Ruth Hesse
German dramatic mezzo Ruth Hesse was born in Wuppertal on 18 September 1936. She studied with Peter Offermanns, Hildegard Scharf and in Milan.
She began her career at Theater Lübeck then Staatsoper Hannover, and in 1960 she first appeared at Hamburg State Opera and the Bayreuth Festival. She sang for Deutsche Oper Berlin (1962-1995), learning a broad repertoire, including singing the role Frau von Hufnagel in the first performance of Hans Werner Henze's Der junge Lord on 7 April 1965. She began to appear across Europe in new works, and appeared regularly at Vienna State Opera between 1965 and 1988.
Ruth Hesse retired to Hallstatt, Upper Austria, where she died on 13 July 2024, aged eighty-seven.