Kathryn Meisle (October 14, 1899[1]—January 17, 1970) was an American operatic contralto.
Kathryn Meisle was born in Philadelphia.[2] Her grandfather, Matthew Müssle, originally from Baden-Baden, Germany, settled in Philadelphia in 1848. After naturalization in 1856 he changed his surname to Meisle.[2]
As a child, her father urged her to take piano lessons, sometimes taking multiple lessons a week. When she was fifteen, she was heard by a choir director who offered her a position. Thereafter she commenced vocal study.[2] One of her vocal teachers was Enrica Clay Dillon.[3]
In 1917 she married Calvin M. Franklin (born 1887), an agent who became her manager.[4]
Among the radio shows on which Meisle appeared was the Atwater Kent Radio Hour, which was heard Sunday nights. Meisle earliest appearances on the show appear to date from 1927.[5] Meisle sang at the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1937.[6]
Amneris was again her debut role on June 25, 1929, for the Cologne Opera.[8]
She made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Amneris in Aida on February 28, 1935. Her Met career was brief, with a total of eleven performances from 1935 to 1938 in the roles of Azucena, Fricka, Erda and Waltraute.[9]
Kathryn Meisle
From her earliest years as a professional singer through 1940, Meisle gave numerous recitals across the country.[10]
In 1940, her husband Calvin Monroe Franklin was involved in a car accident. He never recovered and died on July 23, 1941, in Philadelphia. At the time of his death he was secretary of Columbia Concerts Corporation and vice-president of the Arthur Judson concerts service.[11][12][13][14]
