Aase Nordmo Løvberg

Aase Nordmo Løvberg (10 June 1923 – 25 January 2013)^[1] was a Norwegian opera singer. Dagbladet called her "one of Norway's greatest opera singers."^[1] For many years she sang with Jussi Björling, and she also sang under renowned conductors such as Herbert von Karajan.

Aase Nordmo Løvberg
Background information
Born	(1923-06-10)10 June 1923 Målselv, Troms, Norway[1]
Died	25 January 2013(2013-01-25) (aged 89)[1] Lillehammer, Oppland, Norway[1]
Occupation	Opera singer

Life

Løvberg was born in Målselv Municipality, Troms, in 1923.^[1] Her family were farmers.^[2]

Løvberg was married twice: to Gunnar Eilert Løvberg in 1947 and to Børt-Erik Thoresen in 1976.^[3]

Career

Løvberg made her professional début in Oslo in 1948 at the University of Oslo.^[1]

She sang at the Concert Hall in Stockholm during the 1952 Olympics. That year, she moved to Stockholm, where she would live until the 1970.^[1] Jussi Björling and Birgit Nilsson were two of the singers with whom she regularly performed.^[1][2] In 1957, Herbert von Karajan asked Løvberg to perform at the Vienna State Opera. She accepted, making her international debut as Sieglinde in Die Walküre. That year, she was appointed a knight of the first class for the Order of St. Olav.^[1]

Løvberg performed at the Metropolitan Opera and the Covent Garden Opera.^[1]

She became Norway's first professor of singing when the Norwegian Academy of Music opened in 1973. She was director of the Norwegian Opera starting in 1978.^[1]

Later life and legacy

In 1981, she retired from her position as director of the Opera. That year, she was also named a commander of the Order of St. Olav.^[1]

Løvberg lived her last years in Lillehammer Municipality in Oppland county, where she died aged 89.^[1]

She is also a member of the Order of the Polar Star.^[1]