Elise Polko

Emilie Charlotte Elise Polko, née Vogel (31 January 1823 in Leipzig or in Schloß Wackerbarth 'Wackerbarthsruhe' castle, Radebeul, Dresden, Kingdom of Saxony – 15 May 1899 in Munich, German Empire) was a German singer and novelist.

Early life

Elise Vogel was the first child of principal Karl Christoph Vogel and his wife Amalie Lang, who, together with his father-in-law Carl Lang, ran the boys' boarding school established in 1816 in Wackerbarths Ruh' castle near Dresden. In 1824, the family moved to Krefeld, where her father ran the Höhere Stadtschule (later Realgymnasium) until 1832. After 1832, the family moved to Leipzig. There, in addition to a careful education, she also received music lessons from the music director Christian August Pohlenz and the singing professor Friedrich Böhme.

She attained considerable fame as a public and opera singer, she performed in Leipzig, Dresden, Halle and Berlin. Her younger brother, Eduard Vogel, became a renowned astronomer and African explorer and was executed in 1856 in the Sultanate of Wadei, east of Lake Chad, on the orders of the local ruler. The youngest brother, astrophyscist Hermann Carl Vogel, became director of the Astrophysical Observatory at the University of Potsdam.

Singing career

Elise Vogel was one of Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy's friends; she was taken in by Mendelssohn's sister, Fanny Hensel. This circle also included Jenny Lind, Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient, and Rahel Varnhagen von Ense. Polko's voice and her talent aroused Mendelssohn's interest, who supported her as well as Livia Frege. On Mendelssohn's advice, she trained as a singer (mezzo-soprano). She made her first public appearance as a singer on October 18, 1845, at the Leipzig Gewandhaus. She also tried her hand successfully as an opera singer; in December 1847, she went to Paris to complete her vocal studies with Manuel García. Her plan to go on stage was thwarted by changing family circumstances. After the outbreak of the February Revolution in 1848, she returned to Leipzig and performed for the last time at a subscription concert in the Leipzig Gewandhaus on 24 February 1848.