Olena Falkman

"Olena" Ida Theresia Falkman (22 September 1849 in Stockholm – 13 September 1928 in Stockholm), was a Swedish concert vocalist (alto).

She was born to Carl Johan Falkman, a Swedish official at the Imperial Russian court in Saint Petersburg, and Sofia Albertina Peterson. Her parents were from Sweden, but she was raised in Russia.

Olena Falkman was a student of the Italian vocalist pedagogue Ronconi. Prior to her marriage, she toured Europe with the concert violinist August Wilhelmj. She was advised to contact Richard Wagner in Bayreuth, but she preferred to perform at concerts rather than to be an opera singer. She also toured Scandinavia with the violinist Joseph Joachim.

In 1876, she married Theodor Rabenius, principal at the Uppsala University, and discontinued her career. During her marriage, she did occasionally continued to perform for charity concerts in Uppsala.

Ludvig Norman dedicated the music of theRosa rorans bonitatem to her.

References

• Ida Olena Teresia Falkman (g. Rabenius) by Birgitta Lager, Svenskt biografiskt lexikon , accessed 2014-04-20.