Also in expression, tempo and phrasing she acted strikingly confident.'
Klassik.com, Midou Grossmann
magazin.klassik.com
'At his side (third act) the stil quite young Brünnhilde from the Swedish Elisabet Strid-...strikingly bright and brilliantly beautiful.'
Kultura extra, Andre Sokolowski
www.livekritik.de/kultura-extra
'Although the Swedish Elisabet Strid pines away with a surprisingly slender voice and she almost lyrically approaches the murderous part, she repeatedly must oppose both the ardent hero and the loudly arguing orchestra. '
Michael Ernst NMZ
www.nmz.de
'really astonsihing however is the voice of the young Swedish Elisabet Strid's Brunnhilde. A truely amazing singer...'
MDR.de/Kultur – Dieter David Scholz
Bayreuth Festival - Das Rheingold - FREIA
'Elisabet Strid is a fresh and youthful Freia...'
Die Deutsche Bühne, 10/14
'Elisabet Strid's Freia is a stunner in every respect.'
Der neue Merker
www.der-neue-merker.eu
Bayreuth Festival - Das Rheingold - FREIA
'If this beautiful blond young Freia with Elisbaet Strid' s crystal clear voice hadn't stood in his way... '
Der neue Merker - Dr. Sieglinde Pfabigan - September 2013
'and Elisabet Strid with her juvenile full-bodied soprano voice as Freia.'
J.Bartels, Opernglas 09/2013
'Excellent Elisabeth Strid as Freia with her intense expression and facial play'
Der Neue Merker - Dr. Klaus Billand
'Still, some of the characterizations he drew from the singers in “Rheingold” are vivid. Elisabet Strid’s Freia recalled the title character of the recent opera “Anna Nicole.”'
New York Times
Rheinoper Düsseldorf - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
"Elisabet Strid with her juvenile dramatic soprano voice sang an extremely Elisabeth. A gratifying new generation of Swedish singers."
Magazin OPERA
"One can really feel sorry for poor Elisabet Strid, faltering down the stage with her burning, fire protecting glove. Otherwise, her interpretation of Elisabeth is solid as a rock. Her richly flowing soprano is an authentic Wagner voice with strenght and warmth in dramatic extent and it is exhilarating to let oneself into her brilliant interpretation. Her stage actions are professional and show a true acting density: she convincingly plays the nun, who keeps believing in the future, until Wolfram rapes her, and who slashes her wrists when Tannhäuser doesn't come back. She also credibly plays the young girl, who is falling in love with the adventurously hero instead of withering with the boring Wartburg Knights."
Opernglas/6 - B. Kempen
"Elisabet Strid is an impressive Elisabeth with majestic heights."
Opernwelt - June 2013
Rusalka – RUSALKA – Opera House Göteborg - October 2012
“ Strid as Rusalka is sensational, powerful in the heights but equally good in the lower parts. Moreover she shows an impressing clarity in the long melody lines..“
Göteborgs Posten
“Elisabet Strid - brilliant. Rusalka's intense longing not only shows in her beautiful, soprano voice, rich of nuances but also in her silent play. “
Aftonbaldet
Tannhäuser – ELISABETH –Tampere Festival - March 2012
"Elisabet Strids lyric soprano sparkled crystal-clear.A soft, angelic voice combined with erotic longing."
Helsingin Sanomat
"Elisabet Strid’s youthful soprano voice excelled. Her portrayal of the character is credible and authentic. A world class singer."
Aamulehti
Rusalka - RUSALKA - Teatro de bellas artes Mexico - March 2011
'Elisabet Strid was a wonderul Rusalka with a lovely, well-projected voice, a warm middle register and ringing high notes.
Her exttremely touching "Lied an den Mond" provoked some true magically musical and visual effects. Her acting as equally convincing, especially when she was not singing, expressing Rusalka's feelings, only by gestures and facial expression.'
Operaclick
 
ON STAGE
Royal Opera Copenhagen – Tristan und Isolde – ISOLDE
 
Royal Opera Copenhagen – Tristan und Isolde – ISOLDE
 
ROH London – Der Fliegende Hollaänder – SENTA
 
Teatro de la Maestranza Sevilla – Tristan und Isolde - ISOLDE
Photo: Teatro de la Maestranza / Guillermo Mendo
 
Royal Opera Stockholm - Salome - SALOME
Photo: Sören Vilks Schulze
 
Opernhaus Leipzig / Wagner 22 - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
Photo: Tom Schulze
 
Deutsche Oper Berlin – Die Schatzgräber von Nürnberg - ELS
Photo: Monika Rittershaus
 
Opernhaus Leipzig – Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg - EVA
Photo: Opernhaus Leipzig
 
Göteborgs Operan – Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
 
Göteborgs Operan – Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
 
Israeli Opera Tel Aviv - Salome - SALOME
Photo: Yossi Zwecker
 
Israeli Opera Tel Aviv - Salome - SALOME
Photo: Yossi Zwecker
 
Rheinoper Düsseldorf-Duisburg - Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
 
Rheinoper Düsseldorf-Duisburg - Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
 
Lyric Opera Chicago - Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
 
Lyric Opera Chicago - Die Walküre - SIEGLINDE
 
Leipzig Opera - SALOME
 
Leipzig Opera - SALOME
 
De Vlaamse Opera Antwerpen - Der König Kandaules - NYSSIA
 
De Vlaamse Opera Antwerpen - Der König Kandaules - NYSSIA
 
Semper opera Dresden - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
photograph Matthias Creutziger
 
Semper opera Dresden - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
Elisabet Strid with Georg Zeppenfeld
photograph Matthias Creutziger
 
Semper opera Dresden - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
Elisabet Strid with Georg Zeppenfeld
photograph Matthias Creutziger
 
Semper opera Dresden - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
Elisabet Strid with Stephen Gould
photograph Matthias Creutziger
 
Semper opera Dresden - Tannhäuser - ELISABETH
Elisabet Strid with Stephen Gould and Markus Butter
photograph Matthias Creutziger
 
Michigan Opera House Detroit - Der Fliegende Holländer - SENTA
 
Bayreuther Festspiele - Das Rheingold - FREIA
 
 
 
 
CD/DVD

Leuchtende Liebe
Beethoven & Wagner
Released in 2017

 
INTERVIEWS - PORTRAITS
Elisabet Strid "Leuchtende Liebe" Interview (english)
Elisabet Strid "Leuchtende Liebe" Interview, June 2017 (english)
Interview with Dr. Thomas Baltensweiler OPERNGLAS, April 2015 (deutsch)
www.der-neue-merker.eu 25. July 2013 (deutsch)