Mary Grasenick - Zueignung (Strauss)

with Otto Urack (piano). Vox master 1333 B, rec. Berlin, February 1923. Mary Grasenick is something of an enigma. Although a much-admired concert singers at her time, she obviously never cared for publicity and sought to avoid the limelight whenever possible - which, of course, causes several problems for a singer. Biographically almost nothing is known about her; she just appears during the late teens and delights her listeners for a few years, then she just drops out of view again. It seems that she disliked being photographed quite a bit, and this picture card that turned up in a Dresden antiquities store is about the only proof that there is an actual person behind the name. Even in adverts placed by her agency no information is given - her signature seems to have been enough to do the job ... Mary Grasenick lived in Dresden and seldom left the city if it could be avoided, so it is a small marvel that she recorded at all. Nevertheless, Vox did succeed in coaxing her into a recording studio, where she left a few souvenirs of her art. I think the Strauss song is especially interesting, as Strauss and Grasenick appeared together on a few occasions, and she even created his "Lied der Frauen" op.68,6 (although you guessed correctly - she did not record it).