As a Railroad Man, Christopher Strombotne knew the importance of schedules and keeping time. His Hamilton pocket watch was a tool of the trade necessity.

It is a personal mission to discover and understand, validate and maintain family heritage.  A family tree is an obvious means and method. Civic ledger books and Church records are commonly used to validate the verbal recall of relatives during generational passdown. This printed historical documentation has been digitized and access enabled through personal computing.

An example is the military experience of family members who were engaged by World War. There are those who kept memories alive and told all; going so far as to write memoirs,  books, and reminisce at social reunion with others who also shared in the experience. They re-live those years which they consider to be an important part  (if not the highlight) of their lifetime.

Those family members that I knew who served, had vivid memories as well but there was a difference. They didn’t wish their lives to be defined by this particular event and in an effort to move on, their war stories were seldom a topic of casual conversation. Those of us eager to know “what it was like” gathered the anecdotal tidbits over time.

With the internet and the availability of declassified military reports it is now possible to the retrace events as a virtual itinerary.  This timeline validates the first person recount and adds clarification to bigger picture understanding.

Browsable portals such as the WWII Archives Foundation and this enthusiast collection contain reams of raw data.  The above view is a snapshot sample of a war diary of a naval warship observing the hour to hour defensive or offensive exploits in the Pacific Theatre.  Another example illustrates an Army Air Force sortie in Europe. This becomes especially interesting knowing that family relatives were involved during these recordings. Putting it altogether as a retelling the memory can be preserved.

An oldtime 78 rpm record was recently uncovered and saved to digital format (Thanks MLS). It is an heirloom preserved. The voice in the recording belongs to Grandmother Strombotne as she sings — Elegy. It was produced in 1948. The vocals are in French so if one wishes to follow along; there is an English translation.

The Elegy by Jules Massenet was a popular melodie in Europe in the last decade of the nineteenth century. At some point it was adapted to lyrics by Louis Gallet

Ô, doux printemps d’autre fois, vertes saisons,
Vous avez fui pour toujours!
Je ne vois plus le ciel bleu;
Je n’entends plus les chants joyeux des oiseaux!
En emportant mon bonheur, mon bonheur…
Ô bien-amé, tu t’en es allé!
Et c’est en vain que [le printemps revient!]1
Oui, sans retour,
avec toi, le gai soleil,
Les jours riants sont partis!
Comme en mon coeur tout est sombre et glacé!
Tout est flétri
pour toujours!

 Elegy by Elsa Strombotne

0:01:46 MP3 128kbps 1.62MB

Such a beautiful voice.  Grandmother Strom was active in her community and taught voice to her music pupils.

Artists Review

Mme. Strombotne, who received her early training in Denmark, has one of those round-toned, bell-like voices that seem to be the prerogative of Scandinavian sopranos. It is the kind of voice Wagner wrote for, and her ‘Elsa’s Dream’ from ‘Lohengrin’ had the right quality. Her low range is unusually strong. No voice can retain its full glow, especially in high notes and pianissimos, but there was a warmth of mature interpretation to make up. A greater drawback was deviation in pitch in the more brilliant numbers. The simple and direct songs came over best, lovely songs that everybody used to sing and that have been neglected lately: Schumann’s ‘Du Bist Wie Eine Blume’, Grieg’s ‘En Svane’, Quilter’s ‘Go Lovely Rose’. It is not often that a singer’s strongest impression is made in the opening selection, but Handel’s ‘O Mio Cor’ had a rich vocal line…

pianissimos : a passage played, sung, or spoken very softly

Music of the West Magazine

Harold Kay (left) president of the Peninsula Artists and Opera Association,
congratulates pianist Mortimer Markoff and soprano Elsa Strombotne and
her accompanist, LeRoy Miller following their concert
in Palo Alto in March which was sponsored by the Association.

May 1959 Issue

“The final concert in the Peninsula Artists series on March 20 introduced to local audiences mezzo-soprano Elsa Strombotne in a joint program with Mortimer Markoff, well-known Palo Alto pianist. The policy of presenting new artists with those already established is beneficial for all concerned.

Mme.  Strombotne is a vocalist with the range, Wagnerian power and freshness we have come to expect from Scandinavian singers. The size of her voice, free from vibrato, suggests a career in opera and oratorio but as a recitalist she proved to be a sensitive interpreter, at home in many styles. The soprano’s pitch is not always flawless and she needs to curb an urge to take all top tones fortissimo. Her English diction can be improved upon. LeRoy Miller contributed sound accompaniments.”

* * *

mezzo-soprano is the middle vocal range for women, comparable to the baritone range among men. The word mezzo means medium or middle in Italian, and usually refers to female singers with characteristics of both alto and soprano singers. The classic mezzo soprano has the ability to reach high notes, usually up to the C two octaves above middle C, while retaining a richer timbre of voice similar to that of a deeper-ranged alto.

vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music.

fortissimo : very loud

Hear one of Elsa Strombotne’s recordings…