Lashanska, Hulda

Hulda Lashanska was an American soprano on the concert stage chiefly in New York City. In her early days she was a student of Marcella Sembrich.

From the description of Papers, 1908-1971 (bulk 1920-1930). (New York Public Library). WorldCat record id: 122455892

Hulda Lashanska was born on March 15, 1893 in New York City, and died there in January of 1974. She attended Hunter College in New York and studied singing for two years with Frieda Ashford. After her first New York recital in 1909 at the Lyceum Theatre in New York she went to study in Europe for the next two years. Through the influence of Alexander Lambert in 1911 she became a pupil of Marcella Sembrich, and had a great success at her next concert at the Aeolian Hall in New York which launched her career. She sang with the New York Symphony Orchestra under Walter Damrosch, and was also a great success with the Sunday night concerts with the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

Hulda Lashanska married Harold Rosenbaum in the late 1910s and kept her professional name of “Madame Lashanska”. Harold Rosenbaum died in the 1920s. Hulda Lashanska had two daughters (Leonore and Peggy), five grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. Around 1918-19 she recorded for Columbia records, and her record of “Annie Laurie” was particularly successful. She toured the United States in 1925, but primarily gave concerts in New York. Madame Lashanska made duet recording for Columbia with Paul Reimers in 1927, singing lieder by Brahms, Schubert, Hugo Wolf and Richard Strauss. In 1936 Hulda Lashanska gave a concert with the New York Philharmonic under Willem Hoogstraten and John Barbirolli. After 1937 she also began to teach, and another recording was made in 1940 with Kerstin Thorborg. Hulda Lashanska also gave many concerts for charitable causes such as the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, The Musicians Emergency Fund, the Visiting Nurse Service, the Henry Street Settlement, thhe Hudson Guild and the League of Mothers' Clubs of the United Neighborhood Houses.

From the guide to the Hulda Lashanska papers, 1908-1971, 1920-1930, (The New York Public Library. Music Division.)